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Archaeologists recently discovered precious artifacts from a burial site—one of few that hasn’t been looted—left behind by the ancient Alanian people of Eastern Europe.
Early Alans were nomadic horse lords who created elaborate equine decorations, including a tourmaline-studded bridle found at the site.
Originating from Iran, the Alani eventually diverged from the Sarmatians and went to conquer parts of Eastern and Western Europe and North Africa.
Just west of Grozny, Chechnya, lies the ancient Alkhan-Kala necropolis. The Alani people, or Alans, of the Pontic-Caspian steppe once sent their dead to the afterlife here. Though many of the richer burial mounds, or kurgans, at the site have long since been looted, the excavation of one of them recently revealed Alanian treasures that have not seen sunlight for at least 2,500 years.
Glittering green tourmalines set in gold were unearthed by a team of archaeologists—led by Azamat Akhmarov of the Academy of Sciences of the Chechen Republic—when they excavated a rare undisturbed kurgan from the early period of Alanian culture. What they were looking at was a bejeweled harness made by horse lords who followed in the nomadic footsteps of the Sarmatians and Scythians before them. They found several harnesses, a bridle, three bladed weapons, vessels made of imported metal, and a handful of garnets, all dating from the 5th to 2nd centuries B.C. It was a wonder that this grave had not been ransacked.
Whoever was buried here had to have been among the Alani elite. The intricacy of this person’s grave goods, along with the fine materials they were crafted from, was clearly the craft of skilled artisans whose work was intended for someone with a high rank in society. Early Alani were nomads who roamed the steppes on horseback (though they would later become more a settled, pastoralist culture). Perhaps this was the grave of a military leader who died heroically after leading horsemen into battle.
While the identity of this individual remains unknown, the Alans—much like the Scythians and Sarmatians from whom they would later diverge—were an Indo-European people who originated in what is now Iran. They spoke an Iranic language that would spread through the North Caucasus and across much of Eastern Europe, some of Western Europe, and the northern parts of Africa. Some Alans would eventually either integrate with the Hunnic Empire of Attila barging into Rome, or join forces with Romans and Goths in defeating the Huns. Others rode with the Vandals (who also sacked Rome) and more Germanic tribes on their way to Gaul and Spain.
Alkhan-Kala was first excavated by Count Alexey Bobrinsky, the illegitimate son of Catherine the Great who rose to prominence as head of the Imperial Archaeological Commission of Russia. This find adds to the few early Alanian burials that have not been plundered by grave robbers. Gilded swords inlaid with garnets had been buried with a fallen warrior at the Brut burial ground in the North Caucasus. At a site near Komorovo, Saint Petersburg, another wealthy figure (this time a woman) was buried with intricate gold jewelry and figural plaques. Another Alanian necropolis yielded pottery and a gold harness ornament carved with birds. Motifs involving animals are often seen in Alanian art and jewelry, such as bracelets carved with cats and a necklace with what appear to be ram heads functioning as a clasp.
The Zmeisky catacomb cemetery may be the most recognized Alanian burial ground. Though the burials here are from the 8th to 12th century A.D.—far later than the one discovered in Alkhan-Kala—it is where one of the most elaborate and unusual equine ornaments surfaced. From the grave of yet another warrior came a gilded bronze brow piece in the form of a woman holding a cup. She is thought to be either Dzerassa or Satana, both epic heroines, holding the magical cup of Uatsamong. Drinking from it would reveal if heroic deeds were true, or merely bluster and brag.
“This undisturbed burial offers a unique window into an era we know very little about,” Akhmarov told The Archaeologist. “It allows us to better understand the social structure, burial practices, and cultural connections of the Alans.”
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