Scythian Gold

Hardcover book with dust jacket. Oversized: approx. 9 1/4 x 12 inches. 351 pages with Index and Bibliography. Filled with mostly colored photographs of the art objects. A stunning book.

It would be fair to say that the Scythians had a weakness for gold. Where did they get all that gold? It is accepted that the Scythians were fierce warriors. The emphasis in this accompaniment to the exhibit Gold of the Nomads is their "fierce" trading with the Greeks, and the exchange is grain for gold, not service for gold. The myth is not explained. But the discussion on metalworking explains the two types of gold objects that scholars and the public are most interested in. And Scythian art, characterized by its so-called animal style, is discussed in a chapter written by editor Reeder. The catalog displays some of the finest gold treasures of this ancient nomadic people--swords, a helmet, exquisite jewelry, and other objects dating from the fifth to the third centuries B.C. Bonnie Smothers

Originally nomads, the Sythians migrated from central Asia through the Near East, finally settling on the shores of the Black Sea in what is now Ukraine. The wealth they earned by selling grain to Greek cities provided the means to purchase fabulous gold ornaments that fused the styles of Greece, the Near East, and Central Asia. Four Ukrainian museums combined their treasures and their scholarship to produce "Gold of the Nomads: Sythian Treasures from Ancient Ukraine," one of the most important museum exhibits to come to the United States from Ukraine. Reeder, curator of ancient art at the Walters Art Gallery in Baltimore, does an excellent job of bringing together authorities in various areas of Sythian culture with color photographs of the artifacts. One of the most beautiful exhibit catalogs of the year, this is recommended for any library needing solid, up-to-date information on Sythian culture.AMary Morgan Smith, Northland P.L., Pittsburgh
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.