The Mal’ta figurines belong to a tradition that archaeologists call the “Venus figurine” tradition, after the most famous examples from Upper Paleolithic Europe.

The European Venus figurines range across a wide geographic area — from western France through central and eastern Europe into Russia — and span a significant time range within the Upper Paleolithic.

They share certain stylistic conventions: emphasis on the torso, particularly the breasts and hips, often with the face, hands, and feet given less attention.

They are made from a variety of materials including stone, bone, and ivory.

The discovery that a similar figurine tradition existed at Mal’ta, in south-central Siberia, had been puzzling since Gerasimov first excavated them.