Scythian Neapolis

Scythian Neapolis, also known as Kermenchik, was an Iranic settlement that existed in the Crimean Peninsula from the end of the 3rd century BC until the second half of the 3rd century AD. It was previously considered a town of the Tauric Chersonesus, and was mentioned by Strabo as being the fortress and palace where Scythian kings resided. It is regarded as the capital of the Late Scythian Kingdom and the capital of Great Scythia. The archaeological ruins sit on the outskirts of the present-day Simferopol. This city was the centre of Crimea's Scythian tribes, led by Skilurus and Palacus. The town ruled over a small kingdom, covering the lands between the lower Dnieper and Crimea. Between the end of the 4th century BC and the beginning of the 3rd century BC, historians suggest that the Kizil-Koba culture occupied the area of Scythian Neapolis before any Scythian artefacts were found; Neapolis was destroyed by the Goths halfway through the 3rd century AD. This settlement was first excavated in 1945 by Schultz and Golovkina. Geography The geographical features of Scythian Neapolis include being located on a plateau on the ‘Petrovskiye rocks in Simferopol’. Its climate has been described as having long, dry and wind filled summer and winter periods as well as having moderate precipitation levels. The area of the capital was distinguished by forests and rich vegetation which includes wood such as oak, pine, poplar and alder around the fortress. History The cultural landscape of Scythian Neapolis was diverse, with not only Scythian culture present but also the ‘sedentary Tauri’ and ‘the Hellenized population of the chorai of the Greek cities’. Ivantchik (2019) states that the Scythians of the time, including those inhabiting Scythian Neapolis, were closer to Hellenistic states in comparison to the ‘Scythians’ nomadic kingdom of the 4th century BC’. Evidence from craniology research in this area also indicates that no less than two groups of individuals of different origins were present in Scythian Neapolis. During the Hellenistic period, which is between 128-124 BC, there were only minor signs of agriculture and cattle breeding which suggests that during this period the individuals that lived in Scythian Neapolis were only semi-settled. The absence of buildings and with ‘images of horsemen in the ornamental fields,…[and]…the mix of animal bones found among cooking waste’ in the Palace complex further suggests this.