“He was convinced of being right...”

The Day learned this news from director of Nikopol Local History Museum Oleksandr Kushniruk. In this way, he said, the city wanted to commemorate the famous Ukrainian archeologist who had found the famous Scythian gold pectoral during the excavation of the Tovsta Mohyla mound. The museum’s employees marked the 80th anniversary of Mozolevsky on February 4 by laying flowers on the stone stele honoring archeologist which stands outside the local history museum. “This memorial was erected at one time by students and admirers of Mozolevsky in the base camp of the Ukrainian SSR’s Institute of Archaeology’s expedition in the village of Sholokhove, Nikopol raion. This monument, together with a collection of stone sculptures collected by the expedition, was donated to our museum for better preservation last year,” Kushniruk told us.

Nikopol authorities resolved to mark the anniversary of Mozolevsky with a number of commemorative events to be held this year. “We unveiled the archeology room which has a large part of its exhibits devoted to the Mozolevsky expedition, archeological excavations of the Tovsta Mohyla mound and the Scythian gold found there, including the gold pectoral. This discovery, made on June 21, 1971, was one of the most significant events in the history of Ukrainian archeology,” Kushniruk said. The management of the museum asked the city government of Nikopol to rename Chubaria Street to Mozolevskoho Street. The mayor’s office considered it and came out in favor of the proposal, which will be adopted at a session of the city council before February 21. In addition, as part of the anniversary celebrations, a memorial plaque dedicated to Mozolevsky will be installed on Nikopol Local History Museum’s wall, while the local press will publish articles informing residents of Nikopol about the sensational archeological discovery which has become known worldwide. Commemorative publications about Mozolevsky will also appear on the official website of Dnipropetrovsk National History Museum, its director Nadia Kapustina reported. “Our museum has a permanent exhibition with a copy of the gold pectoral dedicated to Mozolevsky’s discovery,” she reminded.

His colleagues, too, bear in mind the anniversary of the famous archeologist. “I knew Mozolevsky well and devoted a number of publications to him, including a mention in my memoirs,” Professor of Dnipropetrovsk National University, Doctor of Sciences in History Iryna Kovaliova told us. “No doubt, he was a favorite child of fortune, and it was not his first discovery. He was convinced of being right, worked hard and diligently, so the discovery of the Scythian gold pectoral did not come as a random success or accident. As a result, we have got a remarkable example of ancient toreutics, which even though it was made to order, reflected the outlook of the Scythian society, its mythology. Three elements connected in the shape of a crescent testify to it. These are the pastoralist way of life led by Scythians and their leaders, the cult of fertility, and dodder flowers that symbolize death and life’s revival. This is a very interesting artwork which has been much researched,” Professor Kovaliova said.