Glass finds from the early medieval cemeteries in the mountainous areas of the North Caucasus central regions: chemical composition and origin

The paper explores the chemical composition of a series of glass items originating from the early medieval cemeteries discovered in the North Caucasus central regions (second half of the 5th-8th centuries). The glass was analyzed by SEM-EDS, EPMA, LA-ICP-MS methods. The glass of one item was made of plant ash glass,originated from a region east of the Euphrates (possibly, Sasanian Iran); other items were made from natron glass and, most likely, came from the Eastern and Southeastern Mediterranean. Their composition is similar to the glass of the groups well-known in the Roman Empire during the same period and earlier (HIMT, Foy 3.2; Foy 4, Roman blue-green, Levantine I groups). Some aspects of the chemical composition suggest that the the accidental choice of the glass used in making inserts and/or about different origin of the items with inserts.