Barry Cunlife - The Scythians

of gods, beliefs, and art
10.7 Gold plaque of a winged goddess from an unknown location in Ukraine.
to the late seventh century. The mirror is divided equally into eight segments with
a large rosette in the centre, the arrangement probably reflecting a concept of the
world or universe. In one of the panels the winged goddess stands holding a panther
in each hand while the other seven panels display animals, creatures half man and
half beast, and fantastic demons. The symbolism is clear: the goddess in this composition
is also the Mistress of the Beasts. While the representation has close similarities
to depictions of Artemis, Aphrodite is also often associated with animals and is
sometimes referred to as winged. In all probability, therefore, the winged deity on the
Kelermes mirror is a manifestation of Argimpasa.
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