The Scythians: Nomad Warriors of the Steppe by Barry Cunliffe (PDF)

Description

Brilliant horsemen and great fighters, the Scythians were nomadic horsemen who ranged wide across the grasslands of the Asian steppe from the Altai mountains in the east to the Great Hungarian Plain in the first millennium BC. Their steppe homeland bordered on a number of sedentary states to the south – the Chinese, the Persians and the Greeks – and there were, inevitably, numerous interactions between the nomads and their neighbours. The Scythians fought thePersians on a number of occasions, in one battle killing their king and on another occasion driving the invading army of Darius the Great from the steppe.Relations with the Greeks around the shores of the Black Sea were rather different – both communities benefiting from trading with each other. This led to the development of a brilliant art style, often depicting scenes from Scythian mythology and everyday life. It is from the writings of Greeks like the historian Herodotus that we learn of Scythian life: their beliefs, their burial practices, their love of fighting, and their ambivalent attitudes to gender. It is a world that is alsobrilliantly illuminated by the rich material culture recovered from Scythian burials, from the graves of kings on the Pontic steppe, with their elaborate gold work and vividly coloured fabrics, to the frozen tombs of the Altai mountains, where all the organic material – wooden carvings, carpets, saddles andeven tattooed human bodies – is amazingly well preserved.Barry Cunliffe here marshals this vast array of evidence – both archaeological and textual – in a masterful reconstruction of the lost world of the Scythians, allowing them to emerge in all their considerable vigour and splendour for the first time in over two millennia.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐This is a highly detailed account of the Scythians, a nomadic warrior empire that flourished from 9C to 2C BCE. If you are into classical history, you see many references to them that I’ve always found mysterious. In this book, Cunliffe offers a grand synthesis of the archaeological evidence on them measured against the tidbits mentioned in classical sources. For the most part, it is very interesting and well written, only rarely bogging down in the descriptions of burials and artifacts that make academic studies such a slog.The Scythians emerged in the 9C BCE, coming somewhere from the east within the great steppes that stretch from Mongolia to Hungary. As nomad warriors, they depended heavily on their mastery of the horse as well as a particularly effective bow. They raided and foraged, accumulating sufficient wealth to produce some phenomenally beautiful artifacts that were buried with their leaders. They disappeared in their turn from attacks by eastern tribes in 2C BCE, but made their mark fighting the Persians, Greeks and Romans.Because they were an illiterate culture, the little that is written about them comes from Herodotus and a few other antique sources. Cunliffe avoids flights of fancy, sticking to the facts. While at times colorless, he at least offers a clear understanding of the steppe and how it shaped our history. Invaders came from the east in search of more fertile, warmer lands to the west, displacing and absorbing the peoples that had done so in earlier generations. I had never realized that this was a sociological type of empiric endeavor, the most famous of which was Genghis Khan.The book is lavishly furnished with maps, illustrations and photos that are great fun as well as necessary adjuncts to the text. The gold crafts are incredible to behold, a sign of a unique civilization no matter how little we can truly know of it.A curious gap in the coverage is about their language and origins. I have assumed that they were a Persic people, speaking their own dialect that only resembled that of the great Empire that they fought to the south. It remained unclear to me how they grew as a people with a coherent culture.This is a very good book for students of antiquity and archaeology. A model of clear exposition and disciplined reasoning. Most of it is a joy to read. Recommended.

⭐The book summarizes most of what is known about the Scythians. Occasionally it spends perhaps too much time discussing the layout and contents of each kurga (“burial site”), but I suppose that’s all the historians / archaeologists have to work with. The bigger issue is that the maps tend to have poor color selections which can be hard to see against the background colors, and sometimes the colors are too close to each to tell them apart.

⭐The Scythians are not the focus of most other historical works. This book is well written and wonderfully produced (beautiful illustrations and insightful diagrams and maps). The author provides in depth consideration of the history of the Scythians, and of the history of the historical study of the Scythians (thank you Tzars). All the relevant issues are dealt with; culture, general movement of peoples, terrain and its relationship to these peoples, religious beliefs, interactions with other cultures of the period, etc etc. No stone is left unturned, if there is a stone to turn that is (as in historical work sometimes the stones are just not there). I am pleased to have this book in my library.

⭐Cunliffe is my favorite author.

⭐I would have to admit that any historic book that delves into archeology tend to be dry and monotonous to read. However, this author has done what I had thought nearly improbable, he blends archeology and ancient texts to tell the story of the ancient people in a way that is captivating and not mind-numbing.

⭐It’s a beautiful book, and I can’t wait to have a look inside, sold to me in “new” condition…..however in taking it out of the shipping box, the front dust jacket is bent, and it has some dried substance on the back and greasy fingerprints on front & back dust jacket….. and now I’ve set it aside & am contemplating returning it, kind of worried & sick to my stomach. In this day & age of Covid, amazon’s suppliers & packers should be much more careful about things like that & should wash their hands! Really???? Quite bummed out because I really wanted to read this book.

⭐A well consructed and well written monograph that shines a powerful and rare illumination upon the long and largely unknown story of a region and it’s mysterious peoples. A very nice read. I knew nothing about the Scythians before I read this book.

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⭐The effortless, detailed scholarship of Cunliffe is astounding, when talking about Celts, or in this case the ScythiansHe seamlessly brings the classical texts, and archaeology together to give a vivid and, compelling picture of the Scythian people, their interaction with the rest of the world, and leaves a view that there is lots more to be done in the discovery of these pointed hatted warriors, who easily defeated the Persians 20 years before Marathon.

⭐Keeping track of modern man with all our various records is a challenge but keeping track of early nomadic communities who left relatively few remains is demanding of the most incredible archaeology. Cunnliffe’s customary excellence and honesty and detailed analysis makes this a great read of those who left no cities to admire but who were admirable nevertheless

⭐Well written, as I would expect from the author, yet presented clearly and in a manner that casual readers will understand. Full of beautiful illustrations of the artefacts of these peoples, with clear maps and diagrams.Very enjoyable and informative, I finally know why most movements in the Steppe zone are East to West.Very highly recommended for anyone interested in the Nomadic peoples and states of the Steppes and covering more that just the Scythians of the title.

⭐This book is so lavishly illustrated that it is like a tour through not just one but numerous museums, accompanied by a guide who is a leading expert in the field. The paperback is a bargain for a thing of such beauty and fascination.

⭐Superb. 5 Star.

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