The Kashi Artefacts in the Burials of the Zmeisky Catacomb Cemetery

The paper aims to the chronology of burials within the chambers and in the undercats of the catacombs and pit interments of the Zmeisky catacomb burial ground in Republic of North Ossetia-Alania (excavations 2013–2014), based on the analysis of kashi items: beads, pendants and buttons. The composition of the fabric of this items varies from loose and porous to a very solid monolithic mass. Apparently, they have come from different centers of the Near- and Middle Asia. However, the question of the place of manufacture of the kashi objects remains open due to a narrow circle of analogies. Kashi products in the burials of the Zmeisky catacomb cemetery date back to the 13th – 14th centuries. Kashi artefacts have been found mostly in the children and men burials. The question of the simultaneity of noncatacomb burials with kashi objects and undercats within the chambers of the catacombs remains open.