(Scythian gold comb housed in the Hermitage museum, St. Petersburg,
Russia. [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)
The bulk of what is known
about the Scythian people was recorded by the Greek historian, Herodotus, in
the 5th century BCE. In more modern times, archaeologists have broadened the
historical perspective on the Scythians by studying sites found within the
territory of the ancient Scythian empire. From unearthed relics and artifacts,
archeologists have found that the Scythians possessed bronze armor of Greek
design and swords of Persian style, as well as ample gold, art and jewelry.
In book four of The Histories, Herodotus gave three
possible scenarios that led to the creation of the Scythian people as he knew
them in the 5th century BCE. Of the three possibilities that were recorded,
Herodotus favored one about nomadic migration. In the model, the Scythian
people moved from central Asia into Russia and Ukraine between the 8th and 7th
centuries BCE, displacing the Cimmerians as they flooded into the region.
Although Herodotus favored
the nomadic model mentioned above, that did not stop him from recoding two other
interesting and entertaining Scythian creation myths. The two myths relayed to
the reader by Herodotus differed greatly, but they had two great similarities.
In both myths, three children played a great role in the story, with the
youngest child always taking the most prominent role.
Continue reading abut the interesting Scythian creation myths recorded by Herodotus, HERE.
