#Exhibit of the Month

Bronze cauldrons of the Scythian time are rare in the Northern Black Sea region, especially on its western borders. Therefore, those few items found on the territory of the Republic of Moldova occupy a worthy place in the collection of the National Museum of History of Moldova (NMHM). In particular, in the archaeological exhibition, two bronze cauldrons are displayed, discovered near the village of Nicolscoe in 1988 in burial mounds no. 14 and 15. In addition, in 2020, two bronze cauldrons without any accompanying documents were found in the collection of NMHM; however, they were visually identified as coming from various excavations in the Low Dniester region, such as burial mound no. 45 near Dubăsari and burial mound no. 1 near the Răscăieții Noi village.

The object presented as the exhibit of the month is a little-known find discovered in 1979 in barrow 1 near the village of Răscăieții Noi in the Ștefan Vodă district. In addition to its outstanding size (about 10 m high), this mound is known for discovering a cast bronze finial in the Scythian animal style on its surface in 1953. However, by the beginning of excavations, the locals had damaged part of the mound and a Scythian cast bronze cauldron was found near it. The cauldron was seriously damaged by mechanical impact, as a result of which the rim was deformed, and the walls, with one preserved vertical handle, were bent inwards. Fragments in the upper part of the body and one handle have been lost. The total reconstructed height of the cauldron is 24 cm (excluding the handles), the reconstructed diameter of the hemispherical cauldron is 30 cm, and the weight is 6.5 kg. In 2020, data on the chemical composition of the bronze cauldron alloy were obtained, revealing that it was cast from an alloy of almost 95 per cent copper. Unfortunately, due to the loss of information on the context of the discovery of the cauldron at Răscăieții Noi, it is impossible to link its discovery with one or another Scythian burial of the barrow. Moreover, the grave goods of other Scythian burials of Barrow 1 do not allow them to date below the 4th century BC. However, the cauldron with vertical handles from Răscăieții Noi most likely belongs earlier. This may be indicated by a bronze finial from the first half of the 5th century BC, which was found on this barrow in 1953. In addition, burial 7 from the nearest excavated barrow 2 at Răscăieții Noi, containing a plaque depicting a rolled predator (a copy of which is also on display at the NMHM), belongs to the mid- 5th century BC. Thus, there is a high probability that the cauldron from Barrow 1 at Răscăieții Noi is associated with the late Middle Scythian period or the mid-5th century BC.

Scythian bronze cauldrons in the west area are concentrated in three main regions: Bukovina-Podolia, the Lower Danube, and the Lower Dniester. Some Scythian cauldrons have no reliable archaeological context. Nevertheless, in combination with the same "stray" finds like the Scythian statues, the finds of Scythian cauldrons mark the Scythian presence, most likely not earlier than the late 6th century or even the turn of the 6th-5th centuries BC. The cauldrons first appeared in Bukovina, where they have been known since the middle of the 7th century BC. Bronze cauldrons (with their carriers) entered the steppe region 150-200 years later, and the "military" burials that appeared in the western steppe regions were no earlier than the middle of the 5th century BC. Most burials with cauldrons (and, apparently, the stray finds) are dated back to the second half of the 5th century BC. Then, in the early 4th century BC, their quantity was reduced, and after the first quarter of the 4th century BC, they completely disappeared from the cultural practice of the population of the steppes of the North-Western Black Sea region.

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The European Night of Museums 2022

„The light gives splendor to the night…” May 14, 2022

On Saturday, May 14, 2022, from 18:00 to 23:00, at the National Museum of History of Moldova, one of the most important events in the life of the world museum community took place - the European Night of Museums, which this year was held under the motto "The light gives splendor to the night...". This is the 18th edition of the event initiated by the French Ministry of Culture, which is currently under the patronage of UNESCO, the Council of Europe and the International Council of Museums (ICOM).

The National Museum of the History of Moldova, in cooperation with our partners, has prepared a rich and full of surprises program for visitors. The evening began with a choreographic show "Dancing on the Edge of Time" performed by students of the Faculty of Choreographic Art of the Academy of Music, Theater and Fine Arts, coordinated by Snejana Apostol. During the evening, three more dance shows were presented in different rooms of the museum, which were meant to invite visitors to learn history through dance, so that "through the dance the history becomes visible". That night, the Blue Room of the museum became the temple of the "Music for Peace". The divine voices of the girls from the "Cantabile" choir of the Academy of Economic Studies of Moldova, under the direction of Elena Marian, accompanist Vitalie Mosiiciuc, sounded in a wonderful concert of choral music.

A balm for the soul was the concert of classical music "Discover Classical Music in the Museum" performed by the members of the musical and literary salon "Vine and Lyra". Extraordinary voices of soloists Nicolae Busuioc, People's Artist of the Republic of Moldova; Angela Apti, Honored Artist of the Republic of Moldova, soloist of the Maria Bieșu National Opera and Ballet Theatre; Alexei Digore, soloist of the Maria Bieșu National Opera and Ballet Theatre; Tatiana Gavrilița, laureate of republican and international vocal competitions, brought light, emotions and grandiose resonance to this magical evening at the museum.

The museum courtyard was the place where visitors enjoyed the screening of the film "From the museum's collections", sat on the grass, admired the exhibits and the reconstruction of the Cucuteni culture dwelling, took pictures against the backdrop of the beautifully lit museum building.

During the evening, Cărturești in the Museum offered a series of authors' recitals, with the title "Literary Ambiences", where they highlighted the museum's heritage and perpetuated the light through decorations and books.

At the same time, Tucano Coffee Moldova prepared an extremely interesting quest for history lovers and offered many surprises and prizes.

The evening culminated with the parade of torchbearers, a unique show of medieval fighting, organized by the Ensifer Historical Club under the direction of Mikhail Tereshchenko, and the fire show by the Kairos Club under the direction of Elena Trukhina.

The Night of Museums is over, but the emotions are still there! We are very glad that on the Night of Museums we saw in our rooms a huge number of beautiful and friendly people, lovers of history and beauty, who opened their souls to this event.

We sincerely thank the staff of the National Museum of History of Moldova, who was involved in the event, ensuring its smooth running, as well as our guests and partners.

Event Partners: Cărturești in the Museum; 513; Cantabile Youth Choir of the Academy of Economic Studies of Moldova; Faculty of Choreographic Art of the Academy of Music, Theater and Fine Arts; Vine and Lyra Musical and Literary Salon, Ensifer Historical Club; Kairos Club.

Media Partners: Agora.md; ZUGO; diez.md; TV Moldova1.