THE COMB FROM THE HAYMANOVA MOHYLA AND THE SCYTHIAN MYTH OF A HERO FIGHTING A DRAGON

The article is devoted to the analysis of images on the bone comb from the Haymanova Mohyla mound (IV century BC). The images on it quite fully represent the myth of a Hero fighting a dragon, which is not known from narrative sources. The first large plate (the «male» side of the comb) depicts a battle scene with a consistently developing plot: the defeat of one hero — the triumph of the dragon — revenge and the victory of the second hero. It can be assumed that the characters in this scene are Targitaos and Kolaxais, known from the story of Herodotus. These Scythian heroes relate to Iranian Yima (Jamshid) and Θraētaona (Fereydun). The goddess is reproduced on the second large plate (the «female» side of the comb). Her iconographic image was borrowed from the ancient Greek Art, but it was perceived by the Scythians, probably as the goddess Api (Άπί), equivalent to the Iranian goddess Aredvi Sura Anahita. The general context of the images suggests that the Scythians were familiar with the Iranian prayers to this goddess with a request to bestow good luck in the fight against hostile creatures. The comb was certainly an important ritual and status attribute.