The Siberian Paleolithic site of Mal'ta: a unique source for the study of childhood archaeology

As a gendered perspective has emerged in wider society over the past 50 or so years, a greater interest in gender- and age-related research in science has similarly occurred, including for the study of the past (archaeology) and the present (ethnology). Here, I focus on the Mal'ta collection – a well-known Ice Age site located in Siberia. In particular, I focus on several mammoth ivory anthropomorphic sculptures which appear to reflect stages of human childhood, including infancy and the teenage years. These sculptures feature realistic elements, including proportions of each phase of childhood consistent with anthropometric data, details of clothing and accessories, and special benchmarks of puberty. Based on these figurines, I propose a developmental framework of the Paleolithic child from this society. Additionally, I discuss the burial of two children also found at Mal'ta, which provides additional insights into childhood within this Ice Age society. Particular attention is given to artefacts such as the ‘hanging birds’ and animal figurines with a flat base for standing. These artefacts could be interpreted as toys, as amulets for a child's cradle or as family heirlooms, with analogies to such objects preserved in the cultures of the aboriginal population of Siberia and the Far North.