Photography collections of the Tunguska expedition in the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (RAS)

Abstract

The article is devoted to analysis of the photo archive of the Russian ethnographer A. B. Vasil’ev, collecting in the composition of the Tunguska expeditions 1927-1928 materials on the culture of the Orochi, Tungus, Nivkh of the Amur and Sakhalin, to fix its features on photos that are stored in the scientific archive of the Museum of anthropology and Ethnography of RAS (Kunstkamera). The article introduces for the first time the scientific circulation of archival sources: the photos of the Vassiliev, made in the places of residence of the Orochi in the basin of the river Tumnin. The photos depict Oroch settlements and dwellings, especially life, economy, occupations, beliefs and holidays, shows the degree of cultural influence on the Orochi of Russian immigrants. B. A. Vasiliev not only collected field material about the beliefs, cults and holidays of the Orochi, but in his articles, in the manuscript of his thesis, drew ethnic and cultural parallels with similar views and rituals of other peoples of the Lower Amur, Sakhalin, the Far East, Siberia, East Asia, North America. The scientist made a thorough comparative analysis of the bear festival of the Orochi, for the first time in the history of science developed the concept of the existence of two of its variants: the more ancient, after the extraction of the beast in the fishery, characteristic of the entire Eurasian-American cultural layer and the later associated with the cultivation of the beast in captivity and the subsequent festive ritual. In conclusion, the article concludes that the Oroch photographs of the Tunguska expedition of 1927-1928 are the most valuable sources for the culture of one of the Tungus-Manchurian peoples of The lower Amur, which currently differ significantly from their ethnic appearance of the first third of the 20th century.