A collection of haunting death masks from an ancient Siberian warrior race living over 1,500 years ago, have been unearthed.

The discovery was made in a giant tomb in Kemerovo region with the remains belonging to the mysterious Tashtyk people, famed for their elaborate funeral rites.

Fragments of as many as 20 death masks made of a soft mineral called gypsum were found in a crypt along with the bodies of 30 adults.

A collection of haunting death masks from an ancient Siberian warrior race living over 1,500 years ago in Kemerovo region, have been unearthed. A large fragment of one mask is pictured above

Russian scientists hope to reassemble some of the masks to provide new insights into how these people looked.

Previously unearthed Tashtyk death masks are among the most prized possessions of Russian museums including the Hermitage in St Petersburg.

Some experts have expressed surprise that members of this warrior race, which held sway in a large swathe of Siberia from the second century BC to the 6th century AD, had a European rather than Asian appearance.

Russian scientists hope to reassemble some of the masks to provide new insights into how these people looked. Two fine examples of Tashtyk death masks are shown above, left and right

The discovery was made in a giant tomb in Kemerovo region with the remains belonging to the mysterious Tashtyk people, famed for their elaborate funeral rites. An image of the burial is shown

Dr Pavel German, who led the excavation said the masks were made soon after death and placed with cremated human remains in the Shestakovo-3 crypt, marked on this map

Dr Pavel German, who led the excavation said the masks were made soon after death and placed with cremated human remains in the Shestakovo-3 crypt.

‘The remains were put inside dummy bodies made of leather or fabric.

‘Next the gypsum mask - showing the likeness of the recently departed man or woman - was put on the dummy,’ he told The Siberian Times.

‘We have here a lot of fragments, but we hope to restore them.

‘For example we've got rather big fragment - half of one mask,’ said Dr German, from the Institute of Human Ecology in Kemerovo.

Some experts have expressed surprise that members of this warrior race, which held sway in a large swathe of Siberia from the second century BC to the 6th century AD, had a European rather than Asian appearance. Fragments of approximately 20 masks were found at the burial site, pictured here from afar

‘This crypt was very large, and we spent two seasons excavating it,’ Dr Pavel German said. This image above shows ceramic vessels at the entrance to the spaceous crypt

‘This crypt was very large, and we spent two seasons excavating it.’

He explained that to make the burial chamber, the people first ‘dug a hole in the ground, built a stone wall around it, made a decking and covered this with logs.

‘Then gradually the crypt was filled with the dummies (containing the remains of the dead).

‘They held some rites there, funeral feasts.’

ELABORATE BURIAL PRACTICES OF THE TASHTYK CULTURE A prime example of a Tashtyk death mask is shown Large barrow crypt structures have been unearthed in Siberia. They yielded clay and metal vessels as well as ornaments. A number of rock carvings have also been found. Some of the graves contained leather models of human bodies with their heads wrapped in tissue and brightly painted. Inside the dummies there were small leather bags probably symbolising the stomach and containing burned human bones. Miniature replicas of swords, arrows and bows were placed nearby. Oglahty cemetery south of Minusinsk revealed mummies with decorated funerary masks showing Western features as well as fur hats, silk clothes and shoes. Advertisement

To make the burial chamber (one view shown above)the people first ‘dug a hole in the ground, built a stone wall around it, made a decking and covered this with logs, before filling it with dummies

Remains of children without death masks (one pictured above) were found buried outside of the crypt nearby. The reason for their exclusion from the crypt is not clear, according to the experts

Remains of children without death masks were found buried outside of the crypt nearby.

The reason for their exclusion from the crypt is not clear.

‘The children mostly were not cremated, at least until the age of five and they were not buried inside the crypt as a rule. We have here several children burials near the wall of the crypt,’ Dr German said.

At some point, he thinks the crypt was robbed because treasures normally found in such burial plots are not present.

‘The children mostly were not cremated, at least until the age of five and they were not buried inside the crypt as a rule. We have here several children burials near the wall of the crypt,’ Dr German said. One is shown

At some point, Dr German thinks the crypt was robbed because treasures normally found in such burial plots are not present. A selection of bronze objects recovered from the site is shown above