The Gor-Dun Precursor Culture
Many believe that, because of their present lack of any
high culture, the Gor-Dun have never been more than they are. However, wandering across the steppes will
make the open mind wonder anew. There
are strange monoliths and petroglyphs, humps resembling the burial mounds found
elsewhere in Genertela, and in the most parched areas ranks of stakes on small
hillocks.
It is the purpose of this paper to indicate that there
was once a culture, or series of cultures, spread across Pent. I hope that the department will look upon
this with generosity of spirit, and will not dismiss it as has been my
experience with my previous three monographs.
In the names and power of Irippi Ontor, Bright Arrow Of
Truth, and She Who Guards Us.
Site 1 (Named as
Falber Hill By my Red Haired guards)
But one day's travel east of the Place of Surrender, this
mound was surmounted by three small monoliths, each about half the height of a
human. The monoliths were quite smooth,
with engravings on the sides facing outwards from the centre of the mound. These engravings were identical, being of the
form
- -
I
I I
which I suggest is a stylised Gopher face.
I first invoked protective wards against any remnant
curses, wary of the terrible Fist Of Pain, removed the monoliths (which may now
be viewed in Annex 3B) and laid out a
standard Buserian Grid Of Inquiry over the mound. Our Divine Master guided the process of the
dig, which resulted in laying bare a burial site.
The ashes of the deceased were sealed within a pear-shaped
ceramic vessel, and accompanied by the following grave goods: A notched spear-thrower, engraved with a
stylised gopher
A
stone statuette of a pregnant female human
Multiple
flint arrowheads
These may also be viewed in Annex 3B.
Site 2 (Not named by my guides)
A further lunation’s ride to the north east revealed a
cliff whose lower portions were covered in petroglyphs. The great majority of these were very
rudimentary depictions of bison and mammoth.
There was, however, one very interesting inclusion of a
reindeer with a solar disc impaled on its antlers, pursued by a human on
skis! Is it too much to conjecture that
this might be the Gor-Dun myth of the loss and return of Yelm Invictus?
Site 3 (Named by
the guides, but I was placed under a gaeas not to reveal it)
Avoiding a Korer raiding party, we took refuge in the lee
of a hill, which revealed itself to be a shaft grave! On my own, I was insufficient to lay out an
effective Grid Of Inquiry over the whole hill, and had to undertake excavation
in a less than adequate style. However,
Our Immortal Teacher led me to an inner chamber after but three nights of
excavation. This chamber was about eight
paces across, and rooved throughout with mammoth bones, which proved sturdy
after who knows how many years? (My
request for information failing to elicit The Great Lecturer’s grace)
Within were found six pots of the type encountered at
Site 1, accompanied by a scattering of ivory shards and flint arrow heads. Here, however, each pot bore upon it the
symbols noted on the monoliths from Site 1, painted in red. I conjecture these to be the spirit forms of
the dead, but they were long past contacting, or so it seemed.
The night after opening the chamber our camp was attacked
by six ghosts howling unknown words.
They were weak, and easily driven off.
Site 4 (Un-named)
A series of nine monoliths across a valley. These were rough and uncarved, and in two
cases shattered. However, the fact that
they were perfectly aligned indicates sentient origin.
Site 5 (Un-named)
After two lunations journey to the east, into a most arid
region, we came across a complex site with three mounds, a hillock bisected by
a line of stakes; and numerous petroglyphs of gophers, humans, hsunchenised
human-gophers, bison and mammoths. While
the petroglyphs deserve no special description (although small examples may be
found in Annex 3B) the other four deserve special mention. In many ways, this was the most productive site,
although seemingly of a quite different culture, or possibly two cultures.
5A The
first mound was highly resistant to the Buserian Grid, and there were numerous
wards and curses still active. Once
penetrated it proved to be a funerary mound, but the five persons buried were
all intact skeletons. One appeared to be
male, with the remains of a heavy wooden shield and long bone spear. Next to him were eight flint spearheads,
covered in a reddish powder.
The other four appeared to be female, with numerous
armlets and anklets of pierced beads.
5B The
second mound was poorly built and had collapsed inwards long ago. Using this weak point, I was able to safely
unearth three skeletons, all arrayed as per the presumed females in 5A.
5C The
third mound had no active defences, which was a surprise given the
contents. It appeared to be a female
shamanic individual, with a variety of unusual items which may be viewed in
Annex 3C. The remnants of a cloak
appeared to have been covered in circles of ivory, each marked with unknown
runes. Some of these contain animal
spirits. She also had a copper hand
mirror of Sairdite manufacture, bearing on the reverse a scene of three dogs
chasing around the exterior and Jajagappa the accursed in the centre. A well preserved leather cauldron was
flattened and used as a pillow.
5D The
hillock was bisected north/south by the stakes, which averaged two hand spans
beneath and four above the soil. Many
had fallen, and several showed signs of fire-hardening of the tips.
North of the line there were no finds, whereas south of
the line there were fifteen pot burials.
The pots were long and tubular (Cf Annex 3C) and filled with the bones
of the deceased. No other grave goods
were to be found.
There being no time remaining for further explorations we
returned to the Red Hair Place swiftly, and thence to this temple.
I believe that there can be no cause for doubting that
the exhumed dead were Gor-Dun, nor that the cultures indicated were higher than
that which we at present see. I would
conjecture that either their culture collapsed under Gamatae pressure, or that
we do not see all of their present culture.
I request funding for a further expedition in the coming
season.
Delardios Caranhir, Field Researcher Minor.
