The finds of so-called cylinder incense burners of Sarmatian period in the North Caucasus

The paper deals with the preliminary generalization of the finds of the clay cylinder incense burners of Sarmatian period. This special form of the rite vessels have been found at the ancient settlements, including Pyatigorsk, Georgievsk, Grozny, North Osetia, Kabardino-Balkaria and in the central part of the Kuban river basin. The present type of ceramics is the chronological indicator of historical monuments of the first centuries AD. The author analyses the connection of the incense burners with the shrines and the tar-like substance finds in the catacomb tombs of the I-VII centuries in the vicinity of Pyatigorsk.