Treasure found in Kiev near Church of the Tithes
The first half of the XII Century
Gold; embossing, cloisonné enamel, soldering
Kolt size: 4 x 3,6 cm. Diameter of medallions of ryasna: 2,9 cm
Receipt: from the collection of A.S.Uvarov
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The Treasure was discovered in 1842 during construction of a new Church of the Tithes in the vicinity of the remains of the oldest ancient Russian temple, built in 989–996 in Kiev and destroyed by the Mongols during the invasion in 1240.
The Treasure consisted of golden and silver vessels and magnificent jewelry that barely fit in two bags.
The Treasure was apparently hidden in the apse (a low projection of the structure adjacent to the main building, semicircular, faceted, rectangular or complex in plan, covered with a semi-dome or closed half-dome) of the old Church of the Tithes. Major part of the Treasure was “vended out”, partly sold abroad and remaining items supplemented various Museum collections.
Two Kolts and one Ryasna were purchased by Count A.S.Uvarov, and later transferred to the Historical Museum.
Kolt was an ancient Russian women's adornment of the XI–XIII Centuries. A hollow silver or golden ornate pendant attached to headgear. Presumably, a piece of cloth moistened with fragrance was placed inside it.
Kolts found in the treasure are paired, soldered from two plates embossed on the matrix. On the front sides of the Kolts are depicted two birds on each side of a tree, their heads facing the center.
The reverse sides of the Kolts were decorated with four-leaf rosettes with krins (Krin is an outdated name for lily, a widespread in the middle ages plant ornament, resembling a flower), on the sides of which were circle and trapezoids partitions ornament.
Ryasna was an ancient adornment, a pendant, suspended on two sides to woman’s headgear or headband. In pre-Mongol era, ryasna were composite (golden, silver and copper) temporal pendants, the length of which reached up to 50 cm. They could have consisted of several plaques or medallions fixed one after another in chains, on the ends of which were suspended Kolts.
Ryasna, found in the Treasure, consists of ten hollow, hinged medallions soldered of two plates. On the front side of some was the image of a bird, on the reverse was an ornamental composition of circles and triangles. The reverse side of the medallions is smooth.
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