The amulets and other treasures were found in the Rostov Oblast, near the village of Chaltyr in 1987. There took place excavations of the burial mound Valovy-1. The grave contained the remains of a woman, who was approximately 25 years of age. She was buried with a lot of jewels, among which stood out amulets and pendants in the form of a flacon and a child’s tooth.
The small golden vials-flacons were apparently used to preserve incense. The flacon may have been an amulet, as it was found together with another ritual object — a pendant made of a child’s tooth set in gold.
The small golden vials-flacons were apparently used to preserve incense. The flacon may have been an amulet, as it was found together with another ritual object — a pendant made of a child’s tooth set in gold.
The pendant flacon is spherical; the tubular neck was welded to it separately. The removable lid-cap is decorated with an insert of almandine — a variety of garnet, usually of a red or red-violet hue. It was framed with a row of granulation, a decoration in the form of spherules. The flacon’s lid and neck have symmetrical through holes — they would thread a cord or a chain through them to hang the flacon.
The child’s milk tooth is fixed in a gold setting that has a hanging loop. The setting is decorated with a skan’ (filigree) ornament — two rows of a faux rope are soldered along the lower edge. Skan’ is a twisted wire decoration. The child’s milk tooth is fixed in a gold setting that has a hanging loop. The setting is decorated with a skan’ (filigree) ornament — two rows of a faux rope are soldered along the lower edge. Skan’ is a twisted wire decoration.
Since this was an adult woman’s burial site, one may assume that set in gold is her milk tooth, which was considered a talisman.
In addition to the pendant amulets, they found three gold rings at the female burial site. Each of them was round in shape with a stone insert-seal. One of the rings has a carved helmeted warrior on it with a spear and a shield. The second one was decorated with an oval almandine with an obscure sign. The stone of the third ring was also decorated with a carved image — apparently, a female figure.
