8th century BC
Scythians — a collective name for Iranian tribes related to the Sauromatians, Massagetae, and Sakas. They were located in the regions of Central Asia, then began advancing to the North Caucasus and from there to the territory of the Northern Black Sea region. The steppes between the Danube and the Don, including the Crimean steppe, entered science under the name 'Scythia'. The Scythians were divided into 'Royal' (between the Dnieper and the Don), 'Nomads' (right bank of the Lower Dnieper and the Crimean steppe), and 'Farmers' (between the Ingul and the Dnieper). In the 4th century BC, they created the Scythian state. In the 3rd century BC, they were displaced from the Northern Black Sea region by the Sarmatians. Their capital was moved from the site of the modern Kamenskoye settlement (near Nikopol) to Crimea. At the end of the 2nd century BC, the peculiar Scythian state in Crimea became part of the Pontic Kingdom. The name 'Scythians' later passed to the Sarmatian tribes and most other nomads inhabiting the Black Sea regions. Subsequently, the Scythians dissolved among other tribes of the Northern Black Sea region. The Scythians in Crimea survived until the invasion of the Goths in the 3rd century AD. In late Roman and early medieval authors, 'Scythian' was a general designation for the Northern Black Sea barbarians.
The ancient Scythians and Sarmatians were genetically descendants of the Indo-Iranian block of Indo-Europeans. The Scythians most likely belonged 50% to haplogroup R1a. There is a high probability that the Scythians also had a small number of representatives of R1b and, to a lesser extent, G1, G2a2b2a, J2a, J2b2, Q1b, and T1a1a. The Sarmatians should have had the same composition of haplogroups as the Scythians, but probably without G1 and Q1b with the addition of Eastern European I2a1b and E-V13. [Maciamo Hay 2008]
VARIANT NAMES: Latin. Scythi, Scythae, Hiscitae, Syrthae, Scythei, Scythii, Scythices, Scythicae, Greek. Σκυθαι, Σκυθεοι, Σκυθιαι, Σκυθικοι, Russian. Skify, Skoloty.
Sources:
Ethnogenesis of the Abkhazians. D.A. Arshba, 2015
Language
The Scythian language belongs to the Northeastern subgroup of Iranian languages. The Sauromatians (Sarmatians), Sakas, and Massagetae were very close in language and culture to the Scythians.
Period of Existence
The actual history of the Scythians in the Northern Black Sea region – 8th century BC – 4th century AD. From the beginning of the war with the Cimmerians until the defeat of the Scythian kingdom by the Goths in Crimea.
Origin
There are several legends about the origin of the Scythians —
Here Herodotus says that the common name of the people is Scoloti; the Greeks called them Scythians, and the Persians — Sakas. It was the part of Scythia from the Danube to Maeotis, especially known in Olbia, that was called indigenous Scythia. From Targitai to the time of Herodotus, a thousand years had passed.
Currently, there are three versions of where the Scythians came from in the Black Sea region.
History
7th century BC. The war of the Scythians with the Cimmerians, which allowed the Scythians to drive the latter out of the Black Sea region and occupy their territory.
685 BC. Under the leadership of Spargapis, the Scythians move from the North Caucasus and Kuban to the Northern Black Sea region. Most likely, Scythia at this time was divided into three regions —
70s of the 7th century BC. A series of campaigns by the Scythians in Media, Syria, Palestine, and the Near East. As a result, the Scythians were able to establish themselves there.
Within the borders of Eastern Transcaucasia (modern Azerbaijan and partly Iranian Azerbaijan) on the northern and partly on the southern banks of the Araxes River, a state of the Scythians was founded, called Ishkuza in the sources, which existed until the 6th century BC, when the Scythians were expelled from Transcaucasia by the Medes.
679—674/73 BC. The Scythians under the leadership of Ishpakai (one of the first historically known leaders of the Scythians) in alliance with the Medes, Urartu, and the kingdom of Mannaea participated in the war against the Assyrian kingdom under the leadership of Esarhaddon, during which Ishpakai died.
673—654 BC. The leader of the Scythians becomes Partatua (Protothyes), under whose leadership the Scythians left the anti-Assyrian coalition. According to one hypothesis, this happened due to the conclusion of a dynastic marriage — Partatua married the daughter of Esarhaddon.
650 BC. The Scythian leader Ariantas conducts a "census" of the population in the Black Sea region. He orders every Scythian to bring one arrowhead. After this, he casts a large cauldron. There is a description by Herodotus —
"In this region (at the headwaters of the Hypanis — the Bug) stands a bronze vessel, perhaps six times larger than the mixing vessel that Pausanias, son of Cleombrotus, ordered to be dedicated to the gods and placed at the entrance to the Pontus (the Black Sea). To those who have not seen this vessel, I will describe it: it freely holds 600 amphorae, and the thickness of this Scythian vessel is six fingers. According to the local inhabitants, it is made from arrowheads. One Scythian king, named Ariantas, wished to know the number of Scythians. He ordered all Scythians to bring one arrowhead each, and threatened with death anyone who disobeyed. Then the Scythians brought so many arrowheads that the king decided to erect a monument from them: he ordered this bronze vessel to be made from the arrowheads and placed in Exampaeus. These are the accounts I received about the number of Scythians."
As previously indicated, there are opinions that Ariantas owned lands from the Dnieper to the Danube, but at the same time he could also rule all of Scythia.
Settlement of the Scythians according to Herodotus (Grakov B.N. Scythians — Moscow State University, 1971, pp. 16-17.):
Many hypotheses have also been put forward regarding them, which, however, break down against the precise localization of the five main rivers: the Ister, Tyras, Hypanis, Borysthenes, and Tanais. This allows us to outline the settlement of tribes in accordance with Herodotus's data. Here is how we see this settlement. From the Danube to the Dnieper, the coast is occupied by Scythians: their northern border with the Neuri is somewhere on the upper Dniester. The Hypanis and the Dniester bring their courses close together in the land of the Alazones: this convergence begins just above Nikolaev. Up the Bug, closest to Olbia are the Callipidae, otherwise the Hellenic-Scythians. Later, in the Olbian decree in honor of Protogenes (3rd century BC), they are called "mixhellenes," i.e., "mixed Hellenes." This confirms the accuracy of Herodotus's data. Above them lives the Scythian tribe of the Alazones, at the point where the Bug and the Dniester converge. Even higher up are the Scythian plowmen, somewhere in the interfluve of the same rivers. At Exampaeus passed their border with the Alazones. The fourth Scythian tribe, the Scythian farmers, lived along the Dnieper and beyond the Dnieper to Panticapes (Ingulets). It should be thought that the Scythian farmers lived on both banks of the Borysthenes, just as the Scythian nomads, placed beyond Panticapes and further beyond the farmers, evidently partly lived within the right bank. In other words, both tribes lived to some extent intermingled. The Scythian nomads on the left bank of the Dnieper lived in the steppes, divided in half by the Hypaciris, and reached the Gerros River (Konka). Further east and south lived the Royal Scythians beyond the Gerros River. They occupied the steppe up to Maeotis and the Tanais and the northern Crimea up to the mountains where the wild Tauri lived. Immediately above the Scythians along the Dnieper lived the Androphagi (cannibals). Herodotus says that they are the only cannibals among all the peoples of Scythia. They wear Scythian clothing, are nomads, but have their own special language, different from Scythian.
North of the Scythian plowmen and the Androphagi, according to Herodotus, between the fantastic lake from which the Dniester flows and the Dnieper, live the Neuri immediately west of the Dnieper. In other words, the Neuri occupied a vast territory no longer in the steppes, since the upper reaches of the Dnieper and the Bug, as well as the adjacent right bank of the Dnieper, are already in the forest-steppe zone. At the same time, they somehow bordered the Budini located to the east. Many amazing things were told about the Neuri as werewolves and sorcerers. The Neuri, according to Herodotus, had Scythian customs.
To the north of the Royal Scythians on the left bank of the Dnieper and further east lived the Melanchlaeni, i.e., people wearing black cloaks. Their eastern border is unclear, but they must have somewhere closer to the Don come into contact with the Budini and, perhaps, with the Sauromatians. This is a special, non-Scythian tribe, but their way of life is Scythian. Perhaps the Melanchlaeni are called a non-Scythian people because they had their own language, or because they did not belong to the Scythian political grouping.
Above the Maeotians, who occupied the delta and the lowest reaches of the Tanais-Don, three days' journey from its mouth into Maeotis, fifteen days' journey northeast on the right bank of the river lived the Sauromatians in a treeless steppe. They supposedly originated from the marriages of the sons of free Scythians and warlike Amazon women. Their women were therefore warlike, and their language was a corrupted Scythian due to the Amazons who did not understand it. They maintained political independence and were pure nomads.
Above the Sauromatians along the Don, beyond their steppe, but already in mixed forests, i.e., in the forest-steppe, lived the Budini — a very large, according to Herodotus, and nomadic people. Their country somewhere in the west adjoined Neuriada (the country of the Neuri), since a generation before Herodotus, the Neuri migrated to the land of the Budini. The Budini spoke their own language. They apparently did not border the Scythians and were undoubtedly politically completely independent. In their country was a large wooden city, Gelonus. In it lived certain Geloni, who spoke sometimes Scythian, sometimes Hellenic, and worshipped Greek gods, particularly Dionysus. They were sedentary and engaged in agriculture. Other writers, in Herodotus's opinion, wrongly considered the Geloni and Budini to be one people.
Late 7th — early 6th centuries BC. The king of the Scythians in the Black Sea region became Gnu — son of Lycus, grandson of Spargapis.
90s-50s of the 6th century BC. The king of the Scythians becomes Saulius (Kaduit, Kaduinus, Calvides — in some sources) — son of Gnu. According to Herodotus's version, the murderer of his brother — Anacharsis — one of the seven sages.
End of the 6th century BC. The king of the Scythians becomes Idanthyrsus — son of Saulius, who participates in the war against Darius I. One of the leaders in this war was Scopasis, whose detachment (most likely the Azov Scythians and Sauromatians) was the most combat-ready and mobile. Another leader known from Herodotus — Taxacis, commanded the army of the Geloni and Budini.
514/12 BC. The war of the Scythians with the Persian king Darius I.
Darius gathered a huge army of 700 thousand men — motley and multilingual, consisting of representatives of 80 peoples. With this army, the Persian monarch passed through Asia Minor, crossed to the European side through the Bosporus Strait, and traversed Thrace. And finally, crossing the Danube over a bridge of ships built for him by mercenaries (Asia Minor Greeks), he entered the Northern Black Sea region — into the borders of Scythia. The campaign was calculated for two months.
The Scythians, well-informed of the enemy's actions, also knew about his colossal numbers. They themselves, together with allied tribes, could field no more than 200 thousand warriors. Realizing the full depth of the danger hanging over them, the Scythians nevertheless decided to fight to the end. To this end, they developed a general strategic plan for the campaign:
At the same time, retreating, the Scythians filled wells and springs and burned vegetation — steppe grasses that served as fodder for livestock.
Darius's army with its huge baggage train, pursuing the Scythians, managed, according to Herodotus, to reach the Tanais (Don) and Maeotis (Sea of Azov) in a short time, after which it turned back. From hunger, hardship, disease, and continuous attacks by Scythian cavalry, the Persians suffered huge losses, without winning a single battle and without capturing any booty. Fortunately for Darius, the Greek mercenaries did not dismantle the bridge on the Danube after the agreed 60 days, and the remnants of his troops and he himself, avoiding death, returned to Persia.
480s-460s of the 5th century BC. The king of the Scythians became Ariapith — father of Scylas, Octamasades, and Oricus. During his reign, several important events took place —
He himself was killed by the king of the Agathyrsi (most likely a Thracian tribe) Spargapis. After the death of the Scythian king, Opia — the wife of Ariapith and mother of Oricus — ascended the throne. The question of whether this character is a real historical figure remains debatable.
c. 465—447/45 BC. After the short reign of Opia, Scylas — son of Ariapith — comes to power. He was the son of a Greek woman and almost completely adopted Greek culture and, becoming king, settled in Olbia, promoting the trade interests of Istria. As a result of palace intrigues, he was executed by the Scythians themselves.
50s of the 5th century BC. The king of the Scythians became Octamasades, also the son of Ariapith. He was a relative of the king of the Odrysians — Sitalces. Possibly with his support, Spartocus came to power in the Bosporus in 438 BC. Oricus — brother of Octamasades — most likely ruled Olbia at the same time.
Late 5th — early 4th centuries BC. King Ateas destroys the other Scythian kings and usurps power.
The Kamenskoye settlement appears (located near the city of Kamenka-Dneprovskaya and the village of B. Znamenka in the Zaporozhye region). From the steppe side, the settlement was protected by an earthen rampart and ditch, and from the north and west by cliffs over the Dnieper, the Konka River, and the Belozersky estuary. In the southwestern corner was the acropolis, where the Scythian nobility lived. The main occupations of the inhabitants were the manufacture of bronze and iron tools, weaving, pottery, as well as agriculture and cattle breeding. Craftsmen lived in dugouts and above-ground post structures, the nobility in stone houses. The settlement was a large craft and trade center, closely connected with the Greek colonies of the Northern Black Sea region and the local population of Scythia. At the end of the 3rd century BC, the territory of the settlement was abandoned (except for the acropolis, where life continued until the 3rd century AD).
358 BC. Istria on the Black Sea coast is subjugated to Scythian power.
344 BC. The Scythians wage a successful war against the Triballi, living on the territory of modern Bulgaria.
343 BC. Callatis on the Black Sea coast is subjugated.
40s of the 4th century BC. King Ateas, having eliminated the other kings, united the Scythian tribes from the Sea of Azov to the Danube.
339 BC. The war of the Scythians with Philip II of Macedon. According to tradition, it is in this war that King Ateas dies at the age of 90.
From the source it is known — "both sides became irritated, a battle ensued, in which the Scythians, despite the superiority of their spiritual valor and numbers, were defeated by Philip's cunning; 20 thousand children and women were taken (by the victorious Macedonians), a multitude of cattle, but no gold or silver was found at all, which for the first time testified to the poverty of the Scythians; 20 thousand thoroughbred mares were sent to Macedonia for breeding" [Justin. Epitome of Pompeius Trogus. "History of Philip" (IX, 2-3)].
On the way back, the Macedonian army fell into an ambush set by the Triballi.
331 BC. Zopyrion was left by Alexander the Great as governor of Thrace, Pontus (or Scythia). Wishing to distinguish himself, he gathered a 30-thousand strong army and went to war against the Scythians. Most likely, he reached Olbia, but then had to flee. In the end, he was overtaken by the Scythians, defeated, losing almost his entire army. He himself died somewhere in Bessarabia.
313 BC. Lysimachus — the ruler of Thrace — inflicted a severe defeat on the Scythians beyond the Danube.
310-309 BC. Dynastic war in the Bosporan Kingdom. Agar, the Scythian leader, supported Satyros, but as a result of the battle on the Fat River, the victory was won by another contender for the throne — Eumelus of Bosporus, the brother of Satyros.
280-260 BC. The Sarmatians invade Scythia and actually completely take possession of the Northern Black Sea region, destroying and expelling the Scythians. Subsequently, part of the Scythians remained in the mouth of the Dnieper and on the Crimean Peninsula. Another part crosses the Danube and settles there; the territory receives the name Lesser Scythia (Istria-Dobruja).
Late 3rd — early 2nd centuries BC. Great changes take place in Scythia. The pressure of the Sarmatians intensifies, as mentioned earlier, the Kamenskoye settlement on the Dnieper ceases to exist (except for the acropolis, which continues to function). Throughout the Northern Black Sea region, archaeologists have noted a change from Scythian culture to Sarmatian. At the same time, the Scythians in Crimea begin to settle down, engage in agriculture, fishing, and crafts.
130—114/13 BC. The reign of the Scythian king Scylurus in Crimea. He managed to unite the entire territory of the Scythians in Crimea, up to the mouth of the Dnieper and the Southern Bug. He turned Scythian Neapolis (near modern Simferopol) into his capital. To fight against Pontus, he began to attract Sarmatians (Roxolani) led by Tasius. Scylurus managed to capture Kerkinitis, Kalos Limen, and the Fortifications, cities on the western coast of Crimea that had until then been part of the Chersonese republic.
114/13—111 BC (110-107 BC). The reign of Palacus — son of Scylurus. In three expeditions, Diophantus successively defeated Palacus, conquered the mountain Tauri, captured the Scythian fortresses of Chabaei and Neapolis in Crimea, and subjugated the Scythians to Mithridates of Pontus.
Later, the Scythians revolted again, and Diophantus again marched against them, liberated Kerkinitis and the Fortifications, and began to besiege Kalos Limen. Palacus moved against him but was defeated so that, according to the Chersonese inscription in honor of Diophantus, "none of the infantry escaped, and only a few of the horsemen slipped away." In spring, Diophantus moved against Chabaei and Neapolis and forced the Scythians to sue for peace.
The Scythians living in the Bosporus rose in revolt against Paerisades, the last nominal king of the Bosporus from the former dynasty, who had transferred power to Mithridates VI but retained his title. The revolt was led by the Scythian Saumacus, perhaps a slave-fosterling of Paerisades. The king was killed, Saumacus seized power, but Diophantus suppressed this revolt, subjugating Chersonese, the Bosporus, and the Crimean steppe to Mithridates of Pontus.
Through these wars, Taurica-Scythia was divided into several possessions and no longer represented a single kingdom.
Mid-1st century BC. The Getae under the leadership of Burebista cross the Danube and destroy Olbia. The city ceased to exist. Later, the Scythians persuaded the escaped inhabitants to restore the city, but it never recovered from such a blow. This had a very serious impact on the trade of the Scythians with the Greeks.
80 BC. The Pontic strategos Mithridates Neoptolemus defeated the Scythian fleet, taking Tyra and Olbia from them. A little later, in the Kerch Strait, he also defeats the Scythian fleet, and in winter on the ice inflicts a defeat on the allied forces of the Bosporus and the Scythians. The power and authority of the Scythians were shaken, but they continued to influence the politics of their region.
1st century BC — 2nd century AD. According to archaeological data, a strong mixing of Scythians and Sarmatians begins, since their cultures virtually coincide, and it is already quite difficult to separate one culture from another.
257 AD. The arrival of the Goths in Crimea. They attack the Bosporan Kingdom. From this time on, the Scythian kingdom as such also ceases to exist.
70s of the 4th century. The invasion of the Huns. They sweep away the remnants of the Scythians both in Crimea and in Istria on the Danube. The Scythians, one might say, completely dissolve into the surrounding ethnic environment.
Social Structure
Traces of the Scythians are also noted in the North Caucasus. The main territory of Scythian settlement was the steppes between the lower reaches of the Danube and the Don, including the Crimean steppe and areas adjacent to the Northern Black Sea region. The northern border is unclear. The Scythians were divided into several large tribes. According to Herodotus, the dominant ones were the Royal Scythians, who lived in the steppes between the Dnieper and the Don. On the right bank of the lower Dnieper and in the Crimean steppe lived the Scythian nomads. Between the Ingul and the Dnieper, intermingled with the nomads, lived the Scythian farmers. In the basin of the Southern Bug, near Olbia, lived the Callipidae, or Greco-Scythians; north of them — the Alazones; and even further north — the Scythian plowmen. The boundaries of the settlement of individual tribes of Scythia (especially the Scythian plowmen) are unclear (see map above).
Close relations with the slave-owning cities of the Northern Black Sea region and intensive trade by the Scythians in cattle, grain, furs, and slaves intensified the process of stratification in Scythian society. The existence of a Scythian tribal union is known, which gradually acquired the features of a peculiar slave-owning state headed by a king.
From the end of the 7th century BC, Scythian society knew different gradations of social status:
By the beginning of the 6th century BC, social stratification reached great proportions. The grounds for saying this are provided by the burials of that era. Grandiose royal burial mounds with killed servants and concubines and simple burial pits with a minimum of inventory. The majority of free community members fought on horseback and had some property, but already at this time, "eight-legged" people appeared. These were foot Scythians who had only a pair of oxen to harness to a wagon, hence the name. There were also outright poor people who had nothing. From such people, the Scythian infantry was formed, which over time grew increasingly numerous.
A layer of slaves also appeared, initially foreigners. In the legends and descriptions of Herodotus, the slaves were the local population in the territories captured by the Scythians.
Royal power was hereditary, but there were several kings. This can be seen, for example, from the wars with Assyria, when one or another king could be an enemy and ally of Assyria. We also see this during Darius's invasion, when the Scythians formed three detachments, each headed by its own king. At the same time, power apparently belonged to one dynasty.
Until the 5th century BC, royal power was limited by the council of kings or a military assembly. In other cases, the king's power was unlimited. Encroachment on it was punished by beheading or death by burning.
Already in the 4th century, Ateas ruled Scythia autocratically, having under his command other rulers called basileis (kings) in one of the Olbian inscriptions.
Economy
Herodotus indicates that some Scythian tribes engaged in agriculture. Wheat, barley, millet, beans, onions, and garlic were grown. Hemp is also mentioned, from which linen and a narcotic for smoking were made.
The main mass of the Scythians engaged in nomadic pastoralism. It was year-round. In winter, tebenevka was common (cattle obtained food from under the snow themselves). Some nomads migrated to the Azov region to the river estuaries, where tall grass was preserved. Felt yurts were on wheels and a pair of oxen were harnessed to them. Such caravans of wagons were accompanied by mounted male warriors.
Judging by the excavations of the Kamenskoye settlement, the composition of the herds was as follows:
Interestingly, the Scythians did not breed pigs even in the settled centers of their state.
Accordingly, not only meat but also hides and wool were used. They sewed sheepskin coats, felted felt, and tanned leather. Milk was also used for food; it was not for nothing that the Scythians were called mare-milkers and milk-eaters.
In the Kamenskoye settlement, iron-smelting workshops were found in large numbers. Copper was mined in small quantities near Donetsk, and also, most likely, came along trade routes from the Caucasus and the Southern Urals. Zinc for bronze was mined on the Lower Dnieper; the origin of tin is still unclear.
Iron was available in sufficient quantities in the swamps of the Dnieper floodplains. Iron smelting was extremely uneconomical — 40-60% remained in the slag. Judging by the excavations, large patriarchal families engaged in ironworking — about 900 hectares in the Kamenskoye settlement were dotted with large houses (150-300 m³ each), which contained forges for the production of various weapons and tools.
Carpenters lived next to the metallurgists, whose tools (chisels, axes, adzes) were also found in large quantities both in the settlement and in the burial mounds. The fact that carpenters were still a specialization is evidenced by the fact that the yurts on wheels have many wooden parts. In addition, permanent dwellings — winter houses — were found, which also had to be maintained by carpenters.
Pottery was developed. The potter's wheel was little used; pottery was molded by hand from clay coils. Analogies of Scythian pottery are found in the Late Srubnaya culture. The pottery mainly consists of round-bellied pots with a vertical, slightly widening neck or a softly bent rim. Narrow-necked pottery with a spherical body is also found.
Weaving was also widespread among the Scythians. Many clay and lead spindle whorls are found. They are found in settlements and as a mandatory element in female burials. The material for fabric was sheep wool and hemp. In addition to fabrics, mats were woven, and felt and felt mats were also used.
Starting from the 7th century BC, the trade of the Scythians with the Greek cities of the Black Sea region became regular. The main goods that the Scythians supplied to the markets were grain and slaves. Moreover, the scale of the grain trade was large. Even the coins of the Scythian kings depicted an ear of wheat. It was on this trade that the Bosporan Kingdom rose (grain exports accounted for the lion's share of exports). Grain trade was developed until the 3rd century BC, up to the Sarmatian invasion, after which it began to gradually decline, giving way to the trade in cattle. Along with cattle, furs were also exported, which came from the forest-steppe zone through the lands of the Scythians. Honey and wax were also exported.
A solid share in trade also belonged to the export of slaves. Starting from the 6th century BC, the names of Scythian slaves appear in ancient inscriptions. At the same time, Scythians entered Greece in large numbers to participate in wars. Besides the Scythians, a large number of slaves came from the tribes of the Getae, Triballi, Sarmatians, and Maeotians. At the turn of the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, the flow of Scythian slaves weakened.
As for imports into Scythia itself, wine should be highlighted, which came in huge quantities from Greece. As a result, Greek pottery became widespread — not only amphorae for wine but also vessels for incense, ointments, perfumes, which are often found in the graves of both rich and ordinary Scythians.
Fabrics and clothing also entered the steppe — Greek writers report this. Jewelry came in large quantities — mirrors, glass and paste beads, earrings, and various decorations. The Scythians also often acted as intermediaries in trade with the more northern forest-steppe and forest tribes.
Sources:
B.N. Grakov. Scythians. A popular science essay. Moscow: Moscow State University Press, 1968.
Archaeology of the USSR. Steppes of the European part of the USSR in the Scytho-Sarmatian period. Moscow: Nauka Press, 1989.
M.I. Artamonov. Cimmerians and Scythians. Leningrad: Leningrad State University Press, 1974.
V.I. Gulyaev. Scythians: the rise and fall of a great kingdom. 2006.
Scythians — a collective name for Iranian tribes related to the Sauromatians, Massagetae, and Sakas. They were located in the regions of Central Asia, then began advancing to the North Caucasus and from there to the territory of the Northern Black Sea region. The steppes between the Danube and the Don, including the Crimean steppe, entered science under the name 'Scythia'. The Scythians were divided into 'Royal' (between the Dnieper and the Don), 'Nomads' (right bank of the Lower Dnieper and the Crimean steppe), and 'Farmers' (between the Ingul and the Dnieper). In the 4th century BC, they created the Scythian state. In the 3rd century BC, they were displaced from the Northern Black Sea region by the Sarmatians. Their capital was moved from the site of the modern Kamenskoye settlement (near Nikopol) to Crimea. At the end of the 2nd century BC, the peculiar Scythian state in Crimea became part of the Pontic Kingdom. The name 'Scythians' later passed to the Sarmatian tribes and most other nomads inhabiting the Black Sea regions. Subsequently, the Scythians dissolved among other tribes of the Northern Black Sea region. The Scythians in Crimea survived until the invasion of the Goths in the 3rd century AD. In late Roman and early medieval authors, 'Scythian' was a general designation for the Northern Black Sea barbarians.
The ancient Scythians and Sarmatians were genetically descendants of the Indo-Iranian block of Indo-Europeans. The Scythians most likely belonged 50% to haplogroup R1a. There is a high probability that the Scythians also had a small number of representatives of R1b and, to a lesser extent, G1, G2a2b2a, J2a, J2b2, Q1b, and T1a1a. The Sarmatians should have had the same composition of haplogroups as the Scythians, but probably without G1 and Q1b with the addition of Eastern European I2a1b and E-V13. [Maciamo Hay 2008]
VARIANT NAMES: Latin. Scythi, Scythae, Hiscitae, Syrthae, Scythei, Scythii, Scythices, Scythicae, Greek. Σκυθαι, Σκυθεοι, Σκυθιαι, Σκυθικοι, Russian. Skify, Skoloty.
Sources:
Ethnogenesis of the Abkhazians. D.A. Arshba, 2015
Language
The Scythian language belongs to the Northeastern subgroup of Iranian languages. The Sauromatians (Sarmatians), Sakas, and Massagetae were very close in language and culture to the Scythians.
Period of Existence
- 824-671 BC. Assyria
Origin
There are several legends about the origin of the Scythians —
- The Scythians had a tradition that their people were younger than all others and that in their land, which was uninhabited, the first man Targitai was born from Zeus and the daughter of Borysthenes. Targitai had three sons: Lipoxais, Arpoxais, and Koloxais. In their time, golden objects fell from the sky: a plow, a yoke, an axe, and a cup. The elder and middle brothers could not grasp these objects: they immediately burst into flames. The younger son was able to safely take the miraculous gifts of heaven, and therefore royal power was given to him.
- from the elder brother came the clan of the Auchatae,
- from the middle — the clans of the Catiari and Traspians,
- from the youngest — the Paralatae.
Here Herodotus says that the common name of the people is Scoloti; the Greeks called them Scythians, and the Persians — Sakas. It was the part of Scythia from the Danube to Maeotis, especially known in Olbia, that was called indigenous Scythia. From Targitai to the time of Herodotus, a thousand years had passed.
- The Black Sea Greeks told Herodotus another tradition. Heracles, driving the cattle of Geryon, came to Scythia, then still uninhabited. When Heracles fell asleep, his horses ran away from under the yoke. He found them in Hylaea near a half-woman-half-snake who lived in a cave, agreeing to return his mares if he married her. Heracles lived with her for a long time, and from their marriage three sons were born. Only after this did the hero get his horses back. Leaving, he left his beloved a bow and a belt with the instruction that the son who could string this bow and gird himself in his father's manner should remain to rule the land, while the other two should be sent away. The youngest, named Scythian, the ancestor of the Scythian kings, fulfilled the task. From the two older ones — Agathyrsus and Gelonus — descended the tribes of the Agathyrsi and Geloni. In this myth, one can clearly hear the Greek reworking of another native tradition, different from the previous one. It clearly speaks of the crossing of foreign (Heracles) and local (the snake-legged goddess) elements in the Scythians, while in the first, the local element sounds stronger, although the foreign may manifest itself in the fact that the future land of the Scythians was empty at the time of their origin.
- Herodotus indicates — there is, however, another account, which I myself trust most. According to this account, the nomadic Scythians who lived in Asia, being pressed by war with the Massagetae, crossed the Araxes River (Syr Darya) and withdrew to the Cimmerian land.
Currently, there are three versions of where the Scythians came from in the Black Sea region.
- B.N. Grakov. Autochthonous theory. Grakov believed that the direct ancestors of the Scythians were the tribes of the semi-sedentary (pastoral) Srubnaya culture of the Bronze Age, who penetrated the Northern Black Sea region from the Volga region. The migration took place over a sufficiently long time from the middle of the 2nd millennium BC, and the Herodotean migration of the Scythians can be said to be one of the last waves of migration. The Cimmerians, whom the Scythians encountered, were also one of the waves of the Srubnaya culture, but earlier, which ultimately allowed the related tribes to merge, forming a homogeneous ethnic element.
- M.I. Artamonov. Near Eastern theory. Before the arrival of the Scythians in the Black Sea region, the Srubnaya culture developed there and preceded the Scythian. The Scythians themselves came from the Near East and were associated with the developed civilizations of that era (as the main element of the Scythian animal style). In his opinion, the Cimmerians were representatives of the Catacomb culture, who were driven out of the Black Sea region back in the second half of the 2nd millennium BC.
- A.I. Terenozhkin. Central Asian theory. According to his version, there is no ethnic or cultural continuity between the population of the Northern Black Sea region and the incoming Scythians. The Scythians penetrate the Black Sea region from Central Asia (Mongolia, Altai, Eastern Kazakhstan) in an already culturally formed form, based on a triad — a characteristic type of weaponry, horse harness, and artistic animal style. In turn, their movement westward was caused by the attack of the Massagetae, and they in turn were attacked by their eastern neighbors, and most likely such a chain reaction was caused by a great drought in 800 BC.
History
7th century BC. The war of the Scythians with the Cimmerians, which allowed the Scythians to drive the latter out of the Black Sea region and occupy their territory.
685 BC. Under the leadership of Spargapis, the Scythians move from the North Caucasus and Kuban to the Northern Black Sea region. Most likely, Scythia at this time was divided into three regions —
- between the Don and the Volga, the clan of Ishpakai-Partatua rules,
- between the Don and the Dnieper, the clan of Spargapis rules,
- between the Dnieper and the Danube, and possibly all of Scythia, is ruled by Ariantas.
70s of the 7th century BC. A series of campaigns by the Scythians in Media, Syria, Palestine, and the Near East. As a result, the Scythians were able to establish themselves there.
Within the borders of Eastern Transcaucasia (modern Azerbaijan and partly Iranian Azerbaijan) on the northern and partly on the southern banks of the Araxes River, a state of the Scythians was founded, called Ishkuza in the sources, which existed until the 6th century BC, when the Scythians were expelled from Transcaucasia by the Medes.
679—674/73 BC. The Scythians under the leadership of Ishpakai (one of the first historically known leaders of the Scythians) in alliance with the Medes, Urartu, and the kingdom of Mannaea participated in the war against the Assyrian kingdom under the leadership of Esarhaddon, during which Ishpakai died.
673—654 BC. The leader of the Scythians becomes Partatua (Protothyes), under whose leadership the Scythians left the anti-Assyrian coalition. According to one hypothesis, this happened due to the conclusion of a dynastic marriage — Partatua married the daughter of Esarhaddon.
650 BC. The Scythian leader Ariantas conducts a "census" of the population in the Black Sea region. He orders every Scythian to bring one arrowhead. After this, he casts a large cauldron. There is a description by Herodotus —
"In this region (at the headwaters of the Hypanis — the Bug) stands a bronze vessel, perhaps six times larger than the mixing vessel that Pausanias, son of Cleombrotus, ordered to be dedicated to the gods and placed at the entrance to the Pontus (the Black Sea). To those who have not seen this vessel, I will describe it: it freely holds 600 amphorae, and the thickness of this Scythian vessel is six fingers. According to the local inhabitants, it is made from arrowheads. One Scythian king, named Ariantas, wished to know the number of Scythians. He ordered all Scythians to bring one arrowhead each, and threatened with death anyone who disobeyed. Then the Scythians brought so many arrowheads that the king decided to erect a monument from them: he ordered this bronze vessel to be made from the arrowheads and placed in Exampaeus. These are the accounts I received about the number of Scythians."
As previously indicated, there are opinions that Ariantas owned lands from the Dnieper to the Danube, but at the same time he could also rule all of Scythia.
Settlement of the Scythians according to Herodotus (Grakov B.N. Scythians — Moscow State University, 1971, pp. 16-17.):
Many hypotheses have also been put forward regarding them, which, however, break down against the precise localization of the five main rivers: the Ister, Tyras, Hypanis, Borysthenes, and Tanais. This allows us to outline the settlement of tribes in accordance with Herodotus's data. Here is how we see this settlement. From the Danube to the Dnieper, the coast is occupied by Scythians: their northern border with the Neuri is somewhere on the upper Dniester. The Hypanis and the Dniester bring their courses close together in the land of the Alazones: this convergence begins just above Nikolaev. Up the Bug, closest to Olbia are the Callipidae, otherwise the Hellenic-Scythians. Later, in the Olbian decree in honor of Protogenes (3rd century BC), they are called "mixhellenes," i.e., "mixed Hellenes." This confirms the accuracy of Herodotus's data. Above them lives the Scythian tribe of the Alazones, at the point where the Bug and the Dniester converge. Even higher up are the Scythian plowmen, somewhere in the interfluve of the same rivers. At Exampaeus passed their border with the Alazones. The fourth Scythian tribe, the Scythian farmers, lived along the Dnieper and beyond the Dnieper to Panticapes (Ingulets). It should be thought that the Scythian farmers lived on both banks of the Borysthenes, just as the Scythian nomads, placed beyond Panticapes and further beyond the farmers, evidently partly lived within the right bank. In other words, both tribes lived to some extent intermingled. The Scythian nomads on the left bank of the Dnieper lived in the steppes, divided in half by the Hypaciris, and reached the Gerros River (Konka). Further east and south lived the Royal Scythians beyond the Gerros River. They occupied the steppe up to Maeotis and the Tanais and the northern Crimea up to the mountains where the wild Tauri lived. Immediately above the Scythians along the Dnieper lived the Androphagi (cannibals). Herodotus says that they are the only cannibals among all the peoples of Scythia. They wear Scythian clothing, are nomads, but have their own special language, different from Scythian.
North of the Scythian plowmen and the Androphagi, according to Herodotus, between the fantastic lake from which the Dniester flows and the Dnieper, live the Neuri immediately west of the Dnieper. In other words, the Neuri occupied a vast territory no longer in the steppes, since the upper reaches of the Dnieper and the Bug, as well as the adjacent right bank of the Dnieper, are already in the forest-steppe zone. At the same time, they somehow bordered the Budini located to the east. Many amazing things were told about the Neuri as werewolves and sorcerers. The Neuri, according to Herodotus, had Scythian customs.
To the north of the Royal Scythians on the left bank of the Dnieper and further east lived the Melanchlaeni, i.e., people wearing black cloaks. Their eastern border is unclear, but they must have somewhere closer to the Don come into contact with the Budini and, perhaps, with the Sauromatians. This is a special, non-Scythian tribe, but their way of life is Scythian. Perhaps the Melanchlaeni are called a non-Scythian people because they had their own language, or because they did not belong to the Scythian political grouping.
Above the Maeotians, who occupied the delta and the lowest reaches of the Tanais-Don, three days' journey from its mouth into Maeotis, fifteen days' journey northeast on the right bank of the river lived the Sauromatians in a treeless steppe. They supposedly originated from the marriages of the sons of free Scythians and warlike Amazon women. Their women were therefore warlike, and their language was a corrupted Scythian due to the Amazons who did not understand it. They maintained political independence and were pure nomads.
Above the Sauromatians along the Don, beyond their steppe, but already in mixed forests, i.e., in the forest-steppe, lived the Budini — a very large, according to Herodotus, and nomadic people. Their country somewhere in the west adjoined Neuriada (the country of the Neuri), since a generation before Herodotus, the Neuri migrated to the land of the Budini. The Budini spoke their own language. They apparently did not border the Scythians and were undoubtedly politically completely independent. In their country was a large wooden city, Gelonus. In it lived certain Geloni, who spoke sometimes Scythian, sometimes Hellenic, and worshipped Greek gods, particularly Dionysus. They were sedentary and engaged in agriculture. Other writers, in Herodotus's opinion, wrongly considered the Geloni and Budini to be one people.
Late 7th — early 6th centuries BC. The king of the Scythians in the Black Sea region became Gnu — son of Lycus, grandson of Spargapis.
90s-50s of the 6th century BC. The king of the Scythians becomes Saulius (Kaduit, Kaduinus, Calvides — in some sources) — son of Gnu. According to Herodotus's version, the murderer of his brother — Anacharsis — one of the seven sages.
End of the 6th century BC. The king of the Scythians becomes Idanthyrsus — son of Saulius, who participates in the war against Darius I. One of the leaders in this war was Scopasis, whose detachment (most likely the Azov Scythians and Sauromatians) was the most combat-ready and mobile. Another leader known from Herodotus — Taxacis, commanded the army of the Geloni and Budini.
514/12 BC. The war of the Scythians with the Persian king Darius I.
Darius gathered a huge army of 700 thousand men — motley and multilingual, consisting of representatives of 80 peoples. With this army, the Persian monarch passed through Asia Minor, crossed to the European side through the Bosporus Strait, and traversed Thrace. And finally, crossing the Danube over a bridge of ships built for him by mercenaries (Asia Minor Greeks), he entered the Northern Black Sea region — into the borders of Scythia. The campaign was calculated for two months.
The Scythians, well-informed of the enemy's actions, also knew about his colossal numbers. They themselves, together with allied tribes, could field no more than 200 thousand warriors. Realizing the full depth of the danger hanging over them, the Scythians nevertheless decided to fight to the end. To this end, they developed a general strategic plan for the campaign:
- avoid large battles;
- lure the enemy deep into their territory;
- attack his supply lines;
- destroy with attacks the mobile cavalry units and small groups of Persians who separated from the main forces in search of food and water.
At the same time, retreating, the Scythians filled wells and springs and burned vegetation — steppe grasses that served as fodder for livestock.
Darius's army with its huge baggage train, pursuing the Scythians, managed, according to Herodotus, to reach the Tanais (Don) and Maeotis (Sea of Azov) in a short time, after which it turned back. From hunger, hardship, disease, and continuous attacks by Scythian cavalry, the Persians suffered huge losses, without winning a single battle and without capturing any booty. Fortunately for Darius, the Greek mercenaries did not dismantle the bridge on the Danube after the agreed 60 days, and the remnants of his troops and he himself, avoiding death, returned to Persia.
480s-460s of the 5th century BC. The king of the Scythians became Ariapith — father of Scylas, Octamasades, and Oricus. During his reign, several important events took place —
- settled relations with the Odrysian kingdom (through a dynastic marriage),
- established a protectorate over Olbia (although there is an opinion that this is not the case).
He himself was killed by the king of the Agathyrsi (most likely a Thracian tribe) Spargapis. After the death of the Scythian king, Opia — the wife of Ariapith and mother of Oricus — ascended the throne. The question of whether this character is a real historical figure remains debatable.
c. 465—447/45 BC. After the short reign of Opia, Scylas — son of Ariapith — comes to power. He was the son of a Greek woman and almost completely adopted Greek culture and, becoming king, settled in Olbia, promoting the trade interests of Istria. As a result of palace intrigues, he was executed by the Scythians themselves.
50s of the 5th century BC. The king of the Scythians became Octamasades, also the son of Ariapith. He was a relative of the king of the Odrysians — Sitalces. Possibly with his support, Spartocus came to power in the Bosporus in 438 BC. Oricus — brother of Octamasades — most likely ruled Olbia at the same time.
Late 5th — early 4th centuries BC. King Ateas destroys the other Scythian kings and usurps power.
The Kamenskoye settlement appears (located near the city of Kamenka-Dneprovskaya and the village of B. Znamenka in the Zaporozhye region). From the steppe side, the settlement was protected by an earthen rampart and ditch, and from the north and west by cliffs over the Dnieper, the Konka River, and the Belozersky estuary. In the southwestern corner was the acropolis, where the Scythian nobility lived. The main occupations of the inhabitants were the manufacture of bronze and iron tools, weaving, pottery, as well as agriculture and cattle breeding. Craftsmen lived in dugouts and above-ground post structures, the nobility in stone houses. The settlement was a large craft and trade center, closely connected with the Greek colonies of the Northern Black Sea region and the local population of Scythia. At the end of the 3rd century BC, the territory of the settlement was abandoned (except for the acropolis, where life continued until the 3rd century AD).
358 BC. Istria on the Black Sea coast is subjugated to Scythian power.
344 BC. The Scythians wage a successful war against the Triballi, living on the territory of modern Bulgaria.
343 BC. Callatis on the Black Sea coast is subjugated.
40s of the 4th century BC. King Ateas, having eliminated the other kings, united the Scythian tribes from the Sea of Azov to the Danube.
339 BC. The war of the Scythians with Philip II of Macedon. According to tradition, it is in this war that King Ateas dies at the age of 90.
From the source it is known — "both sides became irritated, a battle ensued, in which the Scythians, despite the superiority of their spiritual valor and numbers, were defeated by Philip's cunning; 20 thousand children and women were taken (by the victorious Macedonians), a multitude of cattle, but no gold or silver was found at all, which for the first time testified to the poverty of the Scythians; 20 thousand thoroughbred mares were sent to Macedonia for breeding" [Justin. Epitome of Pompeius Trogus. "History of Philip" (IX, 2-3)].
On the way back, the Macedonian army fell into an ambush set by the Triballi.
331 BC. Zopyrion was left by Alexander the Great as governor of Thrace, Pontus (or Scythia). Wishing to distinguish himself, he gathered a 30-thousand strong army and went to war against the Scythians. Most likely, he reached Olbia, but then had to flee. In the end, he was overtaken by the Scythians, defeated, losing almost his entire army. He himself died somewhere in Bessarabia.
313 BC. Lysimachus — the ruler of Thrace — inflicted a severe defeat on the Scythians beyond the Danube.
310-309 BC. Dynastic war in the Bosporan Kingdom. Agar, the Scythian leader, supported Satyros, but as a result of the battle on the Fat River, the victory was won by another contender for the throne — Eumelus of Bosporus, the brother of Satyros.
280-260 BC. The Sarmatians invade Scythia and actually completely take possession of the Northern Black Sea region, destroying and expelling the Scythians. Subsequently, part of the Scythians remained in the mouth of the Dnieper and on the Crimean Peninsula. Another part crosses the Danube and settles there; the territory receives the name Lesser Scythia (Istria-Dobruja).
Late 3rd — early 2nd centuries BC. Great changes take place in Scythia. The pressure of the Sarmatians intensifies, as mentioned earlier, the Kamenskoye settlement on the Dnieper ceases to exist (except for the acropolis, which continues to function). Throughout the Northern Black Sea region, archaeologists have noted a change from Scythian culture to Sarmatian. At the same time, the Scythians in Crimea begin to settle down, engage in agriculture, fishing, and crafts.
130—114/13 BC. The reign of the Scythian king Scylurus in Crimea. He managed to unite the entire territory of the Scythians in Crimea, up to the mouth of the Dnieper and the Southern Bug. He turned Scythian Neapolis (near modern Simferopol) into his capital. To fight against Pontus, he began to attract Sarmatians (Roxolani) led by Tasius. Scylurus managed to capture Kerkinitis, Kalos Limen, and the Fortifications, cities on the western coast of Crimea that had until then been part of the Chersonese republic.
114/13—111 BC (110-107 BC). The reign of Palacus — son of Scylurus. In three expeditions, Diophantus successively defeated Palacus, conquered the mountain Tauri, captured the Scythian fortresses of Chabaei and Neapolis in Crimea, and subjugated the Scythians to Mithridates of Pontus.
Later, the Scythians revolted again, and Diophantus again marched against them, liberated Kerkinitis and the Fortifications, and began to besiege Kalos Limen. Palacus moved against him but was defeated so that, according to the Chersonese inscription in honor of Diophantus, "none of the infantry escaped, and only a few of the horsemen slipped away." In spring, Diophantus moved against Chabaei and Neapolis and forced the Scythians to sue for peace.
The Scythians living in the Bosporus rose in revolt against Paerisades, the last nominal king of the Bosporus from the former dynasty, who had transferred power to Mithridates VI but retained his title. The revolt was led by the Scythian Saumacus, perhaps a slave-fosterling of Paerisades. The king was killed, Saumacus seized power, but Diophantus suppressed this revolt, subjugating Chersonese, the Bosporus, and the Crimean steppe to Mithridates of Pontus.
Through these wars, Taurica-Scythia was divided into several possessions and no longer represented a single kingdom.
Mid-1st century BC. The Getae under the leadership of Burebista cross the Danube and destroy Olbia. The city ceased to exist. Later, the Scythians persuaded the escaped inhabitants to restore the city, but it never recovered from such a blow. This had a very serious impact on the trade of the Scythians with the Greeks.
80 BC. The Pontic strategos Mithridates Neoptolemus defeated the Scythian fleet, taking Tyra and Olbia from them. A little later, in the Kerch Strait, he also defeats the Scythian fleet, and in winter on the ice inflicts a defeat on the allied forces of the Bosporus and the Scythians. The power and authority of the Scythians were shaken, but they continued to influence the politics of their region.
1st century BC — 2nd century AD. According to archaeological data, a strong mixing of Scythians and Sarmatians begins, since their cultures virtually coincide, and it is already quite difficult to separate one culture from another.
257 AD. The arrival of the Goths in Crimea. They attack the Bosporan Kingdom. From this time on, the Scythian kingdom as such also ceases to exist.
70s of the 4th century. The invasion of the Huns. They sweep away the remnants of the Scythians both in Crimea and in Istria on the Danube. The Scythians, one might say, completely dissolve into the surrounding ethnic environment.
Social Structure
Traces of the Scythians are also noted in the North Caucasus. The main territory of Scythian settlement was the steppes between the lower reaches of the Danube and the Don, including the Crimean steppe and areas adjacent to the Northern Black Sea region. The northern border is unclear. The Scythians were divided into several large tribes. According to Herodotus, the dominant ones were the Royal Scythians, who lived in the steppes between the Dnieper and the Don. On the right bank of the lower Dnieper and in the Crimean steppe lived the Scythian nomads. Between the Ingul and the Dnieper, intermingled with the nomads, lived the Scythian farmers. In the basin of the Southern Bug, near Olbia, lived the Callipidae, or Greco-Scythians; north of them — the Alazones; and even further north — the Scythian plowmen. The boundaries of the settlement of individual tribes of Scythia (especially the Scythian plowmen) are unclear (see map above).
Close relations with the slave-owning cities of the Northern Black Sea region and intensive trade by the Scythians in cattle, grain, furs, and slaves intensified the process of stratification in Scythian society. The existence of a Scythian tribal union is known, which gradually acquired the features of a peculiar slave-owning state headed by a king.
From the end of the 7th century BC, Scythian society knew different gradations of social status:
- slaves of different origins and subjected to different forms of exploitation;
- "hippotoxotai" (horse archers) — free community members;
- the poor, who could only fight on foot;
- different levels of aristocracy from the heads of wealthy families to nomarchs-sceptuchi;
- kings from local to three leading ones with the senior in position at the head.
By the beginning of the 6th century BC, social stratification reached great proportions. The grounds for saying this are provided by the burials of that era. Grandiose royal burial mounds with killed servants and concubines and simple burial pits with a minimum of inventory. The majority of free community members fought on horseback and had some property, but already at this time, "eight-legged" people appeared. These were foot Scythians who had only a pair of oxen to harness to a wagon, hence the name. There were also outright poor people who had nothing. From such people, the Scythian infantry was formed, which over time grew increasingly numerous.
A layer of slaves also appeared, initially foreigners. In the legends and descriptions of Herodotus, the slaves were the local population in the territories captured by the Scythians.
Royal power was hereditary, but there were several kings. This can be seen, for example, from the wars with Assyria, when one or another king could be an enemy and ally of Assyria. We also see this during Darius's invasion, when the Scythians formed three detachments, each headed by its own king. At the same time, power apparently belonged to one dynasty.
Until the 5th century BC, royal power was limited by the council of kings or a military assembly. In other cases, the king's power was unlimited. Encroachment on it was punished by beheading or death by burning.
Already in the 4th century, Ateas ruled Scythia autocratically, having under his command other rulers called basileis (kings) in one of the Olbian inscriptions.
Economy
Herodotus indicates that some Scythian tribes engaged in agriculture. Wheat, barley, millet, beans, onions, and garlic were grown. Hemp is also mentioned, from which linen and a narcotic for smoking were made.
The main mass of the Scythians engaged in nomadic pastoralism. It was year-round. In winter, tebenevka was common (cattle obtained food from under the snow themselves). Some nomads migrated to the Azov region to the river estuaries, where tall grass was preserved. Felt yurts were on wheels and a pair of oxen were harnessed to them. Such caravans of wagons were accompanied by mounted male warriors.
Judging by the excavations of the Kamenskoye settlement, the composition of the herds was as follows:
- horses — 40%
- cattle — 40%
- small livestock (sheep, goats) — 18%
- dogs, game animals: deer, saiga, beaver — 2%
Interestingly, the Scythians did not breed pigs even in the settled centers of their state.
Accordingly, not only meat but also hides and wool were used. They sewed sheepskin coats, felted felt, and tanned leather. Milk was also used for food; it was not for nothing that the Scythians were called mare-milkers and milk-eaters.
In the Kamenskoye settlement, iron-smelting workshops were found in large numbers. Copper was mined in small quantities near Donetsk, and also, most likely, came along trade routes from the Caucasus and the Southern Urals. Zinc for bronze was mined on the Lower Dnieper; the origin of tin is still unclear.
Iron was available in sufficient quantities in the swamps of the Dnieper floodplains. Iron smelting was extremely uneconomical — 40-60% remained in the slag. Judging by the excavations, large patriarchal families engaged in ironworking — about 900 hectares in the Kamenskoye settlement were dotted with large houses (150-300 m³ each), which contained forges for the production of various weapons and tools.
Carpenters lived next to the metallurgists, whose tools (chisels, axes, adzes) were also found in large quantities both in the settlement and in the burial mounds. The fact that carpenters were still a specialization is evidenced by the fact that the yurts on wheels have many wooden parts. In addition, permanent dwellings — winter houses — were found, which also had to be maintained by carpenters.
Pottery was developed. The potter's wheel was little used; pottery was molded by hand from clay coils. Analogies of Scythian pottery are found in the Late Srubnaya culture. The pottery mainly consists of round-bellied pots with a vertical, slightly widening neck or a softly bent rim. Narrow-necked pottery with a spherical body is also found.
Weaving was also widespread among the Scythians. Many clay and lead spindle whorls are found. They are found in settlements and as a mandatory element in female burials. The material for fabric was sheep wool and hemp. In addition to fabrics, mats were woven, and felt and felt mats were also used.
Starting from the 7th century BC, the trade of the Scythians with the Greek cities of the Black Sea region became regular. The main goods that the Scythians supplied to the markets were grain and slaves. Moreover, the scale of the grain trade was large. Even the coins of the Scythian kings depicted an ear of wheat. It was on this trade that the Bosporan Kingdom rose (grain exports accounted for the lion's share of exports). Grain trade was developed until the 3rd century BC, up to the Sarmatian invasion, after which it began to gradually decline, giving way to the trade in cattle. Along with cattle, furs were also exported, which came from the forest-steppe zone through the lands of the Scythians. Honey and wax were also exported.
A solid share in trade also belonged to the export of slaves. Starting from the 6th century BC, the names of Scythian slaves appear in ancient inscriptions. At the same time, Scythians entered Greece in large numbers to participate in wars. Besides the Scythians, a large number of slaves came from the tribes of the Getae, Triballi, Sarmatians, and Maeotians. At the turn of the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, the flow of Scythian slaves weakened.
As for imports into Scythia itself, wine should be highlighted, which came in huge quantities from Greece. As a result, Greek pottery became widespread — not only amphorae for wine but also vessels for incense, ointments, perfumes, which are often found in the graves of both rich and ordinary Scythians.
Fabrics and clothing also entered the steppe — Greek writers report this. Jewelry came in large quantities — mirrors, glass and paste beads, earrings, and various decorations. The Scythians also often acted as intermediaries in trade with the more northern forest-steppe and forest tribes.
Sources:
B.N. Grakov. Scythians. A popular science essay. Moscow: Moscow State University Press, 1968.
Archaeology of the USSR. Steppes of the European part of the USSR in the Scytho-Sarmatian period. Moscow: Nauka Press, 1989.
M.I. Artamonov. Cimmerians and Scythians. Leningrad: Leningrad State University Press, 1974.
V.I. Gulyaev. Scythians: the rise and fall of a great kingdom. 2006.
Скифы. Граков 1971