Hoard of weapons and treasures found in 2,000-year-old Russian mountain grave

[Neil]

By Mario Ledwith

The grave of an ancient warrior who was buried wearing golden jewellery and with a sword positioned between his legs has been discovered in Russia.
 
Scientists were amazed at the array of artefacts found within the 2,200-year-old necropolis as it had already been raided by grave-robbers.
 
The warrior was buried wearing chain-mail, while two swords and a pair of bronze helmets were also found.
 
Golden grave: The warrior's grave, located near the town of Mezmay in the Caucasus, Russia, included a gold brooch, measuring a little over 2in by 2in, with a rock crystal fixed in its centre

Collection: Scientists who found the necropolis discovered more than 12 gold artefacts, as well as a number of weapons

One of the helmets was inscribed with curled sheep horns, while a 36in sword was found resting between his legs.

Chief: An axe belonging to the warrior, who researchers said was most likely the 'chief of a people' rather than the head of a town
 
Animal remains were also found in the grave, including three horses, a cow and a wild boar skull.
 
Valentina Mordvintseva, a researcher at the Ukrainian National Academy of Sciences Institute of Archaeology, said that the animals 'were particularly valuable among barbarian peoples of the ancient world'.
 
He told the Huffington Post: 'It was [a] sign of [the] great importance of the buried person, which was shown by his relatives and his tribe.'
 
Bones of other animals and pottery also found in the grave, suggest that a feast was held to mark the warrior's death.
 
Writing in the journal Ancient Civilizations from Scythia to Siberia, the team behind the discovery detailed the 12 gold artefacts discovered.
 
The find included a gold brooch, measuring 2.3 by 1.9 inches, with a rock crystal fixed in its centre. 

The two swords also included gold decorations, something the scientists had never come across before.
 
A smaller 19-inch sword featured a gold plate, leading the team to note 'actual fact that these articles were used to decorate weapons sets them apart in a category all of their own, which has so far not been recorded anywhere else'.
 
Grave robbers first discovered the necropolis in 2004, a year before excavations began at the site.

The researchers believe the grave was used between the third century BC and the beginning of the second century AD, but they could not link the artefacts with any particular culture.
 

[dances with badgers]

nice write up neil as always ,wow i likeee

[WeCan-Octavian]

Interesting. Read Neil, the last picture looks similar to the helmeted octavian on my silver denarius !

[cardiffian]

Interesting read. Some nice artefacts. Cheers for sharing.

[davtec (dave)]

Good read very interesting like the gold brooch

[JBM]

A very interesting article.

Strange how folks thought and some still do think that they can take items with them to the next world.? Jerry.