The Scythians were a large group of loosely connected people who lived in Russia, and also further south around the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. By 600 BC, they took over some of the land to their south in modern Turkey for a while. They were remarkable for their fighting ability and civilization. They developed a class of wealthy aristocrats, who left elaborate graves filled with richly worked articles of gold and other precious materials. The Scythians worked in a wide variety of materials, including wood, leather, bone, appliqué felts, bronze, iron, silver, gold, and electrum.
The Scythians were feared and admired for their prowess in war and, in particular, for their horsemanship. They were among the earliest people to master the art of riding, and their mobility astonished their neighbours.
The Cimmerians were a nomadic tribe, living in Asia Minor in the seventh century BC. A few of them moved into the Crimea where they lingered on long enough to give that Black Sea peninsula its name. Most of them however moved south to the Middle East. The Cimmerians are credited with being the people who first domesticated the horse as symbols of wealth and status. However, they used it as a draft animal for about 500 years before they learned to ride it, going into battle on war chariots drawn by horses.
