The burial of horse warrior at the Saltovo-Mayaki settlement of Otuzy 2 in Southeastern Crimea

The investigation of burials at the Saltovo-Mayatsk settlement complexes is one of the most interesting aspects of Russian Khazar studies. The experts believe that until recently single graves recorded at the Saltovo settlement on the Kerch peninsula, in the Don region and the Pryazovia region were related to ritual practice. The evidence suggests a deconstruction of the body to separate the world of the living from the world of the dead and protect the living from the buried and reentering the grave. In 2021 the rescue excavations at Otuzy 2 in southeastern Crimea discovered a unique grave of a horse warrior was discovered which is described in this paper. Methods of comparative archaeological analysis and correlation of grave goods date the burial not before the first half of the 10th century. The funerary offerings include all key elements of the Saltovo warrior graves. They also contain some goods unique for this category of the burials. Some analogues to the funerary gifts are known in the burials of the Pechenegs. Despite some common features, the funerary rite has no analogues either in Taurica or outside it. So far, it is the only warrior burial among all investigated Saltovo settlement sites on the peninsula. We cannot rule out that this grave can become an important source for clarifying the time when the Saltovo-Mayatsk culture ceased to exist in Crimea and understanding how it happened.