ABSTRACT
This chapter concentrates upon the finds of amphorae shards from various southern Rus' sites. The large body of evidence that has been gathered demonstrates that significant quantities of Byzantine wine and oil were imported to this region during the Kievan period. Many of the amphorae finds from the southern Rus' lands have been unearthed in small villages and hamlets whose location is not well known. The Prut' river flows along the southwestern frontiers of the Rus' lands. Amphorae shards have been reported at many sites along the Desna basin including a number that occur in clusters. Written sources from the Kievan period mention, in passing, the existence of princely wine cellars. This chapter focuses on how olive oil was used in Kievan Rus'. Wine was consumed in a variety of vessels in Kievan Rus': cups and ladles made of wood; silver, copper, bronze, and other vessels made of precious and semi-precious metals; bone drinking horns; and, glass vessels.
