1428 RUSSIA (Republic of Karelia) - Cape Besov Nos petroglyphs - part of Petroglyphs of Lake Onega and the White Sea (UNESCO WHS - Tentative List)

In addition to the Pogost Kizhi, Lake Onega has another well known and very interesting site, placed on Cape Besov Nos (Devil's nose), on the eastern coast of the lake: about 1200 petroglyphs scattered over the 20 km area. The engravings are 1-2 mm deep, depict animals, people, boats and geometrical shapes of circular and crescent shapes, and date back to 4th-2nd millennia BC. The main part of this petroglyphs have been found at the western sector of the site. The bedrock here has many color anomalies, cracks and upheavals which makes the place very attractive.

Descriptions from previous centuries tell about the hollow sound coming from the inside of the rock when working around it. One peculiarity of Besov Nos carvings is also the abundance of unique petroglyphs. Also common figures here have unique features which has brought on still more discussion about the meaning. The central figure of the panel is the Devil (in Russian: Bes), which has given the contemporary name to the cape, peninsula and to the village on the hill. Thus it has been known to local inhabitants for a very long time.

Unfortunately none of the legends connected with the carvings have survived. The petroglyphs have been known also to the monks of the nearby Muromski monastery about 30 km to the south. This was established to help fight the "pagan" beliefs and, also, to establish Christianity in the region. The monks have constructed an orthodox cross on the left hand of Devil christening it in such a way some 500 years ago.

They are part of the site Petroglyphs of Lake Onega and the White Sea, proposed for the Tentative List of UNESCO WHS. These petroglyphs are the unique samples of primitive monumental art that are among the most important ancient cultural and historical attractions of the Northern Europe. They form an individual major centre of Neolithic rock art characterized by originality and mystery of its pictures, diversity of themes, vivid imagery, abundance of scenes and multi-figure compositions, good preservation, exceptionally expressive natural surroundings and cultural context represented by nearby ancient settlements.

About the stamps
The first four stamps, depicting the rabbit (0.25; 0,10; and 0,15 RUB) and the lynx (2.50 RUB), are part of a definitive series about which I wrote here.

The last stamp is part of a series depicting the mascots of XXII Olympic and XI Paralympic Games in Sochi 2014 (all with the same face values, 20 RUB):
• Leopard
• Hare (Zayka)
• Polar Bear (Mishka) - it's on the postcard
• Snowflake and Ray

References
Western Site at Besov Nos, by Väino Poikalainen - helsinki.fi

Sender: Max Maksimov (direct swap)
Sent from Petrozavodsk (Republic of Karelia / Russia), on 28.01.2014
Photo: B. Konanova