Valentina Mordvintseva

The settlement and the adjacent necropolis of Ust’-Al’ma are key sites for the study of the Late Scythian culture of the Crimea. By the 1st century AD, the burials of the local Barbarian elite were accomplished with sets of Roman imports and other precious items. Especially ostentatious funerary offerings are documented in the cemeteries of the population near harbors, where the trade was focused both in western (Mediterranean), and far eastern (Caucasus, Central Asia, China) directions. One of these harbors was Ust’-Al’ma settlement. The wealth of its inhabitants is emphasized by the elite burials of its necropolis. The desire to imitate customs of the Greeks and Romans is reflected in the choice of objects of social prestige, which are found in these graves. There are found gold funerary wreaths, multi-coloured jewellery, glass vessels, bronze- and silverware. At the same time these graves contained objects which have been brought from distant eastern lands, such as Chinese silk and lacquer boxes. The most remarkable burial goods of Ust’-Al’ma necropolis became a core of the exhibition “The Crimea. A Golden Island in the Black Sea” held in Bonn (Germany) and Amsterdam (the Netherlands) in 2013 and 2014.
Ust’-Al’ma necropolis is situated in the South-Western part of the Crimean peninsula, on the high left bank of the river Alma, near it flows into the Black Sea. The estimated area of the site is about 2.5 hectares. The necropolis belongs to a settlement, ca. 6.0 hectares, which occupies a cape extending in to the sea, and it is dated from the 1st century BC to the first half of the 3rd century AD. The space for burying was organized along an ancient road leading from the gates of the settlement to the South-East.
The necropolis was discovered in 1964. The settlement and the necropolis were permanently excavated from 1968 to 1983 under direction of Tatyana Vysotskaya by the Crimean Department of the Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences of Ukrainian Soviet Social Republic and Bakhchisaray History and Architecture Museum. Results of these excavations were published in a monograph (Высотская, 1994). Since 1984, field works on the necropolis were undertaken by Ivan Loboda and the staff of the Bakhchisaray History and Architecture Museum. From 1994 to 2014, the excavations of the necropolis were directed by Aleksandr Puzdrovskiy, the Crimean Branch of the Institute of Archaeology of the National Ukrainian Academy of Sciences. Materials from these field works were published in many periodicals, and were partly included into a monograph “The Crimean Scythia” (Пуздровский, 2007).
However, a complete and coherent publication of burial structures of Ust’-Al’ma necropolis was never undertaken. Annually conducted excavations led to the discovery of new graves, the number of open burials increased, the materials were accumulated. The idea, to start preparing a complete publication, every year retreated farther. It seemed less and less realistic. Despite this, Aleksandr Puzdrovskiy had a great memory, and better than anyone else understood the specifics of the site, perfectly coping with the current challenges. But in 2015 the scholar died. And much of he knew and remembered, but not published, now, with his death, is lost irretrievably. Since 2015, the excavations of Ust’-Al’ma necropolis are directed by Aleksandr Trufanov, who in previous time did most of field documentation.
And yet, we believe that materials of the necropolis should be published right away. It is better to do it now, while the participants of the excavations, who remember all sorts of nuances that are not reflected in the field-reports, are still alive. The importance of Ust’-Al’ma settlement and necropolis for better understanding of the Crimean Scythia in the Roman period cannot be overestimated. It was therefore decided, to establish a series of scientific works “Ust’-Al’ma settlement and necropolis in the South-Western Crimea” in the framework of the Russian Scientific Foundation’s project № 15-18-30047 “The Crimean Scythia in the system of cultural relations between East and West (3rd c. BC – 7th c. AD)”. The books in this series will be devoted to the publication of the excavated materials as well as to various analyses of these materials.
The first volume in the series is a publication of field reports of years from 2008 to 2014. In these years a total area of 1135.73 sq. m was investigated. During this period, there were excavated 102 burial structures (nos. 970-1071 according to the general numbering). In addition, there were opened seven horse burials and a few pits. Materials of the excavations are kept in Bakhchisaray History and Culture Reserve.

В статье анализируются погребальные комплексы элиты Волго-Донского региона. Прослежены изменения в составе и происхождении мужских и женских предметов престижа на протяжении четырёх хронологических периодов (III—II вв. до н.э., I в. до н.э., I — сер. II в. н.э., сер. II — сер. III в. н.э.). На основании
анализа внутрикультурных, инокультурных и кросс-культурных
маркеров престижа, сделаны предположения о природе сетевых
контактов варварских элит региона с основными
внешнеполитическими акторами.

The author analyzes burial complexes of the “Barbarian” elite of the Lower Volga-and-Don region of the Sarmatian era. In frames of the four chronological periods: 3rd and 2nd c. BC, 1st c. BC, 1st — mid-2nd c. AD, mid-2nd and - mid-3rd c. AD, changes in the burial rite and grave goods are traced. Groups of the elite burial complexes belonging to different levels of hierarchy are identified and mapped. An interpretation of the revealed changes is proposed. Judging by the composition and origin of the prestige items originating from these graves, cultural groups with differing thanatological doctrines participated in this process. It seems that the observed changes were largely due to the foreign political factor, in particular the development of relations between the most important political players of the era — Parthian Iran and Rome. The nomadic chiefdoms of the Volga-Don region, with their significant military potential, were obviously involved in internal and foreign political conflicts in the Bosporan Kingdom and the Caucasus. The booty and gifts received during the war conflicts and making alliances partially turned out to be at funeral ceremonies of the “barbarian” nobility,
reinforcing their claims to leadership.

This paper is devoted to a comparative analysis of the elite burial complexes of the Lower Volga-Don region in different periods of the Sarmatian era, and to interpretation of the changes occurring in their distribution and composition. An overview of the changes in the rite, composition of burial goods, and spatial distribution of the “Barbarian” elite graves of the Volga-Don region demonstrates the social structure of nomadic societies becoming more complex over time and becoming orientated towards the settled centers of the Northern Black Sea region, especially to the city of Tanais. An additional source of information is the composition and origin of the “prestige items” found in these graves. According to their analysis, cultural groups with different thanatological doctrines, in otherwords culturally varying societies, participated in the process. It seems that the observed changes were largely not due to the “regular migratory waves of nomads from East to West,” but to foreign
political factors, in particular the development of relations between the major political powers of the era – Parthia and Rome. An important strategic role in their struggle was played by the Caucasus and the countries adjacent to it to the north, where the Bosporan Kingdom occupied a pivotal position: Its Asian part directly bordered numerous warlike “Barbarian” tribes of the North Caucasus and the Eastern Azov areas. Steppe peoples of the North Caucasus exerted a strong influence on the political affairs in southern Caucasia, including Iberia, Albania, Armenia, and in Media Atropatene and Parthia as well. The nomadic chiefdoms of the Volga-Don region, with their significant military potential, were obviously involved in internal and foreign political conflicts in the territories of the Bosporan Kingdom and the Caucasus. Evidently, the booty and gifts obtained in the course of military actions and conclusions of treaties and agreements were partially demonstrated in the funeral ceremonies of the “Barbarian” nobility, reinforcing their claims to leadership. These artifacts, discovered at necropolises in burial complexes, show different aspects of the culture and policies which involved the Sarmatian elites.

The assumption that cultures are clearly defined, essentially self-contained entities has been subjected to serious doubt in modern archaeology (Ulf 2009) which needs to be reflected also in Sarmatian studies. Such concepts as ‘Sarmatians’, ‘Sarmatian period’ and ‘Sarmatian archaeological culture(s)’ are widely used in archaeological literature. However, the monuments of the different macro-regions that are usually connected in scholarship with the various Sarmatian communities and political entities mentioned in the written sources
have significant cultural distinctions. The nature of these differences has not been reliably clarified yet. This leads to contradictions in the interpretation of the same culture groups by representatives of different schools of archaeology. The basiс cause of the contradictions lies in
the flaws of the argumentation procedure, which appears to be speculative, and thus devoid of any heuristic potential. It is necessary to develop common approaches to the interpretation of the archaeological material. A promising approach in this regard might be the network model. Such models will make it possible to define an archaeological culture as a stable set of features, objects and phenomena of the material world, reflecting the network connections formed and
operating in a certain area within a particular period.

The expressions ‘Late Scythian culture’ and ‘Crimean Scythia’ are modern concepts. The first term appeared soon after 1946, and it was
intended to designate the material culture of the Scythians, supposedly
superseded by the Sarmatians in the 3rd century BC and later replaced by the Slavs, thus making a direct historical bridge from Scythians to Russians. The Late Scythian culture consisted of two enclaves, the Crimean-Dnieper and the Thracian one. The Crimean-Dnieper enclave was represented by two slightly different variants located in the Crimea and in the Lower Dnieper region. The term ‘Crimean Scythia’ was invented in late 1980s – early 1990s, and reflects the idea of the formation of a new separate Scythian statehood in the Crimea. According to the predominant point of view, the Late Scythian culture of the Crimea was constantly transforming in the course of the
Sarmaticization’ process. This position seems to be unsustainable.
In fact, some migrations to the Crimea from the North Pontic
steppe or the Caucasus could have likely occurred. However, the newcomers (‘Sarmatians’?) certainly had a much lesser effect on the functioning of the social networks and the economic and cultural appearance of the ‘Crimean Scythia’ than the proximity of the ancient centres and geopolitical aspirations of the world hegemonic powers.

On the basis of archaeological sources, it is expedient to study cultural transformations conditioned by events of a socio-political nature. Networking in the political sphere is closely connected with the exchange of symbols of power and status. In material culture, such symbols might be represented among the so-called ‘prestige objects’. Changes in the assortment of such items observed over a long time-span can help us visualize the development of domestic and external relationships among social elites. Proceeding from such preconditions, the present paper will look at funeral complexes of the Crimean ‘Barbarian’ elites located on the territory between Chersonesus Taurica and the Bosporan kingdom dating from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century AD. In the late 4th century BC, a fortress of central importance was erected at Ak-Kaya. Here and in other strategical places, there are traces of fires and subsequent restoration or enhancements of the defensive systems dating to the 270s BC. Shortly afterwards, the burial complexes of the ‘Barbarian’ population display prestige La-Tène-style objects belonging to the military elite. These elites controlled probably the territory of the Crimean ‘Barbaricum’, as well as the steppes adjoining the Crimea from the north, including settlements from the nearby territory of Olbia.

There is published a female grave in the catacomb 1119 of the Ust’-Al’ma necropolis situated on the southwestern shore Crimea. There are found personal jewellery (gold ear-rings, amphora-pendants and beads of a necklace, sewn plaques) as well as grave goods (gold leaves of a funeral wreath, gold eye-pieces, two hand-formed ceramic incense-burners, a ceramic jug, an iron knife, a ceramic unguentarium of the bulbous type, a ceramic red-slip bowl, two ceramic spindle-whorls). The grave might belong to a representative of social elite, and is dated to the period from the first half to the middle of the 1st century AD.

On the basis of archaeological sources, it is expedient to study cultural transformations conditioned by events of a socio-political nature. Networking in the political sphere is closely connected with the exchange of symbols of power and status. In material culture, such symbols might be represented among the so-called ‘prestige objects’. Changes in the assortment of such items observed over a long time-span can help us visualize the development of domestic and external relationships among social elites. Proceeding from such preconditions, the present paper will look at funeral complexes of the Crimean ‘Barbarian’ elites located on the territory between Chersonesus Taurica and the Bosporan kingdom dating from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century AD. In the late 4th century BC, a fortress of central importance was erected at Ak-Kaya. Here and in other strategical places, there are traces of fires and subsequent restoration or enhancements of the defensive systems dating to the 270s BC. Shortly afterwards, the burial complexes of the ‘Barbarian’ population display prestige La-Tène-style objects belonging to the military elite. These elites controlled probably the territory of the Crimean ‘Barbaricum’, as well as the steppes adjoining the Crimea from the north, including settlements from the nearby territory of Olbia. By the mid-2nd century BC, the consolidation and centralization of the elites seems to have taken place. The capital fortress was moved westwards (Neapolis Scythica) and developed into a capital of a state of early-Hellenistic appearance. The process of consolidation was interrupted in the late 2nd century BC through the annexation of the Crimea by Mithradates VI Eupator. For a short time, the region got under his direct influence, which allowed for further elite contacts. Since their victory upon Mithradates, the Romans recognized the strategical importance of the region, not least during their conflicts with Parthia. The elite burials reflect interactions with new contact zones. On the one hand, they contain Roman bronze and silver tableware, and funeral wreaths – customary for Greco-Roman burial rites. On the other hand, there are Chinese Lacquer Boxes and the silk clothing. The subordination of the ‘Barbarian’ elites to the centers of the Greco-Roman civilization continued throughout the second and third centuries AD until the demise of Roman imperial policy in the region.

In general, we may assume that during the Sarmatian period the neighboring “centers of civilization” exercised considerable structural influence over the culture of the peoples who inhabited the steppe zone of European and partly of Asiatic Sarmatia (i.e. the territories adjacent to the northern coasts of the Black Sea and the Azov Sea).  The mere existence of these centers and the political and economic developments that took place there were one of the factors that, to a great extent, determined the changes observed in the material culture of the peoples who populated the “barbarian” territories.

The terms “Crimean Scythia” and “Late Scythian Culture of the Crimea” are modern concepts reflecting an interpretation model formed by the study of written and epigraphic sources. The term “Late-Scythian Culture” appeared rather late in comparison with other culture-terms known in the Northern Black Sea Region, after 1946, in the frame of the work of the Tauro-Scythian expedition headed by Pavel Schulz. It is formed according to the ethno-chronological principle for the designation of the material culture of the “Scythians” supposedly superseded by the “Sarmatians” from most of the territory occupied by the “Great Scythia” of the 6th till the 4th BCE, and formed two enclaves – the Crimean-Dnieper and the Thracian, both known from Strabo as the “Scythia Minor” (Strabo, Geogr. VII.4.5).
The term “Crimean Scythia” for the designation of the Crimean part of the Strabo’s Scythia Minor appeared in the late 1980s – early 1990s under conditions of the collapse of the USSR. The continuity between the Scythian kingdom in the Crimea and the Great Scythia was questioned. It seemed that its formation took place in the conditions of the appearance of new ethnic groups in the Crimea, first of all the Sarmatians of Prokhorovka culture. In this sense, the term “Crimean Scythia” reflects the idea of the appearance in the Crimea of a separate new Scythian state and, in fact, represents an expression in historical terms of the concept of the Late Scythian culture of the Crimea.
At the present stage, the phenomenon of the Late Scythian archaeological culture of the Crimea seems to be a reflection of the economic and cultural development of the Barbarian population of the Crimean peninsula in the context of its involvement in the world-system with two geopolitical centers – Rome and Parthian Iran. Their weakening or destruction in the 3rd century AD led to the rupture and reformatting of most of the networking systems – ideological, military, trade and economic. Under these conditions, the idea of transforming the Late-Scythian culture under the influence of “Sarmaticization” seems meaningless. The migrations from the steppe or the Caucasus being very likely, which are confirmed by the data of physical anthropology, had a much lesser effect on the functioning of social networks and the economic and cultural appearance of the Crimean Scythia than the proximity of the ancient cities and geopolitical aspirations of the main hegemonic powers.

The authors analyze the hand-formed ceramics from the building, revealed at the excavation-site A1, and from the rock fall near the Northern tower of the citadel of the ancient settlement on the upper plateau of Mt Opuk. Despite the small amount of the material, it broadens the notion of the ceramic complex of the settlements of the Bosporan kingdom in the early centuries AD. The presence of various groups of origin in its composition testifies to the diversity of network links and, possibly, the ethnic heterogeneity of the city’s population, in the culture of which both ancient and barbarous elements were intertwined.

The Sarmatian Animal Style objects are found in North Pontic burial contexts belonging to the social elite. An analysis of finds from the region shows that most of the Animal Style objects may be interpreted as emblems of power. Their appearance in ‘Barbarian’ burial contexts was previously interpreted, generally, in an ethnic sense, as having been brought physically to the Northern Pontic region by newcomers from distant eastern lands. However, the patterns of their distribution in graves of several chronological periods most probably reflect the development of network contacts of political elites.

The article analyzes possibilities of applying the world-system approach in archeology. There is given a definition of interaction networks, their main properties are examined: content (expressed through the object of interaction), scale and duration. On the example of objects of the Sarmatian animal style, the possibilities of using the world-system approach as an interpretational model for archaeological material are shown. In particular, patterns of distribution of these things in the burial complexes of the Northern Black Sea region of several chronological periods most likely reflect the interaction networks of political elites and their development.

The historical and cultural processes in the ‘Barbarian’ world of the North Pontic region from the 3rd century BC to the mid-3rd century AD did not belong to a special field of interest of ancient authors. Antique narratives contain only information about certain manifestations of such processes. In Russia, the interest in studying of cultural changes that took place in the steppes of Eastern Europe in antiquity appeared in the early 18th century, in connection with the accession of new territories in the East and West. The core of the cultural-historical model, which was formed and then developed in the Russian historical science, was the idea of the constant change of peoples in the Northern Black Sea region, and the historical role of this region as a buffer zone between East and West. On this basis, there was formed an etiological myth of the Russian empire, in fact justifying its impressive size, its length along the metageographical axis of Eurasia, and its historical role in the destinies of Europe. This concept has received its final form at the early 20th century in the works of Mikhail Rostovtsev.

For the Greco-Roman world the North Black Sea area acted as a
distant periphery, while apparently the Greek cities were centres of constant attention from the barbarian, non-Greek population. In every region of the North Pontic barbarian territory were found archaeological contexts which can be interpreted as burial complexes of social elites. The analysis of the burials of elite revealed the main directions of the North Pontic region population with their foreign contacts. The last ones could be identified due to the composition of burial goods and elements of the burial rite.

Animal Style objects o f the Sarmatian epoch are found in the burial contexts belonged to the elites of the societies. The analysis of materials from the North Pontic region showed that most o f the categories o f Animal Style objects could be interpreted as insignia of power. Their appearance in the barbarian burial contexts could be related not only to the migration of a particular ethnic group to the steppes of Eastern Europe, but connected with the change of network-contacts of political elites.

The practice of using a sword in a funerary context as one of the items that accompanied the deceased varied considerably in ancient societies. The appearance of ornate swords in a funerary context might indicate that different societies had similar lifestyles and values. The North Pontic region in the “Sarmatian era” is one such territory where decorated swords of barbarian elites have been recovered. The region also consisted of different kinds of societies – Greek poleis, the Grecobarbarian Bosporan Kingdom, and nomadic and sedentary societies that depended to varying degrees
on state structures. It is with these considerations in mind that we will focus on the practice of using decorated swords in the burial tradition of this region.

The necropolis was found in 2011. In 2015 there  was excavated a part of necropolis with burials of completely and partly cremated human bones. Previously there was studied a stone cist with inhumation. It is the only known necropolis of Roman period situated in foothills on the Southern Crimea. In the article there are published short results of the field works 2015, with the preliminary reconstruction of a complicated burial process.

There are published results of study of the grave 1 excavated in the necropolis of Luchistoe-2, which is yet the only known archaeological site of the Southern Crimea with burial structures of the Early Roman period. As a result there is proposed a general idea about the size and chronological position of the necropolis, as well as about the funeral ceremony, ethnographic costume, and cultural connections of the society using the burial ground. There was established that the published grave contained a burial of a woman of a high social status (probably, a priestess), which was committed at the late 1st or early 2nd century AD. The analysis of the archaeological material in comparison with the information about location of the necropolis and the data of contemporary epigraphic documents and ancient narrative tradition, leads to the conclusion that the burial ground was located in ‘Taurica’ – the territory between the Greek polis of Chersonesos and the Bosporan kingdom. It was used by the population, which was named in written sources as Scytho-Taurians (Plin. NH. IV, 85–86; Arr. PPE. 30). Evidently, these peoples were bearers of the so-called Late Scythian archaeological culture, and were incorporated in the sphere of cultural influence of the Bosporan state. This information can be used in further reconstructions of the ethno-political situation in the Crimea in Roman times.

The author analyzes archaeological materials from the necropolis of the Late Scythian hillfort at Zolotaya Balka village
situated in the lower reaches of the Dnieper and dating to the period from the 2nd c. BC to the early 2nd c. AD. A qualitative,
quantitative and spatial analysis of features of the burial rite has been done. The groups of burials with a special set of burial
equipment were singled out, which seem to differ in social status. It is assumed that the ancient population of the hillfort had
a horizontal corporate organization, which, in turn, was incorporated into a more complex social system (chiefdom). There
are revealed similarities in funerary rites between the necropolis of Zolotaya Balka and cemeteries of Chernyakhov culture,
which are apparently due to the ethnic and cultural continuity.

On the world map compiled by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa in the 1st century BC the territory
earlier known as Scythia was designated as Sarmatia. Since both peoples were practically the same
from the point of view of the Greeks and Romans, the question arises why one ethnonym was
substituted for the other. The name of Sarmatia appeared within an external narrative tradition, and
the observer from the outside could have chosen the name of the most active part of the Barbarian
population dealing with the Greco-Roman civilization as eponym of this region. It is most probable
that the term “Sarmatians” was used to designate an elite group acting as a subject of international
politics. This conclusion fi nds some implicit corroboration in the written and epigraphic sources.

The aim of archaeological excavations in the Opuk Natural Reserve (Southern coast of Kerch peninsula) in 2012 was to clarify the circumstances of the construction of the Eastern Defensive Wall at the eastern slope of Opuk Mountain. It has been found that the wall was laid without foundation on unprepared soil. The remains of the wall consist of one or two rows of stone faces. Wall’s width varies from 3 to 5 m. The length of the preserved part is about 800 m. Remains of any passages, towers or other structures have not been found. Considering these data, we can conclude that the Eastern Defensive Wall was not equipped to protect against the siege engines, which have been widely used in the Greek military affairs by the second half of the 5th century BC. This may indirectly indicate that the construction of the wall belongs to the period prior to this time. Such findings as the fragments of proto-Phasos and Phasos amphorae in the layer of the wall destruction do not contradict this dating, as well as the fact that the wall, in its eastern part, overlaps the Late Bronze Age settlement. However, the question about dating and functional purpose of the Eastern Defensive Wall may be determined only by the large-scale study of the space to the south of this structure.

In Russia, the interest to the Sarmatians and in general to the history of the North Pontic region emerged only in the early 18th century. There was a need to write a history of this pretty young European country, which would be linked to the pan-European history, and to substantiate its claims for wide spaces with newly acquired lands in the east and west. In the core of the cultural and historical model, which was developed in Russian historical science, was the idea about the constant change of people in the North Pontic region, and its historical role as a buffer zone between East and West. On this basis there was formed an etiological myth of Russian Empire, which explains the impressive size of its territory, stretching along the metageographical axis of Eurasia, and determining its historical role in destinies of Europe.