Alanian Burial of the Hun Period (Barrow no. 17 of the Cemetery near Storozhove Village)

Abstract

This article focuses on the excavation of burial complex no. 1 discovered in the barrow no. 17 of the Storozhove barrow cemetery. The archaeological investigation of this mound was undertaken in 2012 by the Archaeological Expedition of the Poltava V. G. Korolenko National Pedagogical University and the Poltava V. G. Krychevskyi Local History Museum. Situated in the Poltava district of Poltava Oblast, the Storozhove barrow cemetery (located in what was formerly the Chutivka district), boasted initial dimensions of 7.5 m in diameter and 0.31 m in height, featuring a rounded, hemispherical shape (fig. 3).
Within the mound no. 17, a single burial was explored. The burial no. 1 (fig. 5, 7) was interred within a catacomb-type grave, characterised by a rectangular entrance pit oriented to the north-south axis and an oval catacomb similarly aligned. This grave contained the remains of a woman estimated to be 40–50 years old. The burial had been disturbed by ancient robbers. The excavated complex belongs to the Early Alanian period and includes a representative set of a artefacts, including important chronological indicators.
Among the findings within the barrow no. 17 are some details of a female costume (a silver two-plate fibula (fig. 9: 3; 11: 12), a miniature copper fibula (fig. 9: 1; 11: 13) and a round silver brooch fibula (fig. 9: 2; 11: 14)); a necklace comprising: round amber (fig. 8: 7–8; 11: 1–2), glass cubo-octahedral (fig. 8: 3–4; 11: 5–6), glass ellipsoidal (fig. 8: 5–6; 11: 7–8), coral (fig. 8: 1–2; 11: 3–4); pendants (rectangular bronze with a glass insert (fig. 8: 9; 10: 2; 11: 11), golden with garnet inserts (fig. 8: 10–11; 11: 9–10), fragments of an iron knife (fig. 10: 3; 11: 16) and a fragmented copper plate (fig. 10: 1; 11: 15)).
Dating analysis places the silver double-plate fibula (fig. 9: 3; 11: 12) in the second half of the 4th century to the early 5th centuries AD. Similarly, the round silver brooch fibula (fig. 9: 2; 11: 14) and golden pendants with garnet inserts (fig. 8: 10–11; 11: 9–10) show stylistic affinities with Bosporan artefacts from the late 4th to early 5th centuries AD. Other items, such as the copper fibula (fig. 9: 1; 11: 13) and necklace (fig. 8: 1–8; 11: 1–8), could have had a broader chronological range.
Consequently, the burial within the barrow no. 17 of the Storozhove cemetery is ascribed to the second half of the end of the 4th — beginning of the 5th centuries AD. The burial’s chronology, geographic location, grave type, and selected artefacts suggest its association with a nomadic Alans society. We assume that within the Dnipro River left bank forest-steppe region, particularly along the Vorskla River and between the Vorskla and Psel, a contact zone existed between nomadic and settled societies during late Roman times, particularly between the Cherniakhiv culture and the Alans. This hypothesis is supported by archaeological sites such as Kantemyrivka and Storozhove. Ultimately, this burial serves as a compelling example of a nomadic burial complex of the early Hun period.