1. THE GOLDEN DEER OF EURASIA
SCYTHIAN AND SARMATIAN TREASURES FROM THE
RUSSIAN STEPPES
October 12, 2000—February 4, 2001
Special Exhibition Galleries, Second Floor
Between 1986 and 1990, hundreds of astonishing objects
— ornately carved and decorated in a unique style and
covered in gold — were excavated from an archaeological
site outside the village of Filippovka, located in
Bashkortostan on southern Russia's open steppes.
Representing one of the most important caches of early
nomadic Eurasian art, these treasures date from the first
millennium B.C. and are characterized by the extensive
use of animal imagery — most notably that of a deer. This
fall, The Metropolitan Museum of Art will present nearly
100 of these dazzling works — none of which has ever
been shown anywhere — in a dramatic display, The
Golden Deer of Eurasia: Scythian and Sarmatian
Treasures from the Russian Steppes, opening on
October 12.
The State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg
(Russia) will lend an additional 85 spectacular objects from
its fabled Gold Room, joining with the Archaeological
Museum in Bashkortostan's capital city of Ufa in this
unprecedented international exchange. A dozen
impressive wooden stags from the new find — almost two
feet in height and covered with gold and silver — will be
the centerpiece of the exhibition.
The exhibition was organized by The Metropolitan
Museum of Art, New York, the State Hermitage Museum,
Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation, and the Museum of
Archaeology and Ethnography, Center for Ethnological
Studies, Ufa Research Center of the Russian Academy of
Sciences, Bashkortostan, Russian Federation.
"The Filippovka find dazzles us by its beauty," commented
Philippe de Montebello, Director of the Metropolitan. "But
these newly discovered works also compel us to delve
more deeply into their mysterious history. Who were the
2. people who created such astonishing masterpieces? While
the question is debated, we are delighted to provide the
public with a rare glimpse of the remarkable artifacts
created by a little-known, yet highly developed culture of
long ago. We look to the Greek historian Herodotus, who
suggested that these people — neighbors of the Scythians
— may have been Sarmatians, as we display these
enigmatic treasures from Filippovka alongside those
known to originate in neighboring cultures."
Mr. de Montebello continued: "In drama and grandeur, The
Golden Deer of Eurasia will recall another exhibition that
also featured the glorious art of the Scythians. The
Museum's highly acclaimed and immensely popular
exhibition From the Lands of the Scythians — shown in
1975 — was an early indicator of our ever-growing
fascination with the art of ancient civilizations."
The Find
Some two dozen kurgans (burial mounds) at the
archaeological site at Filippovka were excavated over a
period of four years in the late 1980s. Although many of
the kurgans had been partially plundered in antiquity,
exquisitely worked gold and silver artifacts in large
numbers were left behind, indicating the burial of nobles or
chieftains. In addition to several dozen magnificent deer,
almost two feet in height and some with curving antlers
rising above their richly patterned bodies, the excavation
yielded several hundred elaborate gold appliqués, chased
with figures of animals both natural and fantastic, which
once adorned wooden bowls and drinking cups. Many of
these will be on view in the exhibition at the Metropolitan.
Scholars believe that the people whose stylistically unique
works were recently unearthed at Filippovka were a
nomadic tribe that occupied the area in the late 5th to early
4th century B.C. and was associated with the Sarmatian
people. The art found here resembles that of other early
Eurasian nomadic cultures — specifically in the multitude
and variety of animal forms used to adorn every manner of
object. Although the people whose works were discovered
at Filippovka favored the deer, various animals —
including leopards, birds of prey, boars, camels, elk, fish,
rams, and griffins (a mythological animal with the body of a
lion and the head and wings of an eagle) — are also
found. Stylistic affinities lie to the east, where there was a
similar use of spiral-shaped ornament on the surface of
animal bodies. Certain other characteristics, however,
demonstrate cultural connections with the Scythians, who
3. occupied the shores of the Black Sea to the west. The
items excavated at Filippovka exhibit the same abundant
use of gold as the well-documented Scythian discoveries,
although the techniques used to create the objects differ
greatly. Finally, objects of foreign origin also unearthed in
the tombs link the people of Filippovka with other cultures,
as well. Among these remarkable works are gold and
silver items that resemble art from ancient Iran. To suggest
the complex relationship that appears to have existed
among these neighboring cultures in the first millennium
B.C., the presentation at the Metropolitan will include gold
objects from the Scythian tombs near the Black Sea;
textiles, leather, and wooden works of art from Siberia; and
gold and bronze pieces from the Caucasus and Central
Asia.
Among the most significant works of art coming from the
State Hermitage Museum are the golden comb excavated
in 1913 in the Solokha kurgan (in the Dnepropetrovsk
region, Russia) and the golden vessel discovered in 1830
in the Kul' Oba kurgan (near Kerch, Crimea, Ukraine).
These magnificent Scythian works, both of which depict
Eurasian nomads, are beautifully modeled and show
remarkable realism in details of dress and anatomy.
The art of Iran during the Achaemenid Empire and its
relationship to the finds from Filippovka will be illustrated
by precious metal vessels from the Metropolitan Museum's
collection.
A variety of programs and educational resources will be
scheduled in conjunction with the exhibition. These will
include a symposium, lectures and gallery talks for general
visitors, a family guide, and programs for students,
families, and teachers.
The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated
catalogue, which will be available in the Museum's
bookshop. Published by the Metropolitan Museum and
distributed by Yale University Press, the catalogue will
feature major essays by several noted scholars, including
Andrei Alekseev, Ann Farkas, Leonid Marsadolov, and
Anatolii Pshenichniuk. In addition, essays by Liudmila
Barkova, Liudmila Galanina, Elena Korolkova, and Maria
Zavitukhina will provide commentary on the works.
An audio tour, part of the Metropolitan's new Key to the
Met Audio Guide, will be available for rental ($5, $4.50 for
members).
