AUROCHS’ DRINKING HORN FROM THE CHERNAYA MOGILA KURGAN: AN INTERPRETATION OF DECORATIONS

This article examines the narrative images on the silver binding plate of the aurochs’ drinking-horn from the Chernaya Mogila kurgan (“Black Grave”), located in modern Chernigov and dated to the 10th century. The exceptional wealth of grave goods suggests it belonged to a princely dynasty, reflecting the cultural features of military elites on the eve of the Medieval Rus’ State’s foundation, just prior to Christianization. This culture exhibited a syncretism of Scandinavian traditions and Oriental elements introduced by Eurasian steppe nomads. B.A. Rybakov’s 1949 interpretation suggests that the decorations illustrate a motif from a Russian epic song (bylina). However, this view is contested due to some considerable reasons. The researcher notes that the anthropomorphic figure struck by its own arrow finds parallels in a magical formula from a 10th-century pagan oath. This study proposes an alternative interpretation associating the horn’s imagery with Scandinavian mythology, specifically the Ragnarök motif. The decoration appears to depict the monstrous wolf Fenrir breaking his fetters and anthropomorphic figures fleeing from him. A rooster, possibly linked to Elder Edda texts, may herald the onset of dramatic events. The Scandinavian nature of the decoration is supported by notable parallels, including a symmetrical pair of twisted beasts of prey on a pendant-medallion and a bird with crossed wings on a Gotland stone, along with various stylistic details. The interpretation of the drinking horn’s decorations as representing a central episode in Scandinavian mythological and poetic traditions holds significant implications for understanding the art historical, ethno-cultural, social, and political features of the Medieval Rus’ State’s formative period.