On April 25-27, 2016, the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences jointly with the State Museum of Oriental Studies held an international scientific conference "The Caucasus and the Steppe at the Turn of the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age", dedicated to the memory of the oldest employee of the Department of History and Culture of the Ancient East, Maria Nikolaevna Pogrebova, Doctor of Historical Sciences, a leading expert on Scythia and the Caucasus of the Late Bronze and Early Iron age.

The conference was attended by 35 researchers from 19 academic institutes, universities and museums in Russia, Ukraine, Abkhazia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.

Opening the conference, Director of the Institute of Animal Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences V. P. Androsov reminded that M. N. Pogrebova's work was devoted to the problem of the Scythian animal style, studying the contacts of the ancient population of the North Caucasus with the countries of Transcaucasia and Near Asia. These issues have always been considered in her works on the basis of a wide range of archaeological, ethnographic, linguistic and written sources. The conference is a modest gift to the memory of an outstanding scientist and remarkable person.

L. A. Chvyr's report "M. N. Pogrebova: a monograph and its author (anthropology of academic life)" was based on the following postulate: in addition to the historical content, each monograph contains information about the individual characteristics of the author's analysis. The speaker described the creative style and mentality of M. N. Pogrebova, based on the analysis of her latest monograph " The History of Eastern Transcaucasia. The second half of the 2nd-beginning of the 1st millennium BC" (Moscow, 2011).

A. S. Balakhvantsev's report "Absolute chronology of Archaic Scythia: Near-Asian reference points" considered the role of Eastern reference points in the development of an absolute chronology of Archaic Scythia. Determining the date of the fall of Urartu c. 640 BC and the creation of the Aramaic inscription on the bone psalms from Rysaykino at the end of the VIII century BC allows us to present the early Scythian chronology as follows: the appearance of the Scythians in the North Caucasus no later than the middle of the VIII century BC; Scythian invasions in Transcaucasia and Northwestern Iran began at the end of the VIII century. works of Scythian animal style and weapons from the destroyed Urartian centers belong to the period no later than the middle of the 7th century BC.

O. A. Brileva's report "The image of a horseman and a horsewoman in the anthropomorphic plasticity of the Caucasus" was devoted to the issue of the appearance of a joint image of a man and a horse in the bronze sculpture of the Caucasus. The transformation of images from charioteers (XV-XIV centuries BC) to horsemen (from the VIII century BC) is shown. The time of existence of bronze figures of horsemen and horsewomen and objects accompanying them are indicated. It is suggested that it is possible to distinguish potential figures of horsemen from the existing layer of bronze anthropomorphic plastic, depicted in a sitting position on a chair without legs, as well as with a W-shaped outline of the legs without a bridge between the feet.

S. B. Valchak (IA RAS) in his report "Pre-Scythian archeology of Eastern Europe and some monuments of Transcaucasia" examined the burials of soldiers and horsemen with bronze conical helmets in their inventory, as well as random finds of similar helmets in the North Caucasus and Transcaucasia. The North Caucasian finds date back to the end of the VIII - first half of the VII century BC and are associated with military campaigns of the Cimmerians in Transcaucasia. The author believes that the dating of the Transcaucasian finds is within the XII-IX centuries. BC and earlier is wrong. These helmets-imitations of the cast helmets of Urartu and Assyria-could have appeared in the region only after the battle of the Cimmerians with the army of Rusa I at the end of the VIII century BC. Therefore, the priority in dating these finds remains for the chronology of the pre-Scythian period of Eastern Europe.

Report by M. Y. Bakhtina and M. T. Kashub (IIMC RAS) " Early Scythian side-handle mirrors in the Northern Black Sea region: Greek or local production?" It was devoted to the problem of the appearance and distribution of these objects in the material culture of the early Scythians of the Northern Black Sea region. The authors turned to this topic thanks to new data,

Archil Savely BALAKHVANTSEV-Candidate of Historical Sciences, Researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences; balakhvantsev@gmail.com.

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obtained during the processing of materials from the old excavations of the Nemirovsky settlement on the Southern Bug. In particular, they analyzed the handle of a bronze mirror from the upper filling layer of dugout No. 1, which is attributed to the colonization phase of the Early Scythian culture or Nemirov-III. 1. 3, according to the new periodization of the Nemirov settlement. In the bottom part of the dwelling, a fragment of a vessel was found, which probably came out of the same workshop with oynokhoy from the Temir Hora mound and dates back to the same time - 650-630 BC. These data and other finds from the dwelling allow us to attribute its construction to the second quarter of the VII century BC. Already in the last third / end of the VII century BC, dugout No. 1 was filled in.

The handle of the mirror can also be dated to the same time - no later than the end of the seventh century BC. Although in a number of ways it is close to the so-called Olvian-type mirrors, however, the Nemirov handle has flutes-ribs located only on one side, and it ends not with a zoomorphic figure,but with a shield in the form of an oval. The handle of the Nemirov mirror is not only unique in its morphological features, but is also one of the rarest finds of mirrors originating from the excavations of settlements. As a rule, mirror finds are associated with funerary or ritual complexes, and this observation is true both for the Northern Black Sea region and for the regions of the Aegis in the Early Iron Age. The assumption that the bronze mirror from Nemirov belongs to the objects of Greek import does not contradict its early dating. It is also impossible to completely exclude the version about the production of the Nemirov mirror by a Skiff master, although it looks the least likely.

In the report of A. V. Vertienko (IV NASU, Kiev) "The Bow of Mithras: informative value of Avestan sources for archaeological research", the Young Avestan vocabulary related to the terminology of remote weapons of ancient Iranians, bow and arrow, was considered on the example of "Mihr-Yashta". A wide range of its differentiation is revealed. The semantics of a number of terms are clarified: tiyråŋhō - ("sharp" - definition of the bow ends), aštaiiō - ("four (elbows)" (?) - the position of the hands when the bow is drawn) (Yasht 10, 113) ;ananuuarətan - ("bow string" - epithet of the bowstring) (Yasht 10, 128); sruuĪ. staii -, andŋhaēpa sparəγa - ("horn-toothed", "bony processes" - description of the horn shaft of an arrow) (Yasht 10, 129).

The report of T. N. Geyusheva (IAE ANAS, Baku) "Bronze belt from Kedabek" introduces the bronze ornamental belt found in the territory of the village of Yenikend into scientific circulation. It is made of sheet bronze with a thickness of about 0.1 cm, is 90 cm long and 14 cm wide. The ornamental composition of the belt consists of four groups of different animals (griffin, lion, deer, mountain goat) and birds. Two of them are located at the ends of the belt, and the other two are placed in two rows in its central part, and in the latter the animals march one after the other. Along the entire edge of the belt runs a strip with several lines of spiral ornament. A similar ornamental border runs along the center of the belt. The rest of the belt surface is filled with various ornaments in the form of spirals, lozenges, plaits and mesh ornaments. A semantic analysis of animal images is given and the astral meaning and semantic load of the ornaments and signs present on it are revealed. The author substantiates the conclusion that during the historical period under consideration (the end of the 2nd-beginning of the 1st millennium BC), the cult of the Sun became widespread in Azerbaijan and throughout the Caucasus. This is reflected in the visual arts both in the form of astral signs and in the images of various animals.
The report of M. N. Daragan (IA NASU, Kiev) "On the Early Scythian quiver set from burial 1, mound 4 near the village of Gladkovshchyna" is devoted to the analysis of arrowheads found in this complex. The characteristic features of the tips are identified and described. Based on the study of individual tips, as well as their groups, a circle of the closest quiver sets is established. The chronology of the quiver set is proposed within the last quarter of the VII-turn of the VII/VI centuries BC. The question of the origin of individual types of arrowheads is raised.

In the report of A. I. Jopua and V. A. Nyushkov (Ab. IGI, Sukhum) " Scythians and ancient Abkhazia. To the problem of ethno-cultural relations " an attempt is made to consider the entire range of sources on the problem of ethno-cultural relations between the Scythians and the ancient Abkhazian population (Geniochs), primarily archaeological and ethnographic. Special attention was paid to the materials of the Scythian culture recorded in the ancient monuments of Abkhazia: Kulanurkhua, Guadihu, Red Lighthouse, Sukhumi Mountain, Merheul, Gagra, Akarmara, etc., as well as the interaction of local and Scythian culture. All elements of the Scythian culture (bronze arrowheads, horse kit elements, art monuments) found in burials in Abkhazia date back to the 7th-4th centuries BC. The presence of Scythian items made of bronze, iron and bone, revealed on the territory of the Republic of Abkhazia.

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The authors explain the fact that the Scythians were temporarily staying there, trading in barter or capturing trophies as a result of long-distance campaigns of local soldiers.

In his report "Cross-shaped plaques of the Early Iron Age from the Steppes of Eastern Europe", L. S. Ilyukov (UNC RAS) considered one of the most striking categories of inventory in Early Scythian burials-bronze cross-shaped plaques. They were produced in series. One of them has eagle-headed endings (Olvia, Dugino, Pustoshkin, Aksai, Birsesti, Khotin, Armeshoaia, Komarno). They not only decorated the quiver, but also served as fasteners for its lid. In the Eastern European steppes, cross-shaped plaques date back to the 6th century BC.

The report of A. A. Kadieva (GIM) and S. V. Demidenko (IA RAS) "Works of small-scale plastic art of the Early Iron Age from the Zayukovo-3 burial ground (Gundelen) (Kabardino-Balkaria)" was devoted to the excavations of this burial ground in 2015. The most interesting materials of the necropolis include women's jewelry. They are presented in the form of two breastplates, a necklace and single finds. These complexes include zoomorphic pendants in the form of sheep and bear heads and an anthropomorphic pendant in the form of a sitting pregnant woman. All materials date from the 8th-7th centuries BC.

A. R. Kantorovich (MSU) in his report "The image of the horse in the Eastern European Scythian animal style" addressed the consideration of the image of the horse within the Eastern European local version of the Scythian-Siberian animal style of the VII-early III century BC. The author identified and systematized 109 original images of the horse (not counting copies), endowed with signs of the Scythian animal style, including 5 full-figure and 104 reduced ones. These images form 13 morphological types and are mostly located in the Middle Dnieper region. It is established that horse images are mainly associated with the motif of a separate head (sometimes - protoma), combined with hooves (sometimes - with hind legs) at the opposite endings of archaic three-pronged and three-looped psalms, originating in the vast majority from the Middle Dnieper region. Such iconographic and categorical limitations in the implementation of the horse theme in the Eastern European Scythian animal style can be explained by the high semiotic status of the natural prototype itself, which did not require additions and substitutions in the art of animal style. Obviously, the real horse was a permanent component of a single symbolic system formed on the basis of zoomorphic images of the Eastern European Scythian animal style, almost two-thirds (63%) of the original images of which were designed specifically for horse equipment. At the same time, the predominant application of the horse motif to the design of psalms probably signals the prevalence of the magical and pragmatic tasks of this image-to strengthen and multiply the best qualities of the horse being bridled.

The report of V. B. Kovalevskaya (IA RAS) "Horses of the Middle East (W-1st millennium BC)" is devoted to the problem of horse domestication and use in the Middle East. It was emphasized that tamed horses could have been imported to this territory in the 2nd-3rd millennium BC from Eastern Europe, or they could have been domesticated locally on the basis of wild horses known in Anatolia. An analysis of ancient Eastern sources suggests that the ownership of horses and stud farms, as well as the supply of horses to soldiers, was the prerogative of the royal power.

T. M. Kuznetsova (IA RAS) in her report "Kelermes burial ground and the system of Scythian chronology of the Archaic period" tried to show that the mounds of Kelermes, "Litoi" (Melgunovsky) and "Repyakhovataya grave" can be correlated with the time of the return of the army of King Madius, son of Prototius/Bartatua, in the Northern Black Sea region (after 585 BC). It should be noted that the presented point of view is doubtful. First, Bartatua is mentioned in Assyrian documents around 672 BC, so it is unlikely that his son was still alive at the beginning of the sixth century BC. Second, it is unlikely that the Scythians crossed the Caucasus only once during their return from Asia; most likely in the late eighth and seventh centuries BC. E. such transitions from north to south and back were made repeatedly.

In his report "The Caucasus and adjacent regions based on linguistic data (Z-th-1st millennium BC)", S. V. Kullanda (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) used a large number of examples to demonstrate the wide opportunities that open up for historical interpretations due to the use of linguistic data.

The report of V. T. Licheli (TSU, Tbilisi) "Unknown writing of the 7th century BC from Georgia" concerned the sensational discovery of two monumental inscriptions on the pedestal of the temple altar, discovered by the author during the excavations of the Grakliani Gora settlement. The letters of the A label are found

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analogies in North-Semitic inscriptions of the XI-VII centuries BC. e. Inscription B may show a local variety of Aramaic script.

Report by E. Y. Loginova (State Hermitage Museum) " Urartian (?) vessel from the excavations of N. I. Veselovsky in Kuban " is dedicated to the publication of attachments from a large metal vessel from the State Hermitage Collection. Detailed morphological, typological and technological analysis of the attachments, taking into account the identified analogies, allows us to reconstruct the external appearance of the vessel. On the territory of the Northern Black Sea region, three similar vessels of the second half of the 7th century BC are known. In addition, there are a number of analogies among Urartian antiquities. The metal composition, which is similar to that of the Caucasian riveted glass buckets, allows us to localize the center of vessel production in the Central Caucasus, and the design of attachments in the form of a stylized bird with outstretched wings refers to Transcaucasian and Near-Asian antiquities.

S. I. Lukyashko's report "Scythian bows" on the basis of archaeological materials and images in ancient vase painting reconstructed the" arcus scythicus " - a sigmoid bow. Its metric parameters and shooting technique are established. Scythian archers held the bow vertically in the left hand, the arrow was applied to the right side of the bow. As a way to hold the bowstring and arrow, the author suggests the so-called Mediterranean grip. Already in the VI century BC Scythian bows were reflexive, and since the V century bows reinforced with bone overlays have been known. Scythian sigmoid bows had a high rigidity, which suggests the predominance of shooting from it over the area. In addition to this basic type of bow, the Scythians used a complex segmented bow.

R. G. Magomedov (IAE DNC RAS) and V. R. Ehrlich (GMINV) in their report "The Lutkun treasure of the Cimmerian period from Southern Dagestan (preliminary report)" informed about the treasure discovered in 1981, containing about 150 objects of the Cimmerian era and now stored in the museum of the village of Akhty. The authors paid special attention to items related to weapons and horse equipment. According to these artifacts, the treasure can be dated to the end of the VIII-beginning of the VII century BC and attributed to the time of the Cimmerian and Early Scythian campaigns in Transcaucasia and Asia Minor.

V. E. Maslov (IA RAS) in his report "Early Scythian History and Herodotus" called for abandoning the forced interpretation of archaic Scythian antiquities based on Herodotus and tried to justify the conclusion that the realities of Early Scythian history did not correspond to his story.

S. V. Makhortykh (IA NASU, Kiev) in his report "Cross belt penetrators from the North Caucasian monuments of the VII-VI centuries BC" considered metal and bone Early Scythian distributors for bridle belts of various types identified in the North Caucasus. Among them, two groups are distinguished, represented by smooth specimens of geometric shape and pronizi, which have a zoomorphic design. The Central Ciscaucasia is the main distribution area of most types of "geometric" permeates, made mainly of bronze, and "zoomorphic" ones, many of which are made of bone, are located in the North - Western Caucasus. The main period of existence of "geometric" and "zoomorphic" permeations in the North Caucasus falls in the middle - second half of the VII century BC, and partly in the VI century BC. At the same time, the youngest among the first ones are bronze piers with five holes, approaching the shape of a cone (the third type of the first group), and among others - metal distributors designed in the form of a bird of prey head with a twisted beak and a relief wax (the second type of the second group), as well as piers with the image of a a bird with an additional zoomorphic image on the back of its head (option 3 of the fourth type of the second group).
In the report of I. N. Medvedskaya (IVR RAS) "On the question of the formation of Indian culture", some components of the Median culture that was formed in the VIII-VII centuries BC are considered. The author presented data proving the important role of the Media as a cultural intermediary between the kingdoms that left the political arena in the second half-end of the VII century. (Urartu, Assyria), and the Achaemenid Kingdom (the second half of the sixth century), and representing the Medes as creators of original architectural concepts and construction techniques. The Medes, in particular, used a previously unknown method of covering the arches with mud half-timbers, they created the original layout of the temple of fire and the previously unknown form of the altar of fire. An outstanding creation of the Median architects was the multi-columned hall (apadana), which became an integral part of the Achaemenid culture and the entire Ancient East.

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Joint report of R. I. Papuashvili (Museum of Georgia, Tbilisi) and A. S. Balakhvantsev (Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences) " Bimetallic bites from the burial grounds of Colchis (Ergeta II, Tsaishi)" It was dedicated to finds made in 2005 and 2015 in the necropolises of Western Georgia. Based on the characteristics of the burial rite and the accompanying burial equipment, three bimetallic bites found in them date back to the end of the 7th - beginning of the 6th century BC. Bimetallic bites (mints), one of the characteristic features of the Early Scythian culture, along with the Scythian name of the king of the Colchians Saulak, indicate close ties between Kulkh (Colchis) and Iranian-speaking nomads who came from the North Caucasus.

The report of E. V. Perevodchikova (Moscow) "Visual folklore, lingua franca and the origin of the Scythian animal style" examines the interpretation of the Scythian animal style in the collective monograph of D. S. Rayevsky, S. V. Kullanda and M. N. Pogrebova "Visual Folklore. Poetics of Scythian animal style" as a kind of "visual folklore" of Indo-Iranian peoples. Its poetics are similar to the hymns of the Rig Veda. Spreading from the steppe of Eastern Europe to the east, it became lingua franca for various peoples of the Eurasian steppe. However, according to the gender-centric conception of the origin of the Scythian animal style, it was anethnic in its role of lingua franca. Thus, in this case, the term lingua franca refers to a mixed language based on the languages of the contacting parties.

Report by M. S. Pirtskhalava (Museum of Georgia, Tbilisi) "Bone buterol from the settlement of Treligorebi (Georgia)" is dedicated to a bone buterol found in 2005 among the ruins of the room, in the layer of the second half of the VII-VI centuries BC. The tip is covered with a relief composition. On both sides of it are carved figures of opposing feline predators, made in the Scythian animal style. Animals are presented in profile, they lie in a characteristic pose, crouching on bent paws. On each side of the object, two figures are shown facing each other, and the outer contour of the body is the edge of the bottle. After analyzing the shape of the tip, the pose, composition and manner of execution of the figures, we can conclude that the Treligorebi buterol is one of the earliest works depicting a feline predator, made in a specific Early Scythian manner. At the same time, the figures of carnivores presented on the buteroli contain features that lead us to the images of the art of Luristan bronzes.

In the report of T. V. Ryabkova (State Hermitage Museum) "Spherical pommels with slotted bells from the Early Scythian monuments of the Trans-Kuban region", a detailed analysis of pommels with spherical slotted bells (type IV according to the classification of E. V. Perevodchikova) is carried out. Almost all pommels of this type originate from Trans-Kuban monuments and have a very short line of development: having appeared in the region with the arrival of nomadic groups at the beginning of the Early Scythian period, they existed there for a short time and were later replaced by similar functionally, but typologically different objects. It is established that five pommels from the most ancient Kelermes burial mound 2, excavated by N. I. Veselovsky, form a compact group, characterized by the same shape, pure copper composition of the metal and the method of applying diamond-shaped signs even at the stage of creating a wax model. Other finials are made of pewter bronze, and the diamond-shaped mark on them was engraved after casting. The closest analogies to the archaic pommel group from the Kelermes mound 2/B come from monuments of the West Zhou period (1100-771 BC) in Shaanxi Province in China. Probably, it was the West Zhou specimens that marked the beginning of the pommel evolution both in China and in the Trans-Kuban region. The pommel from the Korsukovsky hoard may indicate the westward movement of this impulse. Analysis of pommels from other Trans-Kuban monuments shows a reworking of the initial impulse. Thus, the stylistic features of the image of a deer on the pommel from the mound near the village of Makhoshevskaya show its close connection with the Eastern Eurasian area of animal style, while the image of a deer on the pommel from the mound near the station of Gubskaya already has all the signs of a developed animal style. Thus, the finials from the Kelermes mound 2 / B are an indicator that the monument belongs to the initial stage of nomadic expansion to the west, and their proximity to the West Zhou and Korsukov finials serves as an additional argument in favor of the early date of the monument within the boundaries of the VIII century BC. Subsequently, the Central Asian impulse became less noticeable, and from the last quarter of the VII century BC. The further development of this clothing category was influenced by the Eastern Greek tradition.

A. E. Simonyan (TSIKN, Yerevan) in his report "Mounds of the aristocracy of the Late Bronze Age of the Verin Nave necropolis" examined the burial rite and inventory of the Verin Nave burial ground, which covers an area of about 150 hectares. In the graves of the late Bronze Age (XVI-XIV centuries BC), elaborately made bronze figurines of birds, weapons, horse bits, bronze details of chariots, various ornaments made of glass, stone, bronze, iron, lead, tin were found,

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silver, gold, the richest and most diverse complex of ceramics, in which a certain place is occupied by cult utensils. In the royal burial mound No. I (1610-1415 BC) excavated in 2011-2012, insignia of power and prestige were found: a seal made of jasper, bronze details of a chariot, an iron crescent-shaped sword of the khepesh type, 62 arrowheads made of red jasper, flint and obsidian, imported products: glazed and glass beads from Babylonia, sea clams from Egypt. Persian Gulf, a purple garnet bead from Central Asia, a jade nugget from China in the form of a naked woman, medallions from a headdress (crown) covered with gold foil and covered with thin copper hoops, and locks from a bitumen belt with relief images of portraits of heroes-kings, argali and the tree of life. Analogies of these products are known in Middle Elam art, in the monuments of Susiana and Marlike.

A. Y. Skokov (Institute of Mechanical Engineering of the Russian Academy of Sciences) reviews new finds of Koban-Colchis ornamental axes. In 1998, the author defended his dissertation on the topic "Koban-Colchis ornamental axes as a historical source". At that time, the literature and museum collections managed to collect images of 307 ornamental axes. Later, with the participation of the author, 6 ornamental axes discovered in Abkhazia were published. Recent decades have significantly enriched the collection of monuments of Koban-Colchis graphic art, and in particular ornamental axes. This paper summarizes information about at least 44 more ornamental axes published over the past years, most of which originate from the territory of Georgia and the North Caucasus.

In the report of K. V. Chugunov (State Hermitage Museum) "Toreutics of Asian nomads and the Ancient East: on the question of one of the components of Arzhan-2 art", one of the components of art discovered during the study of the Arzhan-2 burial and memorial complex in Tuva is considered. The author proposed a hypothesis of forming the traditions of toreutics of the most complex products in terms of production technology based on the school of metalworking of the Bronze Age of Bactria and Margiana. The basis for this assumption is the findings in the Gonur necropolis, which find correspondences in later monuments of nomads of steppe Eurasia. According to the speaker, for the eastern zone of animal style distribution, especially at its early stage, this most northern enclave of the cultural world of Middle Eastern civilizations was the main source of innovation, including in the field of technology distribution. It was here that the synthesis of cultures of sedentary farmers and pastoralists of the Great Steppe in the middle of the 2nd millennium BC could have led to the emergence of such a vivid phenomenon as the art of animal style of the Scythian era.

V. T. Chshiev (IIA, Vladikavkaz) in his report "Caucasian-Northern Black Sea relations in the Late Bronze - Early Iron age (based on new materials of Koban monuments of North Ossetia - Alania)", based on new materials of the Koban culture from the mountainous part of North Ossetia, studied the connections of the ancient population of the region with the peoples of Near Asia and with the Scythian tribes cultural circle. The time frame of these contacts, based on the dates of the objects under consideration, covers the period from the XII-XI centuries. BC to the advanced Scythian period.

V. P. Yaylenko's report "Amazons in Greece and the North Caucasus: questions of prehistory and origin of the name" analyzed Strabo's mysterious message (XI.5.1-2) on the war of the Amazons with the Gargareans, Thracians, and Euboians. The author localizes the Strabo Amazons in the upper reaches of the Kuban River. The name of the Amazon is Thracian in origin; this is how the Thracians who lived in the North-West of Asia Minor called the Anatolian peoples with matriarchal features in pre-Homeric and Homeric times. Thracians also inhabited the northern regions of Anatolia-Paphlagonia, Pontus. There is evidence of Thracian settlement in Transcaucasia, and Thracian toponymy and ethnonymy are well represented in the Asian Bosporus, including the foothills of the Northwestern Caucasus. Euboians - ancient Abants, they are associated with the name of the Abant River in Albania. The name of the river Mermod, near which the Amazons lived, is a Nakh-Dagestan adaptation of the Thracian hydronym Thermodont. In the Nart epic, there are female warriors. All this gives the author reason to think about the historical rather than mythological nature of the legend about the Amazons in the North Caucasus and their war with the local Thracians and Euboians. It should be noted that due to the almost complete absence of criticism of the sources involved by V. P. Yaylenko, his conclusions should be treated with caution.

The presentations made at the conference and the discussion that unfolded on them demonstrated both the relevance of the topics raised and the need for a platform for their discussion. At the final meeting, the participants of the conference thanked the organizers, the management of the Institute of Internal Affairs of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the State Institute of Internal Affairs, and expressed hope that the conference in memory of M. N. Pogrebova will be held regularly.

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