THE POLIAN-SINOZHAT SITE OF THE MOHYLIANY GROUP IN VOLYN The unpublished material from the Polian-Sinozhat site on the Horyn River, which is interesting for understanding the process of emergence of the Mogiliany group and its connection with the Bilogrud

Abstract

The unpublished material from the Polian-Sinozhat site on the Horyn River, which is interesting for understanding the process of emergence of the Mogiliany group and its connection with the Bilogrudivka horizon, is the subject of this paper. The site is located on the southwestern outskirts of the Polian village in the Shepetivka district of the Khmelnytskyi region. It is placed at the edge of a dune elevation in the floodplain of the Horyn River right bank, having 400 Ч 150 m² and approximately 2.5 m high above the floodplain level.

The site was discovered by V. O. Samoliuk in 1998. In 2004, an expedition led by S. S. Berezanska with participation of V. O. Samoliuk excavated the site. An excavation area of 98 m² was made in the western part of the dune. Additionally, 13 trenches of 1 Ч 2 m were dug along its perimeter.

The uncovered object consisted of a depression of approximately 20 m², formed by several pits connected by jumpers. In one of the pits of rectangular shape measuring 4—4.5 m and a depth of 0.9—0.95 m the traces of pole holes were exhibited along the eastern edge. A lot of pottery was found within the pits and in the surrounding cultural layer. During the excavations, the authors suggested that the excavated object could have been a lightweight summer structure at a short-term or seasonal habitation site.

The ceramic collection comprises 44 diagnostic items, consisting mainly of upper parts of vessels, handles, and three spindles. Additionally, 29 small fragments of vessel rims, 43 fragments of pot walls decorated with rolls, and 22 base fragments were identified. All ceramics were relatively strongly fired, with mottled coloring in various shades of gray, brown, and brick-red. The molding compound of all vessels contains inclusions of fireclay, often in combination with sand, and occasionally crushed stone. The surface of the pottery is well smoothed.

In the area of Horyn River valley near the Netishyn city apart from the Polian-Sinozhat site, we are not aware of any other sites containing materials from the Mohyliany and Monastyrok cemeteries horizon. The nearest known sites are Dorohoshcha, as well as an ash mound and two locations near the town of Slavuta. Further downstream we have a fairly well-studied section between the town of Ostroh and the village of Mohyliany, from where we have information on 14 sites. Comparison with collections from other known sites has revealed both similarities and differences that distinguish the Polian-Sinozhat site.

Such features as the shape of pots, embossed rolls, funnel-shaped bowls with inwardly curved rims (variants Г and Д), all variants of rim edge of pots and other vessels indicate the stylistic similarity of the Polian collection to the ceramics from the site of the Bilogrudivka horizon near Staryi Liubar. Among the innovations are the following: the appearance and complete dominance of fireclay admixture in the molding compound; decoration of pots under the rim with a roll (mostly embossed) or a row of transverse holes and sometimes of both methods; the placement of the second roll considerably lower, around the middle height of the pot.

All innovations listed above are also characteristic of the horizon represented in the Mogiliany and Monastyrok 2 cemeteries. On the other hand, despite the stylistic and technological proximity of the Polian ceramics to them, some differences can be noted. Primarily, they are present on the bowls. A significant portion of the funnel-shaped bowls there consists of variants Б and В, which are absent in Polian. Also the bowls ornamented with grooves are few and even rarer ones with pearls. These differences in bowls evidently reflect the chronological changes. The comparison permits us to consider the Polian site as an early one within the horizon represented at the mentioned cemeteries and at least partially synchronous with them. The authors have before already substantiated the correspondence of this horizon to the Chornolis culture and the first half of the Zhabotyn stage using the example of the Monastyrok 2 cemetery. In this case, the Polian-Sinozhat material complex can be considered Chornolis culture and placed in the scheme of the early Iron Age of Volyn between the site of Staryi Liubar-Villa and the cemeteries of Mogiliany and Monastyrok 2.