Ceremonial Dagger from Gorgippia Necropolis as an Insignia of Power

The subject of the study is an iron dagger with a gold hilt and a gold scabbard, found during excavations of the Gorgippia necropolis in a rich burial in the second half of the second century A.D. The sheath and hilt of the dagger are decorated in a polychrome animal style characteristic of the Sarmatian world. Daggers similar in shape and decoration were found in the graves of the highest Sarmatian nobility – Dachy and Tillya-Tepe. It is possible that the Gorgippian dagger is close to them in time and should be attributed to an earlier period than the one containing its burial. An important element of the scabbard's decor is the nine-fold repeated image of an eagle torturing a hare. This motif dates back to the ancient Iranian mytho-epic tradition and symbolizes military luck (Xen. Cirop. II, 4). The discovery of Sarmatian-type status weapons with images reflecting the ideas of military prowess characteristic of the Iranian world gives reason to consider the Gorgippian find as an insignia of power belonging to a representative of the Sarmatian nobility, who performed the functions of a military leader in Gorgippia. Most likely, he held the position of «chief of the Aspurgians», known from Bosporan inscriptions.