Northern Black Sea Research Articles

CERAMIC PIPES FOR SMOKING TOBACCO WITH FIGURATIVE IMAGES

The ceramic tobacco pipes of the seventeenth — nineteenth centuries shaped as human head or face, animals or their parts, household items are analyzed in the paper. The tradition of such images on ceramic pipes in Europe takes its origin from England. Similar products appeared later in the Netherlands and Germany. On the territory of Austrian possessions (primarily Czech territory), on Polish and Ukrainian lands the pipes of the North-Western type (with a solid pipe-bowl and stem) are occurred later with pipes of the South-Eastern type (a ceramic bowl and a separate stem from different material). As a result some number of South-Eastern type pipes began to be made with a bowls in the form of a human head, or only with a face image from the mid-seventeenth century. The article describes several styles of pipes with anthropomorphic elements, pipes in the form of boots and products with zoomorphic elements (heads and mouths of predators) or depict an entire animal. The oriental style fashion, dominance of Baroque art, and the beginning of the manufacture of smoking pipes from other materials (primarily from sepiolite) lead to the widespread use of figurative pipes in the eighteenth century and increasing the realism of plastic depiction. This also applies to ceramic pipes. The popularity of smoking pipes with realistic images reaches the top in the late eighteenth and through the entire nineteenth century. The appearance and spread of figurative pipes in Ukraine took place with the same tendencies as in Europe in general. Different styles of figurative pipes in the eighteenth century spread over a large area from Volyn to Slobozhanshchina and the Northern Black Sea coast. The author considers that the pipes with images of people, animals and objects are not inherited from the possessions of the Ottoman Empire but represent a product of the development of European crafts and decorative arts.

Бронзовые плоские черешковые наконечники стрел с жальцами из Северного Причерноморья

The article considers the currently known bronze flat petiolate arrowheads with stings found in the steppe and forest-steppe zones of the Northern Black Sea region, along with new finds. In total, 19 petiolate arrowheads with stings and 3 negatives of similar products on casting molds were taken into account. The distribution area of such items covers the entire western part of the region, between Danube-Carpathian region and the Dnieper basin. The finds are concentrated in the southern part of the Middle Dnieper region (9 items), the North-West Black Sea region (5 items), and the Upper Dniester region (3 items). One arrowhead was found in Podolia and another one was discovered in Northern Bukovina. All currently known casting molds for manufacturing petiolate arrowheads stings come from the North-Western Black Sea region, which allows to localize there one of manufacturing centers. Based on the design features of petiolate, it is proposed to divide all flat petiolate arrowheads with stings into five types. In addition, it is considered the possibility of selecting sub-variants if necessary: by the width of the feather, by the length of the petiole, by the presence of rib in the middle of the feather, by the asymmetry of the stings, by massiveness, etc. Arrowheads of the discussed type, with their archaeological context being reliably known (Magala, Novoselitsa, Volkovka, Gordeevka, Petrikov, Stary Buyukany), are associated with closed complexes of the BrD – HaB1 period (XIII–X centuries BC) in the North Black Sea region. All occasional finds from the region can be dated within these limits. The arrival of bronze petiolate arrowheads with stings in the Northern Black Sea region may have been influenced by contacts with the Balkan-Carpathian and Middle Eastern cultural centers. It cannot be ruled out that the regional manufacturing of such arrowheads could be based on imitating local flint implements of the same type, found in various Bronze Age cultures.

Seljuk’s Material Culture in Ukraine According to the Results of Historical and Archaeological Research

As a result of massive historical and archaeological investigations of the last decades of the 20th and 21st centuries, numerous samples of the material cultural heritage of the Seljuks were discovered in Ukraine. The researchers identified the stages of its development, main spheres of influence and features of manifestations. The first stage covers the period from the appearance of Oghuz on the territory of the Southern principalities from the middle of the 11th century to the first half of the 13th century. At this time, Seljuk influence can be traced in the applied art and decorative style of monumental architecture of Kyiv Rus. At the next stage - from the second half of the 13th century to the end of the 15th century, the influence of the Seljuks affected a wide range of material culture in the Black Sea region of the Mongol Empire, the Crimean Khanate, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Rus. Bright examples of this time are artifacts from the cemetery of Mamay Surok (Zaporizhzhia region), examples of monumental architecture in cities and fortresses of Eastern Podillya, Southern Ukraine and the Crimea (Torhovytsia, Yurkivka, Solkhat). The last discovery of Seljuk architectural style is a stone carving that adorned the wall of the entrance gate of the Tiahyn fortress in the 14th-16th centuries (Kherson region). From the end of the 15th century to the end of the 18th century Seljuk heritage became a part of the material culture in the Northern Provinces of the Ottoman Empire and was widespread in the monuments of the Northern Black Sea Coast. The material culture of the Seljuks became a kind of cultural bridge that combined the achievements of Eurasia, the civilizations of the Middle Ages and early modernism.

Об антропологических связях скифов Северного Причерноморья и савромато-сарматского населения VI–III вв. до н. э.

Introduction. The article discusses the issue of possible connections of the Sauromat-Early Sarmatian population of the 6th – 3rd centuries BC of the Southern Urals, the Lower Volga region and the Lower Don with the synchronous groups of the Northern Black Sea region according to physical anthropology. This problem is directly related to the origin of the Scythians, which still remains controversial. The review of scientific literature has shown that the problem of anthropological relationships between these two groups of early nomads in Eastern Europe has not yet been considered. Methods and materials. Testing for the existence of models of ethnogenetic relationships was carried out using intergroup comparisons of craniometric data. Mass material on the early nomads of the Sauromat-Early Sarmatian period of the Southern Urals, the Lower Volga region, the Lower Don and the steppe Scythians of the Northern Black Sea region was processed by the canonical method, followed by the consideration of the proximity of Mahalanobis. For this, digital information on 48 male and 30 female craniological series was used. Results. The greatest morphological similarity with the eastern Sauromat-Early Sarmatian populations is possessed by an elite group from the royal kurgans (Aleksandropol and Zheltokamenka), as well as local groups from the Sivash and Nosak regions. In all compared groups, the type of ancient Eastern Caucasians prevails, which combined mesobrachicrania with a weakened horizontal facial profile at the upper level. Thus, the results of the study showed the presence of ethnogenetic relationships in the studied early nomads, which either confirms the hypothesis about the possible influence of the Sauromat-Early Sarmatian component on changes in the intragroup structure of the Northern Black Sea populations, or indicate the presence of a single genetic substrate of South Siberian origin.

Remains of Birds from the Northwest Black Sea Ancient Settlements

ABSTRACT The article presents the results of the identification of 1051 bird remains from the ancient layers of the 12 settlements from the Northern Black Sea coast. Zooarchaeological finds described in the work date to the sixth century BC through the fourth century AD. The data allowed researchers to specify features of bird exploitation by the inhabitants of the region. In particular, we established that, hunted birds dominated over domestic species in the diet of inhabitants of large settlements. However, previous publications on the results of mammalian studies suggested that hunting did not play a significant role, but was rather an entertainment. We also found that the inhabitants of small settlements consumed more poultry than wild species of birds. The earlier reports about the discovery of pheasant's remains in the ancient layers of the Northern Black Sea Coast were refuted. The report presents the bone of the chicken with osteopetrosis, which appears as the most eastern evidence of the disease in the archaeological records in Europe. Some changes were discovered in the avifauna. The primary changes took place during the Hellenistic time (350–200 BC), when the region experienced a reduction in species diversity. We assume that the changes in fauna are a consequence of the climatic shifts which took place in the Roman Warm Period.

Scythian Burial of the Child with the Sword Model in the Lower Dniester

The paper for the first time publishes and analyzes the materials obtained in the study of the burial of the child no. 10 in the barrow 16 of the “Sluiceway” group near the Glinoe village, Slobodzeya district, on the left bank of the Lower Dniester. The grave dates back to the third quarter of the 4th century BC and contained the burial of a small child. The western part of the pit was intended to sacrificial food and a knife, and the eastern part was intended for the body of the child and grave goods, where a “bed” was made of a mixture of natural clay and humus. Two Cypraea moneta shells, one glass bead, as well as an iron model of the sword were part of the necklace. The last find is a unique item in the Scythian burials of the North Black Sea region. It imitated swords of the Solokha type (with claw-shaped tops and false-triangular crosshairs), known in the Scythian burials of the Northern Black Sea Region from the last quarter of the 5th century BC until the end of the 4th century BC. It is noteworthy that it was such a sword that was found in the pair burial of the same barrow where the burial of the child was sunk. There is no doubt that the model of the sword in the necklace of a child was a votive object. Perhaps it indicated the child's belonging to the estate of the warriors.

Roman Terracottas From the Lower City of Olbia from the collection of the National Museum of the History of Ukraine

The article introduces clay figurines of eagles and terracotta of a Roman soldier, which were found during excavations at the Lower City of Olbia in the 1930—1940-ies, and are kept in the National Museum of the History of Ukraine. The iconography of the eagles is similar to the terracotta statuette of an eagle found in the praetorium building in the Upper City of Olbia. The series of rooms, in which the eagle figurines were found, belong to the Roman garrison structures, which were located in the port area of the city. Terracotta eagle figurines could be used in military sanctuaries, and imitate Roman military standards, or be associated with the worship of Jupiter. Analogies to these products are known from the Roman fortresses on the Danube and in Dacia province. The fragment of terracotta with a shield was a part of a Roman soldier figurine with hanging limbs. The warrior was depicted wearing a Roman military cloak (sagum). This indicates his higher rank, in contrast to the soldiers dressed in tunics. In his left hand he holds a shield (clipeus), which depicts a deity in armor, with rays above his head. The terracotta depicts warriors armed with gladius, and belted with a Roman military belt (cingulum militare). They depict the servicemen of the auxiliary troops of the Roman army — auxilia, or, given the non-standard shape of their shields, the sailors of the Moesian fleet (milites classiarii), whose units were stationed in Olbia, as is known from the epigraphic finds. The places of their finds mark the points of deployment of the Roman troops in the Northern Black Sea region. These terracottas could serve as votives in ritual rites associated with the cult of Mithras, which appears in Olbia as a result of the Roman garrison deployment in the city during the second half of the 2nd — first half of the 3rd c. AD.

On the reasons of the attack of the Huns of the Northern Black Sea region on the Roman Empire in 395

On the reasons of the attack of the Huns of the Northern Black Sea region on the Roman Empire in 395

A revision of the Pontocaspian gastropods of the subfamily Caspiinae (Caenogastropoda: Hydrobiidae).

The Caspiinae comprise small gastropod species inhabiting low-salinity environments of the Pontocaspian region, specifically the Caspian Sea and the limans, estuaries and lower river reaches of the northern Black Sea Basin. There is considerable discrepancy in the literature as to which taxa are attributed to this hydrobiid subfamily, which of them are valid and what rank they have. Moreover, the generic classification is not agreed upon. Here, we aim at elucidating systematic relationships and species identities by a thorough taxonomic and systematic revision of the Caspiinae, including a detailed morphological study along with information on biogeography, ecology, conservation and fossil record. We use historical and recent collections from all around the Pontocaspian region acquired over the past 170 years, including several type series that were only recently discovered as well as selected Pleistocene and Holocene materials. Several of the species are illustrated properly here for the first time, using both macrophotographs and scanning electron microscopy images to facilitate evaluation of morphological details. The genus Andrusovia, which has been classified in a number of different families and even gastropod subclasses before, is here attributed to the Caspiinae. By designating a lectotype for the type species, A. dybowskii, we finally fix the identity of this previously ambiguous species and genus. Our revision yields four genera and eleven accepted species of Caspiinae for the modern Pontocaspian fauna: Andrusovia (1), Caspia (1), Clathrocaspia (7) and Ulskia (2). In addition, two species of uncertain status (1 nomen dubium, 1 taxon inquirendum) are discussed, and two species introduced as Caspiinae are here found not to belong in that group. Andrusovia antecessor sp. nov. and Andrusovia cyrensis sp. nov. are introduced as new (sub)fossil species from the Caspian Sea.

Виявлення видів ссавців з прихованим способом життя методами лепідоптерологічних польових досліджень

Information is given on observations of a number of mammalian species with secretive lifestyle and nocturnal activity, including dormice, made during field lepidopterological research. The use of artificial light and aromatic scents in entomological research is one of the most effective methods for obtaining rich and diverse ecological and faunal information. In addition to scale insects, many other invertebrates, primarily insects, are attracted to light and bait. At the same time, large clusters of invertebrates that flock in masse and converge on light and bait, as readily available food attract a number of mammals with nocturnal activity, mostly insectivores (Soriciformes), bats (Vespertilioniformes), and rodents (Muriformes). A number of species that are rare and lead a hidden way of life are attracted to artificial light and aromatic scents, including species of the dormice family (Gliridae) such as the edible, forest, and hazel dormice. The latter are obviously attracted to the light by the insects. Instead, in case of the use of baits, for edible dormice and yellow-necked wood mice, probably the aroma and taste of the bait is what attracts them, because they were repeatedly seem feeding on the bait. At the same time, bright sources of artificial light are obviously of interest to other mammals. In particular, in this way were noted: hare, fox, European roe deer, and wild boar, as well as such rare mammals as lynx, wild cat, great jerboa, and thick-tailed three-toed jerboa. Based on such observations, as an example, a small overview of new findings of the forest dormouse is given, in particular in areas where this rodent species has not been recorded before or it was observed very infrequently. The authors noted this species on traps for scale insects in the highlands of the Ukrainian Carpathians (Chornohora ridge) and in the Northern Black Sea coast, within Odesa Oblast. Thus, standard methods of collecting field material often used in lepidopterological research, such as attracting by artificial light and aromatic scents, can be quite effective for detecting a number of mammal species of different taxonomic groups, including nocturnal mammals.

EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLOGY ON THE MATERIAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOURCES OF THE II CENTURY OF OUR

The purpose of the article is an attempt to show on the basis of archaeological sources that the ideas of early Christianity penetrated the Bosporus as early as the middle of the 2nd century AD, while a firmly established fact is the spread of Christianity in the Northern Black Sea region from the second half of the 3rd century.

РІВЕНЬ РОЗВИТКУ СУСПІЛЬСТВА ТА ФОРМИ ПОХОВАННЯ (ЗА МАТЕРІАЛАМИ СХІДНОЇ ЄВРОПИ ДОБИ РАННЬОГО ЗАЛІЗА)

У роботі проаналізовано поховальні обряди племен різних природних зон Східної Європи доби раннього заліза. Способи поводження з померлим були різноманітними. Щодо більшості пізньопервісних племен лісової зони інформації про поховальний обряд фактично немає. Можна припустити, що певні традиції не передбачали збереження решток небіжчика у будь-якій формі. У населення Лісостепу був розвинений культ предків, який полягав у шануванні їхніх решток. Тіло захоронювали у ґрунтових або курганних могильниках, на території поселення (у господарських або житлових спорудах, спеціальних могилах). Подеколи кістки померлого після виставлення зберігали на території поселення. Матеріали свідчать про архаїчні звичаї поводження з тілом небіжчика у племен лісової та лісостепової зон. У скіфів Північного Причорномор’я ці елементи не зафіксовано.

ПТАШИНІ ЯЙЦЯ З ПОХОВАНЬ КУЛЬТУРИ ЧЕРНЯХІВ − СИНТАНА-ДЕ-МУРЕШ

У роботі проаналізовано дані по одній із груп зооархеологічного матеріалу, а саме − щодо яєць птахів, із поховань культури Черняхів − Синтана-де-Муреш. Пташині яйця трапляються в 111 поховальних комплексах, що становить 2 % загальної кількості введених у науковий обіг поховань культури. У похованнях представлені яйця різних видів птахів, однак переважають курячі. Кількість їх у похованнях коливається від одного до 12, місце розміщення у просторі могили не уніфіковано. Яйця знайдено у похованнях жінок і чоловіків різних вікових груп, але найбільше – у дитячих похованнях. Звичай класти яйця до поховань був поширений у всьому культурному ареалі, однак найбільше їх виявлено в Північному Причорномор’ї. Очевидно, із цим регіоном пов’язано виникнення цієї традиції у черняхівському середовищі. Яйця зафіксовано в могилах від другого етапу існування культури. Найменша їх кількість – у похованнях із західним орієнтуванням, які вважають більш пізніми. У більшості випадків (97 %) яйця знаходять у похованнях із північним орієнтуванням, тому їх не розглядають як частину християнської атрибутики. Традиція класти яйця до поховань, найімовірніше, прийшла з античного середовища, де їх здавна залишали на некрополях. Найбільше яєць у могилах черняхівської культури знайдено саме в регіонах, що межують з античним світом, і там, де у складі населення культури були елліни. Можливо, яйця були не лише напутньою їжею, а й мали певне змістове навантаження (для очищення і як апотропей). Яйце в античному світі було пов’язане з ідеями відродження, безсмертя та воскресіння (через культи Діоніса та Асклепія), які, вочевидь, були затребувані в суспільстві того часу.

The “Latins” on Mangup. Unique Western-European Cross-Encolpion from the Excavations of Prince’s Palace in Ancient Mangup: Problems of Attribution and Dating

Introduction. The article is devoted to the analysis of a unique cross-encolpion of the WesternEuropean type from the excavations of the Mangup Prince’s Palace. Methods. The research is complex. When describing the find, traditional methods of art history analysis were used, and data from X-ray fluorescence studies were used to determine the material of the product. Attribution of the cross is made on the basis of the generally accepted method of analogies in archaeological science. Analysis. The encolpion is related to a small group of cast silver crosses with “Latin” features, which were produced during the third quarter of the 15th century in one of the craft workshops of Kaffa. Their author was a master-scholarship holder who most likely moved to the capital of Genoese Gazaria in the Northern Black Sea region from one of the cities of Northern Italy. Results. Among the many reasons why this encolpion, as a mandatory attribute of the clothing of a Catholic Priest, could end up on Mangup, the most likely are: unknown in the sources Genoese embassy to the capital of the Principality of Feodoro in the period of 1450–1475 for the purpose of establishing a permanent Catholic mission here; the presence of a Catholic priest in the large embassies of Kaffa to the court of the rulers of Feodoro in 1455, 1465 or around 1471; participation of Genoese, who fled from Kaffa after its capture by the Ottoman army, in the subsequent defense of the Mangup fortress in summer and autumn 1475.

The gold potential of the northern Black Sea region

The article presents the results of the analysis and evaluation of gold occurrences of the Northern Black Sea and Crimea. The increased gold content of this region is associated primarily with magmatism and volcanism of the paleo<island arc and the Ukrainian crystalline massif. Analysis of the field studies and laboratory results made it possible to determine the main factors of the origin of a gold mineralization. The magmatism of the Crimean Mountains formed both primary ore and alluvial occurrences, which extend in series from the Karadag in the east to Heraclea and the Lomonosov massif. The main source of fine gold placers are the weathering crusts of the Ukrainian shield rocks and secondary products of alluvium repeatedly redeposited in recent times, especially in post<glacial periods, when there was a powerful outflow of unconsolidated sediments. The authors note the decisive role of ancient river systems both in the accumulation of gold<bearing sands and in the formation of a potential source of outflow for the alluvial strata of numerous small rivers. Alluvial sands and alluvial-proluvial cover pebbles of the Beregansky and Sulsky climatoliths are particularly interesting for their gold content. They form clad covers on watersheds and fill the paleo<valleys of large rivers. The authors also studied the role of the Paleo<Dnieper and other main rivers of the Northern Azov Sea region during the melting of glaciers, when huge masses of sandy<silty material, including fine and ultrafine gold, were transported over long distances. Thus, the identification of factors affecting the location, structure and composition of gold deposits is important for determining the prediction criteria of conditions potentially favorable for the formation of gold placers within the Northern Black Sea and Crimea. Data on the gold content of the Black Sea region currently is not sufficient. It is necessary to conduct further research on gold occurrences to determine the scientific and practical interest of this phenomenon. So far, we can state only the presence of gold occurrences, which provides the basis for further research and prospecting.

The Northern Black Sea Frontier and Its Residents at the Turn of the Eras. Review of: Sen’, D. V. (2020). Russko-krymsko-osmanskoe pogranich’e: prostranstvo, iavleniia, liudi (konets XVII — XVIII v.): Izbrannye trudy [Russian-Crimean-Ottoman Borderland: Space, Phenomena, People (Late 17th — 18th Centuries). Selected Works]. Rostov-on-Don: Altair Publishers. 420 p.

This review presents some reflections on the new book by well-known Cossack historian Dmitrii V. Sen’ which collects his articles and papers on Northern Black Sea history under new conditions developed when the Ottoman Empire lost the war with the Holy League of European powers, concluded the treatises of Karlowitz and Constantinople, and political initiative in the region passed into the hands of Russia. The author’s attention is focused on various individual and collective strategies of adaptation to new life conditions among frontier populations (Crimean Tatars and the Nogais of the steppe, various groups of Cossacks, including those who escaped from the Russian authorities to the areas controlled by Crimean khans). The Russian authorities in the region also had to adapt themselves and learn how to control a complicated borderland country in close contact with the Ottomans, Crimeans, and residents of the North Caucasus. The book uncovers a complicated “mosaic-like” picture of the region where numerous groups and particular persons interacted, each having a specific way of life, interests, aims, and ambitions. The author outlines prospective ways of further research on the eighteenth-century history of the Northern Black Sea Area.

Несколько групп стеклянных сосудов из слоя пожара второй половины XIII в. в Херсонесе

This paper presents a small collection of glass vessels revealed, with the exception of a few fragments, in a closed deposit, the second half of the thirteenth century fire layer in Chersonese. This publication includes four groups of vessels that always attract specific interest of the researches: marvered scent bottles, enamel- and gold-painted vessels, prunted beakers, and vessels with drops and threads of coloured glass. The issues concerning the origin of manufacturing technologies of these vessels and the ways of their distribution have been considered in details. The research has determined the period of use of these vessels, supposed centres of their production, and distribution area. The finds of similar vessels in other Northern Black Sea centres have been cited. The insignificant amount of these vessels found in Chersonese testifies that they were not traded but rather brought to Chersonese by travellers and pilgrims or came there as gifts including diplomatic ones. Besides, this fact does not allow considering Chersonese an intermediate centre through which the vessels in question were imported to the northern countries, Rus’ian towns in particular. Non-commodity character of these vessels arrival to the Northern Black Sea Area is confirmed by the small number of their finds in those Crimean centres that are thought to have been supplied through Chersonesan market. The collection expands the distribution area of the regarded vessels and increases the number of their finds in closed and narrow-dated assemblages.

Геоморфологічні закономірності в конфігурації меж ґрунтових відмін Північного Причорномор’я

It is about one of the most important characteristics of the location of the boundaries of certain soil differences in the Northern Black Sea region, which are due to the morphological, genetic, age and dynamic features of the relief earth’s surface. Using the example of six key sites covering an area of more than one thousand km2, it has been established that the distribution over the territory of a typical black soil soils of moderately slightly humus-acumulative, southern soils with low-humus-acumulative, dark-chestnut-type low-humus-acumulative soils, to a large extent depends on a number of features of the terrestrial surface, which largely determine the configuration of the boundaries of soil differences. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that the location of soil catenas is not only peculiar to isolated areas of the slopes, as current views assert, but also on large areas between the regions, due to the influence of geomorphological and paleogeographic factors. The influence on the distribution of the main soil differences of the studied territory of the factors of formation of numerous and expressive, even acute angular fractures of their boundaries is traced. Such reasons include a detailed study of the complex configuration of modern contours of the sea coast, a sharp change in the location of the coastline from submeridional to latitudinal, the presence of deeply incised valleys of the Big and Small Kuyalnik (Khadzhibeysky and Kuyalnitsky estuaries), Dniester, Berezansky and Bug estuaries which causes considerable energy of a relief and distribution of processes of plane washing away, numerous fault disturbances close to surfaces of pontic limestone and accordingly difficult orientation of directions of rivers, estuaries and beams developed river valleys, which changed the nature of the landscapes. This allows to extend the formalization of soil differences on the slopes, where it is still represented by the concept of “catena”, in large areas between rivers of the northern Black Sea coast, where differences in soil types and configuration of their boundaries due to “geomorphologic environment” (morphology, genesis age and dynamics of relief) and paleogeographic events of the region, which significantly influenced the formation of “background” types of soil cover.

Combat Knife with Eagle-Headed Handle from Cimmerian Bosporos

In the Romano-Germanic Museum in Cologne (Diergardt collection) there is a combat knife originating from Cimmerian Bosporos. Its hilt is decorated with a bronze image of eagle’s head. The purpose of this publication is to call attention to this artifact almost not known to Eastern European archaeologists. The handles of swords decorated with eagle’s heads from the Roman Period are well known primarily from iconographic data. Noteworthy is the image on a silver bowl from Avignon (the so-called “Briseis Cup”) dated to the fourth century. It depicts a weapon with a rather short blade and a U-shaped chape; all these features resemble the Bosporan combat knife. In the Late Roman Period, swords with eagle-headed hilts were well represented in the images of the persons of status, probably indicating their prominent role of a symbol of power. Generally, eagle is well represented among the symbols of power of the Late Empire, for example, on consular rods or shields with the emblems of military units mentioned in the Notitia Dignitatum. In the Late Roman Period, sword hilts featuring bird’s head also occurred outside the Empire. This is evidenced by the image of the Sassanian Shah Shapur II on a plate from Turusheva. In the “chieftain” culture of the Eastern and Central European Barbaricum and the Northern Black Sea Area from the Great Migration Period, the inlaid patterns showing eagle or bird’s heads is well known on weapons, including swords and horse trappings. In the Barbaricum, there probably appeared the well-known phenomenon of imitatio imperii.

Амулеты и талисманы из «египетского» фаянса с территории Краснодарского края. Источники и историография

The paper presents the source base of figured forms of the so-called "Egyptian" faience, stored in the archaeological funds of the Krasnodar State Historical and Archaeological Museum-Reserve. Historiographical review, in relation to the findings from the territory of the Krasnodar region, complements it. The author tested the method of cross-comparison of data from academic literature and archival data and materials of scientific reports. This opens up new opportunities for the study of funeral and memorial cults of the indicated region in the 1st century B.C. – 3d century A.D. The core content of the study is related to the comparison of different types of sources used to form the database created on a reference group of shapes from faience. The author aimed to trace the processes of formation of the source base from the stage of excavation to the creation of reporting and accounting documentation and the subsequent publication of the extracted materials. The paper summarizes for the first time the materials from the territory of Krasnodar region available for the author. These data provide to determine that some types of amulets could be produced from local raw materials at the manufacturing basis of the cities-policies of the Northern Black Sea region. In some field reports, the problem of incompleteness of the primary source base was identified. In some cases, collections’ inventories of the items do not correspond to the data recorded in the course of their scientific processing. Their comparison with the records of the archive and archaeological museum collections allows the author to eliminate the occurring contradictions. Information about amulets and the conditions for their findings contained in academic publications may add details. However, these articles do not acquire the status of a scientific source.