28 March 2024 The Future is the Product of the Past

New evidence for early regional exchanges in Eurasia: Ice skates made of animal bones over 3,000 years old

Chinese archaeologists have discovered ancient ice skates made of animal bones at the Gaotai Ruins in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in northwestern China.

Announcing the incredible find at a recent press conference, researchers said the ancient skates were created from ox and horse bones and are likely to be over 3,000 years old.

Xinjiang, located at the crossroads of China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, is a mountainous region widely regarded as the birthplace of skiing. Cave paintings discovered in the Altai mountain range around 10,000 years ago appear to depict hunters on skis, while the Altai people who live in the area maintain an ancient tradition of hand-crafting wooden skis for transportation.

The skates were discovered in a tomb from the 16th and 15th centuries BC in the Gaotai Ruins, about 240 miles (385 kilometers) west of the regional capital Ürümqi, according to Ruan Qiurong, a researcher with the regional institute of cultural relics and archaeology in Xinjiang.

It is unknown if the skates were used for daily transportation or for hunting. They are made of a straight piece of bone with holes drilled into it at either end, allowing them to be fastened to shoes. In contrast to modern skates, the resulting “blade” is incredibly flat, but it served as a cutting edge that made it possible for the wearer to glide across the ice.

Photo: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
Photo: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology

Though it’s unclear whether the ice skates were used for hunting, transportation, or something else, archaeologists say they’re very similar to bone skates discovered in ancient Europe. They claim that this demonstrates clear evidence of communication between China and Europe during the Bronze Age.

The discovery offers new evidence for early regional exchanges in Eurasia and provides precious materials for studying the origins of skating in China, says Ruan.

Dozens of wooden vehicle parts, including 11 solid wooden wheels, were also discovered at the burial site, along with hundreds of pottery pieces, stone tools, animal bones, and bronzeware, among other relics.

Buried wooden vehicle parts. Photo: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
Buried wooden vehicle parts. Photo: Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology

“Judging by the scattered pieces, we believe that these wooden vehicle parts were deserted by their owners, detached on purpose, and buried during establishing the tomb,” excavation team leader Ruan Qiurong reportedly explained at the press conference.

The Gaotai Ruins are “the largest, highest-[class], and best-preserved stone tomb architectural remains of the Bronze Age found in Xinjiang and even the Eurasian [landmass],” according to the Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology.

Cover Photo: An animal bone skate unearthed from Gaotai Ruins. Xinjiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology

Related Articles

For the first time in Turkish history, a gold belt buckle depicted the face of a Göktürk Khagan found

19 December 2023

19 December 2023

A social complex (Külliye) and new artifacts from the Western Gokturk period were discovered in Kazakhstan. Among these items, a...

The 8,000-year-old Aslantepe in Turkey has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List

26 July 2021

26 July 2021

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Monday that a rich, 30-meter-high archaeological mound going back 8,000 years in southern Turkey has...

A mysterious lead tablet with an unknown 13th-14th-century script: Might be an old Lithuanian script?

26 February 2024

26 February 2024

In the Museum of the Palace of the Grand Dukes in Vilnius, Lithuania, a mysterious lead tablet dating back to...

A Unique 2000-Year-Old Oil Lamp Found in Israel

5 May 2021

5 May 2021

Archaeologists have discovered a rare 2,000-year-old oil lamp in David, Jerusalem. Archaeologists have discovered a rare oil lamp, shaped like...

‘Bakery Prison’ found in Ancient Rome’s Pompeii

12 December 2023

12 December 2023

Archaeologists working on the ongoing excavations in Region IX, Insula 10, near the slopes of the ancient city of Pompeii,...

Archaeologists have found a previously unknown Roman city with buildings of monumental proportions in Spain’s Aragon Region

17 July 2022

17 July 2022

Archaeologists from the University of Zaragoza in Spain have discovered a previously unknown Roman city with buildings of monumental proportions....

800-year-old Jin dynasty palace complex found in Beijing Olympic Village

9 February 2022

9 February 2022

While building the athletes’ Olympic Village for this year’s Winter Games in Beijing, China found the remains of an ancient...

An amateur archeologist has discovered a Roman war site

1 November 2021

1 November 2021

Thanks to the insistence of an amateur archaeologist, a Roman battlefield in Switzerland has been identified. Shortly before the birth...

The discovery of a 380-million-year-old heart sheds new light on our bodies’ evolution

16 September 2022

16 September 2022

Researchers from Curtin University have discovered the world’s oldest heart in a ‘beautifully preserved’ ancient jawed fish fossil 380 million...

‘Lost’ 4,000-year-old wedge tomb rediscovered in Ireland

22 January 2024

22 January 2024

A “lost” 4,000-year-old wedge tomb has been rediscovered in County Kerry, in the peninsular southwest region of Ireland. The megalithic...

Pendants and beads reveal nine European Cultures living across the continent 30,000 years ago

1 February 2024

1 February 2024

In a new study, researchers have constructed a continent-wide database of personal ornaments worn by Europeans 34,000-24,000 years ago, a...

Excavations in Poland uncover Goth graves filled with ornate jewellery

17 August 2023

17 August 2023

A 2,000-year-old Goth burial site filled with ancient jewels has been discovered in Wda Landscape Park (Wdecki Park Krajobrazowy) near...

Early Imperial cemetery in Nîmes, in the south of France

4 October 2022

4 October 2022

Inrap archaeologists excavating at Nîmes in southern France have uncovered a cemetery dating to the first to second centuries AD...

1,600-year-old Roman-era wine shop unearthed in Greece

29 January 2024

29 January 2024

A team led by Scott Gallimore of Wilfrid Laurier University and Martin Wells of Austin College discovered a 1,600-year-old Roman-era...

Neo-Assyrian underground complex discovered under a house in southeastern Turkey

11 May 2022

11 May 2022

An underground Iron Age complex has been found in Turkey that may have been used by a fertility cult during...