EARLY SCYTHIAN QUIVER SETS OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE 6th CENTURY BC IN THE SOUTH OF EASTERN EUROPE

Abstract

Quiver sets and and their associated grave goods are extremely important for studying different aspects of the Early Scythian culture, and, in particular, for determining the chronology of the Early Scythian period. This article is devoted to an analysis of quiver sets found in the south of Eastern Europe together with imported transport and painted Greek amphorae of the first half of the 6th century BC, which are represented by the Miletus, Klazomenai, and Theos production types. Burial complexes which include these items are located on the territory from the Kuban region in the east to the forest-steppe areas of the right bank of Dnieper in the west (Lebedi V, kurgan 11 burial 8; Novoaleksandrovka, kurgan 7 burial 8; Khapry, kurgan 1 burial 25; Bushuika, kurgan 2 burial 10; kurgan near the Kitaigorod village; Repyakhovataya Mogila, burial 2). Arrowheads, which are mainly represented by bronze socketed types, are characterized by significant typological diversity. Among the biblade and triblade arrowheads, several typological groups stand out. The distribution of some groups can be correlated use in the first half of the 6th century BC. Among the biblade arrowheads, these are specimens with an oval-shaped head and a long socket without a barb and barbed arrows with a vaulted blade, with a wide lower part and beveled ends for the blades. Among the triblade arrowheads, there are specimens with a tower-like head without a barb and the items with leaf-shaped heads. The latter arrowheads have a maximal widening of their lower section and the ends of the blades are often beveled as well as a long socket with a barb, which extends about half the length of the arrowhead. The importance of the above complexes lies not only in the presence of reliable chronoindicators (amphorae and some other objects), but also in informativeness and representativeness of the quiver sets, which makes them a trustworthy source for studying the peculiarities of the development of Scythian shooting arms in the 6th century BC.