It is believed that the most perfect artistic Scythian things are the works of Greek jewelers commissioned by the Scythians, taking into account the spiritual needs of the latter.
The Scythian sword decorated with a golden handle was found only during the control cleaning of the catacomb, which seemed to have been plundered the day before. A golden pendant in the shape of a goddess’s head was found in the last clods of earth at the exit from the mound. Vitaliy Otroshchenko, who at one time was a participant in the excavations of the Kerch, Kakhovka and Zaporozhye expeditions, spoke about the details of his archaeological activities in the 70s and the secrets of the Scythian gold in an interview with Suspіlny.
One of the versions says that the aforementioned decoration depicts Demeter, there are holes for fixing behind the tiny decoration. Therefore, jewelers assume that the golden goddess is part of a necklace or breastplate. Found in one of the Great Belozersky mounds of the Zaporozhye region, dates back to the 4th century BC. e.
“The necklace, most likely, was taken by the robbers, and this head fell out. It is believed that the most perfect artistic Scythian things are the works of Greek jewelers commissioned by the Scythians, taking into account the spiritual needs of the latter,” Otroshchenko reveals the details of one of the finds.
Another interesting specimen is a blue-and-gold decoration for a horse with a hunting scene typical of the Scythians depicted on it. It comes from a mound near the village of Gyunovka. The decoration dates from about the 3rd-4th centuries BC. This conclusion was made by analyzing the style of performance – openwork. This is how it was common in the region at that time.
In the Soviet period, the combination of blue and yellow did not suit museum workers from an ideological point of view, so the substrate was made black. However, today, during its reconstruction, they returned to the authentic color.
Photo: A niche with dishes for wine, an archaeologist is clearing a mound near Velikaya Znamenka / from the archive of Vitaly Otroshchenko
