Details of Headdresses and Diadems from Novozavedennoe-II Barrow Cemetery

Abstract

In the article is published the gold jewelry from the Early Scythian barrow cemetery Novo-zavedennoe-II in Central Ciscaucasia (Stavropol Region). It has been suggested that these finds were the parts of head's jewelry. In Novozavedennoe-II, obviously, were buried group of clan leaders who headed one of the militarized tribal alliance, which settled in the Ciscaucasia steppes after Near East campaigns. The relative chronology of the site covers the interval between the third quarter 7th century BC and the second quarter 6th century BC. In barrow No. 1 were found the gold sewn-on plaques in the form of rosettes and two types of pendants, which could be adornments of a ceremonial headdress made in the traditions of the Near East palace fashion. The ribbon diadems decorated of sewn-on plaques in the form of stylized lying feline predators obviously were in the Barrows No. 3 and 16. The decorations from the mound No. 3 were made with using soldering and granulation, obviously in Western Asia. A set of sewn-on decorations from mound No. 16 were made using the stamp technique, it's possible, by a captive jeweler at the field headquarters of a Scythian chief. Especially important is the find in barrow No. 16 of a gold beads distributor, which has analo-gies in the tomb I in Nimrud. Obviously, gold female jewelry connected with Assyrian royal court get to the Scythian tombs at the end of the 7th century BC in time of the downfall of the Assyrian empire.