Horse Equipment of the Nomads of the Southern Urals in the Second Half of the 6th – 5th Centuries BC

The article is devoted to the characteristics of the complex of horse equipment accessories used by the nomads of the Southern Urals in the second half of the 6th – 5th centuries BC. The Southern Ural region is defined as the flat territories adjacent to the Southern Urals in the west and east. This complex was identified as a result of the study of the co-occurrence of more than 700 harness items found in nomadic burials and on burial platforms beneath kurgans dating to the 7th – 4th centuries BC. To determine the nature of the connections (frequency of co-occurrence), the TYPE program was used, designed for the typology of objects of various categories. The article provides a list of elements (bits, cheek-pieces, decorations, and other bridle accessories, saddle set parts, etc.) of the complex and their brief descriptions. The existence of this complex, judging by imported items as well as by analogies from monuments studied in other regions of settlement of Eurasian nomads, falls on the period from the middle of the 6th century BC to the end of the 5th century BC, possibly the turn of the 5th – 4th centuries BC or the very beginning of the 4th century BC. By identifying the strongest mathematically determined correlation coefficients between the types of harness accessories in this complex, it could be divided into at least two groups, which are its structural “cores.” The first group can be dated back to the second half of the 6th to the beginning of the 5th century BC, while the second group belongs to the time within the 5th century BC and, possibly, the turn of the 5th –4th centuries BC or the very beginning of the 4th century BC. In general, this complex has clearly expressed characteristics that significantly distinguish it from earlier and later horse harness traditions.