Plate with the image of Gryphon
End of VI – beginning of V Centuries BC.
Scythian Era
Gold, embossing
15,2 х 6,2 cm
Receipt: excavations under the supervision of N.I. Veselovsky, 1898; transferred from the Imperial Archaeological Commission
Showcase 16
A rectangular thin golden plate with the image of a deer and two gryphons attacking a goat. Such a plot is often found in the Greek-Scythian art of metal relief embossing. On the sides of the plate is an ornamental belt of bulges. The plate has holes along the edge for mounting. The style of its decor resembles Greek vase painting and probably could be considered an imitation of it. Perhaps the plate was made by craftsmen of the Greek cities of the Northern Black Sea region.
Functional purpose: presumably, the plate decorated a nomad's quiver.
Notice of uniqueness: a unique item, has no direct analogues, the only analogues known are the plot and the style of the images.
1
