MIDDLE BRONZE AGE BARROW BURIALS ON THE RIGHT BANK OF THE EYA RIVER IN THE EAST AZOV SEA REGION

The paper elucidates the results of archaeological excavations of destroyed barrow No. 1 of the Yuzhny VII cemetery situated on the right bank of the Eya river in the East Azov Sea region. Twelve burials were studied in the preserved part of the barrow. Seven of them date from the Mid- dle Bronze Age: two belong to the Catacomb culture, and three are presumably of the post-Cata- comb age. Six Т-shaped and one Н-shaped catacombs were studied, as well as burials Nos. 1 and 10 dating from the final of the Middle Bronze Age. The authors identify the place of the excavated complexes among the Bronze Age sites of the steppe Fore-Caucasus and provide evidence showing the influence exerted by the North Caucasian traditions on the Middle Bronze Age culture of the Eya river.