Having analyzed of fibulae four chronological periods in the usage of the burial ground Chervony Mayak can be distinguished: the early stage (the second half of the 2nd century BC — the first half of the 1st century BC); the second stage (the second half of the 1st century BC — the first half of the 1st century AD) which is the time of appearance of the first Roman imports; the third «stage of heyday» (the second half of the 1st — the first half of the 2nd century AD) — the time of increase of population at the settlement, the emergence of the «Eastern wave» of Sarmatian migration and the Sarmatization of the Late Scythian culture; the final stage (the second half of 2nd century — the first half of the 3rd century AD), the time of the last Late Scythian funerals on the Chervony Mayak necropolis. The comparison of the number of fibulae with gender of the buried allows to research some patterns of the Late Scythian costume. The chronology of fibulae shows that one catacomb could be used for collective funeral no more than 50 years.
The Late Scythian archaeological complex Chervony Mayak (past name is Bizyukiv monastery) is situated near the eponymous village of Beryslav district in Kherson region. It consists of the hill-fort and burial ground and is the historical and cultural site of national importance (by official ranking). The site is known since the nineteenth century. It was mentioned in the works of prince Myshetsky and N.F. Nogachevsky. The first plan of the hill-fort was taken by the military engineer A.P. Chirkov, and Kherson archaeologist V.I. Goshkevich has made the description and map of the site. The first graves were discovered randomly in nineteenth century in the monastery yard and southward of it. In 1975 the burial ground, known today as Chervony Mayak necropolis, has been discovered northeastward of the hill-fort. It was partly explored in 1976-1977 and during 1986-1988 by Moscow archaeologists Drs. Erast Symonovich and Olga Gei. In total they excavated 108 burials. Since 2011 the burial ground is studied by the Late Scythian expedition of the Institute of Archaeology of NASU headed by Dr. Aleksandr Symonenko. The funerary constructions of Chervony Mayak necropolis are represented by catacombs (crypts) with multiple and single burials (107), niche graves (25) and rectangular or oval pits (35). Among the grave goods there were iron weapons (long swords, spear-and arrow-heads), Roman red-slip fine ware and Scythian hand-made pottery, gold earrings, bronze adornment and personal items (fibulae, bracelets, mirrors), necklaces made of carnelian, jade, amber, and glass beads. Some graves contained the items typical for the Baltic Germanic cultures. Earliest burials of the necropolis were accompanied by the fibulae of Mid-La Tène scheme and can be dated to the late 2 nd -1 st centuries BC. The Roman imported goods (red-slip pottery and fibulae) allow us to date the most of graves to the 1 st -first half of the 2 nd century AD. Several assemblages ought to be dated to the late 2nd -first half of the 3 rd century AD.
Introduction. In 2007 the archaeological expedition of the State Autonomic Cultural Facility of Rostov Region “The Don Heritage” excavated burial ground Krasny IV in Aksay district of Rostov Region. In the mound of barrow No. 13 a bronze rod-shaped frontlet plate with a hook, a bronze lunula-shaped harness pendant, six bronze bridle roundels, a bone cheek-piece, and iron fragments of the, most likely, bits have been discovered. Methods and materials. In the study the standard methods of archaeological analysis are used: comparative-typological, the method of analogies, chronological, and cartographic ones. The materials are the discovered artifacts. Analysis. According to the conditions of location and composition, the assemblage from barrow No. 13 can be identified as a ritual deposit. Such assemblages are known in special literature as “hoards”, “strange assemblages” or “votive hoards”. They have been found in mounds of barrows or in natural hills without traces of human burials. Usually they consist of cauldrons or situlae (often the rest items are put into them), bridle sets with peculiar frontlet plate with a hook, silver and bronze phalerae, helmets of Western types, weapons (most often spear- and arrowheads), expensive and socially prestigious items (silver and glassware, jewelry). The presence of all these items in the ritual deposit is not necessary. These sites are concentrated in geographically opposite regions: the basins of the Southern Bug, Dniester and Prut and in the east of European Sarmatia – in the AzovDonbass, Don and Kuban basins, the Lower Volga basin and North Caucasus. Results. Close parallels to the frontlet plate, bronze lunula-shaped pendant, and bridle roundels were found in the South Bug basin (Marievka), the Dniester and Prut interfluve (Brãviceni), Romania (Zimnicea), the North Caucasus (Prochnookopskaya, Geymanovsky, Giaginskaya), the Don and Volga interfluve (Kachalinskaya). All of these sites are identified as ritual deposits of the late 2nd – 1st centuries BC. The assemblage from barrow No. 13 should be dated to the same time. The ritual deposits of Eastern Europe could be divided into two chronologically different groups. The sites of the early group (3rd – early 2nd century BC) have appeared in the North Caucasus and concentrated in the North-Western Pontic region. It is assumed that they belong to the Хsaiai, Saudaratai and Thissamatai mentioned in the Olbian decree in honor of Protogenes. The sites of the late group (the late 2nd – 1st centuries BC) in the Northern Pontic Region, the Don basin, the North Caucasus and adjacent territories belong, most likely, to the Sarmatians.
The steppe and part of the forest-steppe of modern Ukraine since the 2nd century BC till the 4th century AD were the place of residence of the numerous Sarmatian tribes. The Sarmatian studies are one of the actual research fields of Ukrainian and foreign archaeologists. The article analyses the study of Sarmatian culture of North Pontic region since the time of the first finds of Sarmatian sites untill the present. The author proposes to survey the development of Ukrainian Sarmatian studies in two directions: field exploration and the theoretical interpretation of archaeological material. The article presents the history of the finds of Sarmatian culture and the review of points of view of main scholars on the various problems of Sarmatian archeology. The history of Ukrainian Sarmatian studies is associated with the names of T. G. Obolduyeva, E. V. Makhno, M. I. Vyazmitina, A. V. Symonenko, M. B. Shchukin, V. I. Kostenko, O. M. Dzygovski, M. M. Fokeyev. The Sarmatians of Moldova were fundamentally studied by E. A. Rickman and V. I. Grosu. In total in the North Pontic region by the end of XX century 1256 burials and individual finds of Sarmatian culture were known. Among them the burials of the «kings» and «queens» near the villages of Pogory and Vesnyane, in the Sokolova Mohyla and Nohayichik barrows were excavated. The fundamental works of Prof. M. I. Rostovtsev were the first attempt to summarize the historical and archaeological sources of the Sarmatians of North Pontic region. The scholars of the Institute of Archeology of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine SSR Drs. T. G. Obolduyiva in the fifties of the twentieth century and M. I. Vyazmitina — in the sixties — seventies were at the source of the Ukrainian Sarmatian studies. The Sarmatian culture of the North Pontic region became the latest subject of scientific studies by K. F. Smirnov. Since the beginning of the eighties the new generation of researchers was involved to the Sarmatian studies in Ukraine and Dr. A. V. Simonenko became the leader. He has reconstructed the ethnic and politic history of the Sarmatians of the North Pontic region, proposed the new chronology of the Sarmatian Age, the essay on the culture and art of the Sarmatians was written by him. In several monographs of Dr. Symonenko and their reprints the Roman imported products from the North Pontic Sarmatian graves were studied, and the armaments, horse equipment and the military affairs of the Sarmatians were analyzed.
During the campaigns of 1951 and 1953 Dmytro Berezovets excavated the Sarmatian graves near the Kut, Hrushivka and Marianske villages of Apostolovski district of Dnipropetrovsk region. These materials were published briefly, without typological and chronological definitions and analysis of the historical context, with illustrations of rather low quality. Moreover, there was some confusion and errors later made by some researchers, including the author, which have been replicated with each reference. Therefore, it is worthy to republish these materials from the standpoint of the current level of the Sarmatian studies in order to correct certain errors as well. Dmytro Berezovets has discovered the assemblages both of Early Sarmatian (Kut, Hrushivka, Maryanske, barrow 3, grave 4) and Middle Sarmatian Age (Marianske, barroow 5, graves 5—7; barrow 5, grave 6; barrow 6, grave 14) according to traditional chronology. All Sarmatian burials under study were the secondary graves in the Bronze Age mounds and Scythian ones. The skeletons lied supine, with their heads directed to Northern sector. Among the grave goods are the Roman and Sarmatiam pottery, simple bronze adornment, cornelian, jade and glass beads, bronze mirror, bone ritual spoon etc. The Early Sarmatian assemblages discovered by Dmytro Berezovets are dated to the late 2nd—1st century BC, the Middle Sarmatiam ones to the 1st—2nd centuries AD. The identical funeral rite of the graves of different date near Marianske once again confirms the validity of the periodization proposed by me in due time, according to which all the graves under study belong to different phases of the first period (phase A2 — Kut, Hrushivka, Marianske, barrow 3, grave 4; phase B — Marianske, barrow 3, graves 5—7; barrow 5, grave 6; barrow 6, grave 14).
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