Barry Cunlife - The Scythians

the scythians as others saw them
were to transform Scythian society between the eighth and third century will be discussed
later (below, Chapter 5).
The Scythians through the Eyes of the Athenians
2.8 Mounted Scythian archers, distinguished by their long
pointed hats, shown here on a Greek Black-Figured vase of the
sixth century, found in Italy and now in the Vatican Museum,
Rome.
While the citizens of the Greek colonies around the north Pontic coast were in daily
contact with Scythians and interacted with them in many ways, including sometimes
through marriage, the Greeks living in the Aegean region, far removed from the
steppe, will have been much less familiar with these northern barbarians, learning
of them from sailors who traded with the Black Sea or perhaps coming across actual
Scythians brought into the Greek world to serve as slaves.
In the fifth century, following the Persian Wars, Scythian slaves began to be
imported in some quantity and later writers like Polybius and Strabo praised their
quality. In 414/413 a Scythian slave was priced at 144 drachmas—a high price to pay.
Unlike the Greek world, Scythian society did not depend on slaves, but early contacts
with the Greeks showed that there was a real economic advantage to be had in rounding
up and selling on unwanted humanity. Once the principle had been established,
it is likely that the Scythian elites organized slave-raiding expeditions into the forest
steppe, bringing their spoils to towns like Olbia to sell to
Greek merchants. It may, indeed, have been this upsurge
in activity that led to a new phase of growth at Olbia in
the 470s. In return for slaves the Greeks offered a range
of consumer goods, among which wine was much in
demand, as the distribution of wine amphorae across
the steppe region bears witness. That a high percentage
of the amphorae came from Chios suggests a direct link
with the wine producers of that island, and it is no coincidence
that Chios soon gained a reputation as a thriving
slave market.
In fifth-century Athens the image of the Scythians
would have been familiar. More than 600 Attic Black-
Figured pots incorporate depictions of them, showing
them as aliens, differently dressed, often bearded, and
usually carrying a bow. They appear in a variety of different
contexts, suggesting that whenever a foreign
barbarian was required the Scythian stereotype would
suffice. But Scythians were also present in Athens in person,
employed by the state as an urban police force. How
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