Aleksandr Symonenko received his Ph.D. (1987) and Dr. hab (1999) degrees in the Institute of Archaeology of Ukrainian National Academy of Sciences in Kiev, has been elected a Corresponding Member of the Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Berlin (1988). His research interests lie, broadly, in the areas of archaeology and history of Sarmatians and Late Scythians. As a field archaeologist he is a well-known expert in the barrow and burial ground excavation and spent 40 campaigns in Ukraine, Russia, and Hungary. His special academic interest is the origin of Sarmatians in the light of a new discoveries and revision of known artifacts and theories.
The edged weapons are rather frequently occurring at the Late Scythian necropolises though there ... more The edged weapons are rather frequently occurring at the Late Scythian necropolises though there is a certain disproportion between Crimean and Lower Dnieper sites in favor of the first. The Chervony Mayak necropolis in Lower Dnieper region provides a representative series of various weapons with the edged one inclusive. Ten swords and their fragments were found in the Chervony Mayak necropolis. One of them came from tumulus grave, nine from the graves of burial ground and another one have been found accidently in the gully near the necropolis. The edged weapons were found in the following assemblages: tumulus 1, grave 1; grave 30, skeleton 5; grave 31; grave 32, skeleton 3; grave 40, skeleton 1; grave 94; grave 121, skeletons 1 and 3; grave 133, skeleton 1 and the accidental find in gully. All those buried from intact graves were men or juniors. Majority of Late Scythian swords have a tanged hilt without metal pommel and cross-bar. They look like Sarmatian swords of the same type b...
All known finds of the Roman bronze casseroles in the Sarmatian and Late Scythian sites in the te... more All known finds of the Roman bronze casseroles in the Sarmatian and Late Scythian sites in the territories of Ukraine, Moldova, Romania are examined in the paper. The typological analysis was carried out, finds are classified according to known classifications schemes, dating is substantiated and cross-cultural comparative analysis is carried out.
Stratum plus. Археология и культурная антропология, 2021
In 2017 near Malynivka village in Petrovo district of Kirovohrad region the ritual deposit has be... more In 2017 near Malynivka village in Petrovo district of Kirovohrad region the ritual deposit has been found because of accidental circumstances. It belongs to the category of sites known in the literature as "odd" assemblages (M.B. Shchukin), the votive or ritual "hoards". The find consists of the bronze Roman provincial vessels (Bargfeld type situla and Aylesford type pan), silver and lead bridle roundels, five pairs of iron bits and cheek-pieces, five frontlets with a hook, and ten iron socketed arrowheads. Parallels to these items are dated to the 2nd – 1st centuries BC. The Aylesford type pan, which is first found in the North Pontic region, specifies the date of the assemblages to the first half of the 1st century BC. The topography of the parallels makes it possible to associate this find with the Northwestern Caucasus or Kuban region and determine its cultural affiliation as Sarmatian. The date and cultural attribution of the assemblage does not exclude the connection of this and similar "odd" assemblages (Marievka, Bădragii Noi, Vesela Dolyna, Hordashivka, etc.) with the raids of the Sarmatians and Maeotians of Kuban region.
The study of glass and faience vessels from Sarmatian graves on the territory of contemporary Ukr... more The study of glass and faience vessels from Sarmatian graves on the territory of contemporary Ukraine
The paper critically analyzes the burials of the Orel-Samara interfluve published as the early Sa... more The paper critically analyzes the burials of the Orel-Samara interfluve published as the early Sarmatian assemblages. Due to wrongly determined ceramics and confusion in numbering of barrows and other subjective reasons they were interpreted and dated incorrectly. The paper offers the objective analysis of the sites under discussion and their real dating. The collection of Dr. Kostenko presents two burials (Spasskoye-Verkhnyaya Maevka, Pereshchepino) belonging to Belozerka culture, one (Novo-Podkryazh) belonging to Catacomb culture, several Sarmatian burials (Podgorodnoye, Aleksandrovka, Sokolovo), which were dated incorrectly (they belong to the later period in fact). In general, only 10 burials of the region can be dated to the 2nd – 1st centuries BC out of 22, which are considered early Sarmatian. These are the burials with Middle La Tиne fibulae (Zhemchuzhnoe, Bogdanovka, Lychkovo), mirrors of early types (Sokolovo, Proletarskoe) and the swords with crescent pommel (Zhemchuzhnoe...
Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia, 2007
... At the end of the Hellenistic Period, the image of Arsinoe was associated with Aphrodite-Venu... more ... At the end of the Hellenistic Period, the image of Arsinoe was associated with Aphrodite-Venus (Plantzos, 1999: 50; Neverov, 1976: 173) and preserved the Hellenistic iconography such as the hairdo with a knot on the back of the head, curls on the neck, the roll on the forehead ...
Vestnik Volgogradskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Serija 4. Istorija. Regionovedenie. Mezhdunarodnye otnoshenija, 2020
Introduction. In 2007 the archaeological expedition of the State Autonomic Cultural Facility of R... more Introduction. In 2007 the archaeological expedition of the State Autonomic Cultural Facility of Rostov Region “The Don Heritage” excavated burial ground Krasny IV in Aksay district of Rostov Region. In the mound of barrow No. 13 a bronze rod-shaped frontlet plate with a hook, a bronze lunula-shaped harness pendant, six bronze bridle roundels, a bone cheek-piece, and iron fragments of the, most likely, bits have been discovered. Methods and materials. In the study the standard methods of archaeological analysis are used: comparative-typological, the method of analogies, chronological, and cartographic ones. The materials are the discovered artifacts. Analysis. According to the conditions of location and composition, the assemblage from barrow No. 13 can be identified as a ritual deposit. Such assemblages are known in special literature as “hoards”, “strange assemblages” or “votive hoards”. They have been found in mounds of barrows or in natural hills without traces of human burials. ...
The “hoard” of items of horse equipment which had been discovered near Brăviceni village in 1956 ... more The “hoard” of items of horse equipment which had been discovered near Brăviceni village in 1956 and kept in the National Museum of History of Moldova is published and analyzed in the paper. The assemblage includes the bronze hook-shaped frontlet, silver beads and bridle rings, iron bits. Close parallels to Brăviceni items and the finds of this category make it possible to consider the assemblage the ritual deposit of the 2nd – 1st century BC and associate it with the Sarmatians.
The chronotope of Scythia conquest is one of the main issues of archaeology and history of the Sc... more The chronotope of Scythia conquest is one of the main issues of archaeology and history of the Scythian and Sarmatian Age. The literature sources present four versions of reasons and events, which led to the desintegration of Scythia in the 3 rd century BC: the Celtic (expansion of the Celts from the Balkan region); the climatic (sharp deterioration of the climate with disaster consequences); the economic (decline of the grain trade); and the Sarmatian (the Sarmatian penetration from the East). The present paper studies the so-called Sarmatian hypothesis from the new viewpoint. The few but spectacular archaeological finds in the territory of Ukraine, Moldova and Romania (the special bronze frontlets and plaques for the breastplate, the bits with cruciform harsh mouthpieces , and large eye-like beads-amulets) and their parallels in the NorthWestern Caucasus and in the Kuban region allow suggesting that at the beginning of the 3 rd century BC the military expansion of the Siraci and Maeotae had ousted the Scythians from the North Pontic steppes to Trans-Dniester region. The mentioned finds mark the movement of their owners from the East to the West, all the way to the Danube. We also investigate the Scythian burial mounds of the second half of the 3 rd-middle 2 nd cc. BC in the Lower Dniester, also known as Tiraspol barrows. The analysis of the archaeological materials let us assume that the Caucasian conquerors represented the nobility of the Scythian horde, and its representatives were buried in the Tiraspol barrows. The ritual deposits (hoards or strange assemblages) of this time found in the Caucasus and in the NorthWestern Pontic region can be considered as the sites of military elite of this new unit. Probably, it should be identified with the Saii ruled by king Saitapharnes mentioned in the Olbian decree in honour of Protogenes.
The edged weapons are rather frequently occurring at the Late Scythian necropolises though there ... more The edged weapons are rather frequently occurring at the Late Scythian necropolises though there is a certain disproportion between Crimean and Lower Dnieper sites in favor of the first. The Chervony Mayak necropolis in Lower Dnieper region provides a representative series of various weapons with the edged one inclusive. Ten swords and their fragments were found in the Chervony Mayak necropolis. One of them came from tumulus grave, nine from the graves of burial ground and another one have been found accidently in the gully near the necropolis. The edged weapons were found in the following assemblages: tumulus 1, grave 1; grave 30, skeleton 5; grave 31; grave 32, skeleton 3; grave 40, skeleton 1; grave 94; grave 121, skeletons 1 and 3; grave 133, skeleton 1 and the accidental find in gully. All those buried from intact graves were men or juniors. Majority of Late Scythian swords have a tanged hilt without metal pommel and cross-bar. They look like Sarmatian swords of the same type b...
All known finds of the Roman bronze casseroles in the Sarmatian and Late Scythian sites in the te... more All known finds of the Roman bronze casseroles in the Sarmatian and Late Scythian sites in the territories of Ukraine, Moldova, Romania are examined in the paper. The typological analysis was carried out, finds are classified according to known classifications schemes, dating is substantiated and cross-cultural comparative analysis is carried out.
Stratum plus. Археология и культурная антропология, 2021
In 2017 near Malynivka village in Petrovo district of Kirovohrad region the ritual deposit has be... more In 2017 near Malynivka village in Petrovo district of Kirovohrad region the ritual deposit has been found because of accidental circumstances. It belongs to the category of sites known in the literature as "odd" assemblages (M.B. Shchukin), the votive or ritual "hoards". The find consists of the bronze Roman provincial vessels (Bargfeld type situla and Aylesford type pan), silver and lead bridle roundels, five pairs of iron bits and cheek-pieces, five frontlets with a hook, and ten iron socketed arrowheads. Parallels to these items are dated to the 2nd – 1st centuries BC. The Aylesford type pan, which is first found in the North Pontic region, specifies the date of the assemblages to the first half of the 1st century BC. The topography of the parallels makes it possible to associate this find with the Northwestern Caucasus or Kuban region and determine its cultural affiliation as Sarmatian. The date and cultural attribution of the assemblage does not exclude the connection of this and similar "odd" assemblages (Marievka, Bădragii Noi, Vesela Dolyna, Hordashivka, etc.) with the raids of the Sarmatians and Maeotians of Kuban region.
The study of glass and faience vessels from Sarmatian graves on the territory of contemporary Ukr... more The study of glass and faience vessels from Sarmatian graves on the territory of contemporary Ukraine
The paper critically analyzes the burials of the Orel-Samara interfluve published as the early Sa... more The paper critically analyzes the burials of the Orel-Samara interfluve published as the early Sarmatian assemblages. Due to wrongly determined ceramics and confusion in numbering of barrows and other subjective reasons they were interpreted and dated incorrectly. The paper offers the objective analysis of the sites under discussion and their real dating. The collection of Dr. Kostenko presents two burials (Spasskoye-Verkhnyaya Maevka, Pereshchepino) belonging to Belozerka culture, one (Novo-Podkryazh) belonging to Catacomb culture, several Sarmatian burials (Podgorodnoye, Aleksandrovka, Sokolovo), which were dated incorrectly (they belong to the later period in fact). In general, only 10 burials of the region can be dated to the 2nd – 1st centuries BC out of 22, which are considered early Sarmatian. These are the burials with Middle La Tиne fibulae (Zhemchuzhnoe, Bogdanovka, Lychkovo), mirrors of early types (Sokolovo, Proletarskoe) and the swords with crescent pommel (Zhemchuzhnoe...
Archaeology, Ethnology and Anthropology of Eurasia, 2007
... At the end of the Hellenistic Period, the image of Arsinoe was associated with Aphrodite-Venu... more ... At the end of the Hellenistic Period, the image of Arsinoe was associated with Aphrodite-Venus (Plantzos, 1999: 50; Neverov, 1976: 173) and preserved the Hellenistic iconography such as the hairdo with a knot on the back of the head, curls on the neck, the roll on the forehead ...
Vestnik Volgogradskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Serija 4. Istorija. Regionovedenie. Mezhdunarodnye otnoshenija, 2020
Introduction. In 2007 the archaeological expedition of the State Autonomic Cultural Facility of R... more Introduction. In 2007 the archaeological expedition of the State Autonomic Cultural Facility of Rostov Region “The Don Heritage” excavated burial ground Krasny IV in Aksay district of Rostov Region. In the mound of barrow No. 13 a bronze rod-shaped frontlet plate with a hook, a bronze lunula-shaped harness pendant, six bronze bridle roundels, a bone cheek-piece, and iron fragments of the, most likely, bits have been discovered. Methods and materials. In the study the standard methods of archaeological analysis are used: comparative-typological, the method of analogies, chronological, and cartographic ones. The materials are the discovered artifacts. Analysis. According to the conditions of location and composition, the assemblage from barrow No. 13 can be identified as a ritual deposit. Such assemblages are known in special literature as “hoards”, “strange assemblages” or “votive hoards”. They have been found in mounds of barrows or in natural hills without traces of human burials. ...
The “hoard” of items of horse equipment which had been discovered near Brăviceni village in 1956 ... more The “hoard” of items of horse equipment which had been discovered near Brăviceni village in 1956 and kept in the National Museum of History of Moldova is published and analyzed in the paper. The assemblage includes the bronze hook-shaped frontlet, silver beads and bridle rings, iron bits. Close parallels to Brăviceni items and the finds of this category make it possible to consider the assemblage the ritual deposit of the 2nd – 1st century BC and associate it with the Sarmatians.
The chronotope of Scythia conquest is one of the main issues of archaeology and history of the Sc... more The chronotope of Scythia conquest is one of the main issues of archaeology and history of the Scythian and Sarmatian Age. The literature sources present four versions of reasons and events, which led to the desintegration of Scythia in the 3 rd century BC: the Celtic (expansion of the Celts from the Balkan region); the climatic (sharp deterioration of the climate with disaster consequences); the economic (decline of the grain trade); and the Sarmatian (the Sarmatian penetration from the East). The present paper studies the so-called Sarmatian hypothesis from the new viewpoint. The few but spectacular archaeological finds in the territory of Ukraine, Moldova and Romania (the special bronze frontlets and plaques for the breastplate, the bits with cruciform harsh mouthpieces , and large eye-like beads-amulets) and their parallels in the NorthWestern Caucasus and in the Kuban region allow suggesting that at the beginning of the 3 rd century BC the military expansion of the Siraci and Maeotae had ousted the Scythians from the North Pontic steppes to Trans-Dniester region. The mentioned finds mark the movement of their owners from the East to the West, all the way to the Danube. We also investigate the Scythian burial mounds of the second half of the 3 rd-middle 2 nd cc. BC in the Lower Dniester, also known as Tiraspol barrows. The analysis of the archaeological materials let us assume that the Caucasian conquerors represented the nobility of the Scythian horde, and its representatives were buried in the Tiraspol barrows. The ritual deposits (hoards or strange assemblages) of this time found in the Caucasus and in the NorthWestern Pontic region can be considered as the sites of military elite of this new unit. Probably, it should be identified with the Saii ruled by king Saitapharnes mentioned in the Olbian decree in honour of Protogenes.
Книжка присвячена історії кінного спорту в Україні, яка є одним з регіонів
приручення коня. Автор... more Книжка присвячена історії кінного спорту в Україні, яка є одним з регіонів приручення коня. Автори — професійний кіннотник та професійний археолог — знайомлять читачів з найдавнішими вершниками України — скіфами, сарма- тами, печенігами та половцями. В книзі подано нарис виникнення і розвитку сучасних кінно-спортивних дисциплін — виїздки, конкуру і триборства, змальо- ваний довгий і тернистий шлях, пройдений кіннотниками України, починаючи з середини ХХ століття — часу виникнення перших кінно-спортивних шкіл. Книга написана на основі власного досвіду авторів і є певною мірою спогадами про фундаторів кінного спорту України. Втім, вона містить огляд сучасних кінно- спортивних клубів та їх досягнень вдома і закордоном. Для професіоналів і аматорів кінного спорту, всіх, хто любить коней і ціка- виться історією дружби людини і коня.
Сборник состоит из двух частей: избранные статьи юбиляра и работы его коллег. Тематика статей отв... more Сборник состоит из двух частей: избранные статьи юбиляра и работы его коллег. Тематика статей отвечает основным
научным направлениям А. В. Симоненко: история сарматов и их соседей, вооружение и конское снаряжение сарматских
воинов, античные импорты в сарматской культуре, искусство сарматов. Весьма важны комментарии, составленные А.
В. Симоненко к его ранним статьям – они объясняют некоторые устаревшие или ошибочные выводы и вместе с заново
изготовленными иллюстрациями возвращают старым работам актуальность. Интересные воспоминания содержит автобиографический очерк, предпосланный научным разделам.
Книга предназначена для археологов, историков, студентов исторических ВУЗов и всех, интересующихся археологией.
Эта книга издана в тяжелое для Украины и украинской науки время. По независимым от автора причина... more Эта книга издана в тяжелое для Украины и украинской науки время. По независимым от автора причинам при редактировании в издательстве были допущены ошибки, попавшие в текст тиража. Поэтому при создании ПДФ версии автор позволил себе исправить наиболее одиозные места текста, чтобы у читателей не сложилось ложное впечатление о его научной позиции. This book was published in a difficult time for Ukraine and Ukrainian science. Due to reasons beyond of my control the editing in the publishing house was made inaccurately and some mistakes were included into the text. Therefore creating the PDF version I afforded to correct the most odious parts of the text in order to avoid a false impression on my scientific views.
The military art, weapons and horse harness from Sarmatian graves of the 2nd cent. BC – 4th cent.... more The military art, weapons and horse harness from Sarmatian graves of the 2nd cent. BC – 4th cent. AD from North Pontic region (modern Ukraine and Moldova) are explored in the book. The analyses covered a greater part of weapons (swords and daggers, bow details, spear- and arrow-heads, helmets, armour, shields) and cavalry equipment (bits, check-pieces, phalerae and other harness decoration, saddle etc.) many of which are published for the first time. In the book the typology and chronology of material are proposed, the place of Sarmatian militaria in the system of Eurasian nomadic antiquities is specified. Basing on the review of the current scientific theories and analyzing the new material author proposes the new solutions of such key questions of Sarmatian studies as the similarity and difference of Sarmatian and Scythian military art, the "problem of cataphractarii", the structure and organization of Sarmatian army, the chronology of the development of Sarmatian military art, its regional and chronological peculiarities etc.
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Papers by Aleksandr Symonenko
are classified according to known classifications schemes, dating is substantiated and cross-cultural comparative analysis is carried out.
are classified according to known classifications schemes, dating is substantiated and cross-cultural comparative analysis is carried out.
приручення коня. Автори — професійний кіннотник та професійний археолог —
знайомлять читачів з найдавнішими вершниками України — скіфами, сарма-
тами, печенігами та половцями. В книзі подано нарис виникнення і розвитку
сучасних кінно-спортивних дисциплін — виїздки, конкуру і триборства, змальо-
ваний довгий і тернистий шлях, пройдений кіннотниками України, починаючи з
середини ХХ століття — часу виникнення перших кінно-спортивних шкіл. Книга
написана на основі власного досвіду авторів і є певною мірою спогадами про
фундаторів кінного спорту України. Втім, вона містить огляд сучасних кінно-
спортивних клубів та їх досягнень вдома і закордоном.
Для професіоналів і аматорів кінного спорту, всіх, хто любить коней і ціка-
виться історією дружби людини і коня.
научным направлениям А. В. Симоненко: история сарматов и их соседей, вооружение и конское снаряжение сарматских
воинов, античные импорты в сарматской культуре, искусство сарматов. Весьма важны комментарии, составленные А.
В. Симоненко к его ранним статьям – они объясняют некоторые устаревшие или ошибочные выводы и вместе с заново
изготовленными иллюстрациями возвращают старым работам актуальность. Интересные воспоминания содержит автобиографический очерк, предпосланный научным разделам.
Книга предназначена для археологов, историков, студентов исторических ВУЗов и всех, интересующихся археологией.
This book was published in a difficult time for Ukraine and Ukrainian science. Due to reasons beyond of my control the editing in the publishing house was made inaccurately and some mistakes were included into the text. Therefore creating the PDF version I afforded to correct the most odious parts of the text in order to avoid a false impression on my scientific views.