A Vault with Stratified Burials from the Fourth Century AD in the Opushki Necropolis

The ancient Opushki necropolis is located in the sub-mountainous area of the Crimea, about 15 km east of modern Simferopol. The excavation of the necropolis uncovered many grave structures from the fourth century AD, burial vaults in particular. Vault no. 274 stood out among all others. There were eight burials in this vault: permanent collapses of vaulting divided them into three tiers by sub-layers of soil. As a result, the burials and the accompanying grave goods were stratified, so today, we have a good idea about which artifacts were put into the vault earlier and which later. The analysis of the grave goods established that the burials were made during a short period throughout the fourth century AD or Stage C3 of the European timeline. The set of the grave goods from vault no. 274 could be interpreted as typical for the material culture of the population of the sub-mountainous Crimea in the fourth century AD. The Opushki necropolis is the only barbarian funerary site in the Crimea where the dead were buried continuously from the first century BC to the fourth century AD. The necropolis was used by people who belonged to different tribes. The obvious parallels between vault no. 274 and the fourth-century AD vaults at other necropolises in the sub-mountainous Crimea demonstrate that the latest burials in the Opushki necropolis belong to the Neyzats archaeological culture.