Horses cantering across a valley in southern Siberia evoke the mystery of the ancient Scythian peoples who once lived here. One of history's earliest and mightiest horse-riding cultures, the Scythians revered their mounts in life, death, and art. Most details of the Siberian Scythians' everyday life remain a mystery. Nomads and fierce warriors, they faded from the scene in the second century B.C., and their culture entered the realm of legend and artifact.
(Photograph from and text adapted from "Masters of Gold," June 2003, National Geographic magazine)
