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ISSN 2223-165X
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Izvestiya SOIGSI |
ContactsAddress: Pr. Mira, 10, Vladikavkaz,
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DOI: 10.46698/VNC.2023.89.50.009 THE CULT COMPLEX MĪĞDÆW IN THE MATERIALS OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ETHNOGRAPHIC EXPEDITION OF E.G. PCHELINA IN 1938
Darchiev, Anzor V.
Izvestia SOIGSI. 2023. IIS 50 (89).
Abstract:
The proposed publication contains materials of the archaeological and ethnographic expedition that Evgenia Georgievna Pchelina undertook in 1938 to study the Mīğdæw religious complex located in the Ursdon Gorge of North Ossetia. The materials have never been published before, so it is urgent for them to be introduced into the scientific community. Having defined the still existing buildings of the main sanctuaries of the complex Mīğdæw dzuar and Mīğdæw Mady Mairæmy dzuar as small Christian temples, Pchelina started with archaeological excavations, hoping to discover traces of ancient pre-Christian sanctuaries. Due to local opposition, the excavations had to be discontinued and were fruitless. The items discovered during the excavations are recorded in an inventory and represent a set of sacrificial offerings typical of Ossetian sanctuaries. The collection of ethnographic and folklore materials was more successful. Pchelina’s field notes clarify the already cited information about the rites of twinning and reconciliation of nemeses at Mīğdæw dzuar. Pchelina recorded for the first time the legend about the origin of the sanctuary of Mīğdæw dzuar. A brief but very valuable account of the origin of the sanctuary of Æmbælæggajy kuvændon (Tsuanonty kuvændon) reveals its connection with the hunting cult and mythology. Pchelina states that in the women’s sanctuary, Mīğdæw Mady Mairæmy dzuar, a highly unusual rite of “initiation into puberty”, not known to other sources, was performed up until late 19th century. The ritual was conducted with equal participation of boys and girls, which allows us to make a new assessment of the degree of gender differentiation in the sacral sphere of traditional Ossetian society. The visual materials were extracted from the scientific archives of Vladikavkaz and St. Petersburg. Photographs of a women’s dance recorded in the Dagom village of the Ursdon Gorge are identical to the ritual dance performed during a festival at the sanctuary of Mīğdæw Mady Mairæmy dzuar and deserve special attention. The presented materials should contribute to a deeper study of traditional religious and mythological beliefs of the Ossetians.
Keywords: E.G. Pchelina, Ursdon gorge, Mīğdæw, sanctuary of hunters, cult of hunters and warriors, hunting myth, rite of passage, Dzugaevs, Ambalovs.
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 For citation:: Darchiev, A,V. The cult complex Mīğdæw in the materials of the archaeological and ethnographic expedition of E.G. Pchelina in 1938 // Izvestiya SOIGSI. 2023. Iss. 50 (89). Pp. 129-166. (in Russian). DOI 10.46698/VNC.2023.89.50.009 ← Contents of issue |
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