The Crimean expedition of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, during excavations on the future highway "Tavrida" near Sevastopol, discovered an untouched Late Scythian burial ground of the 2nd-4th centuries AD. The artifacts found will help restore the history of the Crimea of the Roman period and recreate the picture of the life of the late Scythians, their culture, traditions and rituals, the press service of the institute said.
There is very little information about the past of Crimea (or Taurida) in ancient written sources, and its history in the period of late antiquity is full of blank spots. Therefore, archaeological excavations are of particular importance. This year, the Crimean Novostroiye expedition of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences led by Sergei Vnukov discovered in the Sevastopol region, on the left bank of the Belbek River, an untouched necropolis called "Front 3" - after the name of the nearest village. The necropolis has been completely preserved and therefore is of particular interest to scientists who have had the opportunity to explore intact burial sites at a modern level.
The necropolis dates back to the 2nd-4th centuries AD. The population of the Western Crimea in Roman times was very heterogeneous. The descendants of the Greek colonists lived in Chersonesos, the descendants of the Taurus lived in the mountains, and the descendants of the Scythians lived in the steppes of the northwestern part of the peninsula until the 2nd century AD, who moved from the Northern Black Sea region and switched to a sedentary lifestyle.
“Now it is difficult to say who the people buried in the Front 3 necropolis were once,” the message says. The valley of the Belbek River, where the burials were discovered, in late antiquity was a contact zone for many peoples: the descendants of the autochthonous Taurus, the carriers of the steppe cultures (late Scythians, then the Sarmatians), the Germanic Goths lived here, and all these communities were strongly influenced by the Greek Chersonesos. The local culture was largely eclectic, as evidenced by finds from the burial ground. Burial methods and objects found in them indicate different cultural influences: Scythian, Sarmatian, Greek and Gothic. “It is obvious that the burial ground accurately reflects the turbulent historical events of this period,” archaeologists note.
Late Scythian burial ground of the 2nd-4th centuries AD, found during excavations on the future highway “ Tavrida ” in the region of Sevastopol. June 29, 2018 / Institute of Archeology RAS.
The early burials of the necropolis date back to the end of the 2nd - first half of the 3rd century AD. Most are pit graves, which consist of a vertical entrance well and a niche - a burial chamber, arranged in one of the walls. The buried were laid on their backs, dishes, glass vessels, knives were usually placed at the head, and food was placed there for the deceased "on a long journey." Then the entrance to the cell was covered with stones.
Women's burials differed from men's in the set of objects. In women there are more jewelry - beads, bracelets, earrings, glass bottles, spindle whorls are often found there, but there are no weapons. In the male burials there are no earrings and rings (only sometimes large rings and single large beads are found), but there may be weapons and a horse bridle.
So, in one of the burials, archaeologists found near the head of the deceased a jug, a glass balsamarium (bottle for incense), an amphora, a knife, on the chest - a necklace of glass, jet, amber beads, and under the collarbone - three golden bay leaves (probably from the Greek gold funeral wreath). Also in the burial they found glass beads, with which clothes were once embroidered, two brooches and two buckles, a glass mug, and next to them were rings and belt buckles.
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Among the finds in early burials, a ring with a carnelian insert-seal and a gold thread with a teardrop-shaped pendant and a carnelian insert edged with grain stand out. The closest analogues were found in the necropolis of Chersonesos.
As it turned out during the excavations, the necropolis was gradually expanding to the south and east. Most of the graves of the second half of the 3rd and early 4th centuries AD were also undercut, but other burial structures also appeared: ground graves with shoulders - ledges, on which the stone slabs rested.
In the 4th century, they also began to build earthen crypts, consisting of a rectangular underground burial chamber and a narrow dromos corridor with steps leading to the crypt from the surface. The entrance to the cell was laid with a stone. Several people were buried in such crypts, apparently, members of the same family.
Late Scythian burial ground of the 2nd-4th centuries AD, found during excavations on the future highway “ Tavrida ” in the region of Sevastopol. June 29, 2018 / Institute of Archeology RAS.
In late male burials, archaeologists found weapons: swords, daggers, and in one of the graves - a battle ax. Vessels were still placed near the skulls, in some of them the remains of the funeral food were preserved. Untouched burials made it possible to accurately establish the details of the funeral rite: for example, in one of the crypts where an adult man was buried, several ceramic and one glass vessels lay near the skull, eggshells and bird bones remained in the bowl, a dagger was located on the right shoulder, on the left side at the feet - a sword. A shield was leaned against the wall, from which the handle and umbon (an overlay on the central part) were preserved.
During the excavations, Greek red-lacquered dishes, glass jugs, many buckles and brooches - metal fasteners for clothes, which researchers attribute to the Chernyakhov culture of the 2nd-4th centuries, were found. Scientists note that even now we can say that the collection of brooches from the excavations near the Front is one of the most expressive in terms of both the number of specimens and the number of different variants.
Now scientists are completing excavations in the southeastern site and continue research in the northwest, where earlier burials may be located. After the completion of the work, the site will be handed over to the builders, and the excavation materials will be transferred to the Chersonesos Museum-Reserve in Sevastopol.