ON THE SELECTION AND CHRONOLOGY OF ULYANIVKA TYPE KNIVES

Abstract

In the collection of metal artifacts of the Late Bronze Age of the Northern Pontic region a series of bronze knives (7 objects) is distinguished, which are characterized by a notable morphological and technological feature: they have double-edged blade and a forged waist with thickening and )(-like layering of the metal at the point of transition of the blade to the handle. Among these finds, four items come from the barrow burials of Berezhnivka-Mayivka Zrubna Culture (BMZC): Basan’, Babakova Moghila 3/5 (kurgan/burial), Ivanivka 1/1, Mynkivka 6/1, Novomykolaivka, Smolovs’ka Mohyla 1/5. One knife was part of the Ulyanivka hoard of bronze objects, Mykolaiv region. Two more knives are the accidental finds from the Sumy region and Glukhiv of the same region.
 All mentioned burials with knives according to their burial features and grave goods, as well as according to the data of stratigraphy, represent the late period of the BMZC. Researchers attribute the Ulyanivka treasure either to the early period of the Sabatynivka culture, or to the late stage of the Babyne culture. Contrary to this, it seems to be more reasonable that the Ulyanivka hoard belongs to the early Sabatynivka culture and probably may be synchronized with the late BMZC. This conclusion is confirmed by the materials of the Loboykivka hoard (Dnipropetrovsk region), which includes several knives with smoothed (leveled) traces of end forging. The Loboykivka hoard belongs to the BMZC and is traditionally synchronized with the Ulyanivka hoard.
 The territorial distribution of knives with forged waist and )(-like layering of the metal shows that almost all of them within the Zrubna Culture (BMZC) area were found. This fact is decisive for the cultural attribution of such knives. Only the Ulyanivka hoard was found in the area of the Sabatynivka culture, which hints at its corresponding affiliation. However, the composition of the objects of the Ulyanivka hoard itself (sickles, adze and knife) mostly corresponds to the Zrubna culture.
 The discussed evidence allows us to distinguish the knives with forged waist and )(-like layering of the metal into a separate classification taxon and we can name them the Ulyanivka type knives.