The Old Russian ring depicted in the figure was found in the Vladimir region and included in the fund of the Museum of Ancient Civilization of the Academy of Fundamental Sciences, as exhibit number E-R + 08-00058.
Museum specialists dated the ring to the 8th - 9th centuries AD, that is, to the period before the so-called baptism of Rus.
The ring is made of copper by casting and subsequent machining.
The image applied to the surface of the ring shield testifies to the developed knowledge of astronomy among the Slavs of the Rus. Moreover, this astronomical knowledge had already been systematized and standardized by the 8th century, which allowed the Russians to isolate individual constellations in the starry sky, the outlines of which were generally accepted, and transfer their images to household items, decorations, etc.
On the surface of the shield of the ring shown in the figure, an image of the Pleiades star cluster is mechanically made. This cluster consists of 6-9 bright stars. Since ancient times, for the Slavs of the Rus, it was cult. In Slavism, the Pleiades are associated with the palaces of the Slavic goddess of fate Makosha - the Cosmic tree (7 points of the letter "Ж" - 6 extreme points of three segments intersecting at the 7th point), and on the face of the Earth - with Moscow ("on 7 hills").
Similar images are known on the territory of the Russian Plain since the Paleolithic period (30 - 10 thousand years ago).
This image consists of 8 stars. According to Slavic mythology, which has come down to us, for example, in the legends of pre-Greek Greece, the Pleiades are the seven sisters of Atlanta and Pleione (the eighth star belongs to one of them, possibly the mother).
The stars on the ring are depicted in the traditional Russian way - in the form of circles with marked centers. A similar version of their image is presented on the Slavic lunar, an exhibit of the same as this ring, time - 8th century (ER + 08-00050). Or on the Slavic amulet "hatchet" (10th century) - E-R + 10-00052].
Promotional video:
Thus, we can draw the following conclusions:
The ancient Russians of the 8th century AD had quite intelligible ideas about astronomy, in particular, they knew the outlines of constellations and star clusters.
Astronomical knowledge of the ancient Rus was of general use: in particular, images of some constellations were applied to household items and decorations. Apparently for a sacred purpose.
The fact that the astronomical knowledge of the ancient Rus in the part presented by us coincides with the same knowledge of the modern level, suggests that the ancient Rus had the correct knowledge of the starry sky. And, moreover, that modern astronomical knowledge in terms of defining the boundaries of certain constellations inherited the ancient Russian astronomical teachings.