Shypyntsi
Encyclopedia
Shypyntsi a village in Ukraine
, is located within the Kitsman Raion
(district) of the Chernivtsi
Oblast
(province), about 530 kilometres (329.3 mi) driving distance southwest of Kiev
, and about 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) northwest from the provincial capital of Chernivtsi. Shypyntsi is about 48 kilometres (29.8 mi) from the Ukrainian/Romanian border, about 64 kilometres (39.8 mi) from the Ukrainian/Moldova
n border, and about 80 kilometres (49.7 mi) from the city of Suceava
, Romania
. This village is located on the left bank of the Prut River, amid rolling hills covered with farms and forests, in the region generally known as the Dniester Hills
.
To the north of the village are the ancient ruins of a Cucuteni-Trypillian culture settlement, dating back to the 5th Millennium to early 4th Millennium BC. Archaeological excavation began at this site in the late 19th century by a team of Ukrainians: J. Shombathy, R. Kindle, F. Volkov, O. Kandyba and Tatiana Sergeyevna Passek. Houses, earthenware, and ceramic shards were discovered, and in 1938 Kandyba published a collection of images from this site of beautifully-decorated pottery.
This settlement was part of the Neolithic Cucuteni-Trypillian culture, which lasted from 5100 to 2750 BC, and which had some of the largest communities in the world at the time. The members of this society plowed their farms, raised livestock, hunted and fished, created textiles, and developed a beautiful and highly-refined style of pottery with very intricate designs. Their settlements were built in oval or circular layouts, with concentric rows of houses interconnected to form rings around the center of the community, where often a sanctuary building would be found. They left behind a large number of clay figurines, many of which are regarded as Goddess fetishes. For over 2500 years their culture flourished with no evidence left behind that would indicate they experienced warfare. However, at the beginning of the Bronze Age
their culture disappeared, the reasons for which are still debated, but possibly as a result of invaders coming from the Steppes to the east.
The artifacts taken from the Shypyntsi ruins are kept in museums in Chernivtsi and Vienna.
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, is located within the Kitsman Raion
Raion
A raion is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet countries. The term, which is from French rayon 'honeycomb, department,' describes both a type of a subnational entity and a division of a city, and is commonly translated in English as "district"...
(district) of the Chernivtsi
Chernivtsi Oblast
Chernivtsi Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine, bordering on Romania and Moldova. It has a large variety of landforms: the Carpathian Mountains and picturesque hills at the foot of the mountains gradually change to a broad partly forested plain situated between the Dniester and Prut rivers....
Oblast
Oblast
Oblast is a type of administrative division in Slavic countries, including some countries of the former Soviet Union. The word "oblast" is a loanword in English, but it is nevertheless often translated as "area", "zone", "province", or "region"...
(province), about 530 kilometres (329.3 mi) driving distance southwest of Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, and about 30 kilometres (18.6 mi) northwest from the provincial capital of Chernivtsi. Shypyntsi is about 48 kilometres (29.8 mi) from the Ukrainian/Romanian border, about 64 kilometres (39.8 mi) from the Ukrainian/Moldova
Moldova
Moldova , officially the Republic of Moldova is a landlocked state in Eastern Europe, located between Romania to the West and Ukraine to the North, East and South. It declared itself an independent state with the same boundaries as the preceding Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1991, as part...
n border, and about 80 kilometres (49.7 mi) from the city of Suceava
Suceava
Suceava is the Suceava County seat in Bukovina, Moldavia region, in north-eastern Romania. The city was the capital of the Principality of Moldavia from 1388 to 1565.-History:...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. This village is located on the left bank of the Prut River, amid rolling hills covered with farms and forests, in the region generally known as the Dniester Hills
Dniester Hills
Dniester Hills , also known as Northern Moldavian Plateau is a geographic area that comprises most of the northern Moldova, and parts of the Chernivtsi Oblast of Ukraine...
.
To the north of the village are the ancient ruins of a Cucuteni-Trypillian culture settlement, dating back to the 5th Millennium to early 4th Millennium BC. Archaeological excavation began at this site in the late 19th century by a team of Ukrainians: J. Shombathy, R. Kindle, F. Volkov, O. Kandyba and Tatiana Sergeyevna Passek. Houses, earthenware, and ceramic shards were discovered, and in 1938 Kandyba published a collection of images from this site of beautifully-decorated pottery.
This settlement was part of the Neolithic Cucuteni-Trypillian culture, which lasted from 5100 to 2750 BC, and which had some of the largest communities in the world at the time. The members of this society plowed their farms, raised livestock, hunted and fished, created textiles, and developed a beautiful and highly-refined style of pottery with very intricate designs. Their settlements were built in oval or circular layouts, with concentric rows of houses interconnected to form rings around the center of the community, where often a sanctuary building would be found. They left behind a large number of clay figurines, many of which are regarded as Goddess fetishes. For over 2500 years their culture flourished with no evidence left behind that would indicate they experienced warfare. However, at the beginning of the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
their culture disappeared, the reasons for which are still debated, but possibly as a result of invaders coming from the Steppes to the east.
The artifacts taken from the Shypyntsi ruins are kept in museums in Chernivtsi and Vienna.
See also
- Neolithic EuropeNeolithic EuropeNeolithic Europe refers to a prehistoric period in which Neolithic technology was present in Europe. This corresponds roughly to a time between 7000 BC and c. 1700 BC...
- Chalcolithic EuropeChalcolithic EuropeChalcolithic Europe, the Chalcolithic period of Prehistoric Europe lasts roughly 3500 to 1700 BC.It is the period of Megalithic culture, the appearance of the first significant economic stratification, and probably the earliest presence of Indo-European speakers.The economy of the Chalcolithic,...
- Prehistory of Southeastern EuropePrehistory of Southeastern EuropeThe prehistory of Southeastern Europe , defined roughly as the territory of the wider Balkans peninsula covers the period from the Upper Paleolithic, beginning with the presence of Homo sapiens in the area some 44,000 years ago, until the...
- History of UkraineHistory of UkraineThe territory of Ukraine was a key center of East Slavic culture in the Middle Ages, before being divided between a variety of powers. However, the history of Ukraine dates back many thousands of years. The territory has been settled continuously since at least 5000 BC, and is also a candidate site...
External links
- The Trypillia-USA-Project The Trypillian Civilization Society homepage (in English).
- The Institute of Archaeomythology The homepage for The Institute of Archaeomythology, an international organization of scholars dedicated to fostering an interdisciplinary approach to cultural research with particular emphasis on the beliefs, rituals, social structure and symbolism of ancient societies. Much of their focus covers topics that relate to the Cucuteni-Trypillian Culture (in English).
- Trypillian Culture from Ukraine A page from the UK-based group "Arattagar" about Trypillian Culture, which has many great photographs of the group's trip to the Trypillian Museum in Trypillia, Ukraine (in English).
- http://www.trypillia.com/articles/ua/ru3.shtml Трипільська культура в Україні з колекції «Платар» (Ukrainian language page about the Ukrainian Platar Collection of Trypillian Culture).
- Eneoliticul est-carpatic blog entry The Cucutenian communities in the bahlui Basin (summary), by Dr. Dumitru D. Boghian of Archaeology Department of The "Ştefan cel Mare" University of Suceava, Romania.