PHALERAE THE DECORATION OF HORSE HEADGEAR FROM BARROW 1 ON ZUBOVSKI KHUTOR

The reasons for the alternative attribution of seven gold belt plates from the Sarmatian burial of the barrow 1 near Zubovski Khutor at the Kuban river region (1st century BC — 1st century AD) are proposed in the paper. During the period from the moment of excavations of this barrow (1899) three variants of the interpretation for these findings have been offered: as the belt decorations (К. Е. Dumberg, I. I. Gushchina, I. P. Zaseczkaya, M. B. Shchukin, V. I. Mordvintseva, etc), and as the fibula-brooch (М. I. Rostovczev, N. V. Anfimov, М. P. Аbramova) or phalerae for ceremonial horse harness (А. P. Маnczevich, М. Yu. Treister, А. V. Simonenko). The barrow was excavated by amateur and the methodic level of this work was poor. Due to the circumstances it seems inappropriate trust the data from the first publication of the findings. The belt plates version has no parallels among findings and materials from various Sarmatian burial assemblages since 1899. We There were no findings of plates decorating the belt. The interpretation of these items as fibula-brooch proves to be false as the plates did not equipped with pins and spring devices at their backsides. The correct interpretation for the plates seems to be phalerae of the horse headgear. This version is proved with well documented findings of horse equipment of the 1st—2nd centuries AD which contains from 6 to 12 phalerae of the similar size. It is also known the horse equipment containing just seven phalerae which decorate the headgear — from the burials in Kosika (Lower Volga region) and in Yashkul (Kalmykia). The important factor seems to be the way of fixing of these items to the straps of horse equipment. One can see the laminar wirers on the back of one phalera founded in the barrow 1 near Zubovski Khutor.