Studded disc-shaped cheekpieces were elements of the bridle used to control chariot horses in the Pokrovsk-Abashevo and Sintashta-Petrovka cultures (late 3rd and early 2nd millennium BC) of the Pontic-Caspian steppe and forest-steppe area. A few such items were also found in the Carpathian-Danube region. The present paper presents the results of the investigations focused on three studded disc-shaped cheekpieces from the Bronze Age settlement at Sărata Monteoru (Romania). Computed tomography and digital microscopy were used to identify the raw material, as well as the technological processes and traces of use-wear. These studies indicated that the cheekpieces from Sărata Monteoru were made of elk antler, as were most of the disc-shaped items from the region between the Don and the southern Trans-Urals and made by a similar technique. The use-wear traces on our artefacts indicate by their manner of attachment to the bridle that they were used to control horses harnessed to chariots, the same as the disc-shaped cheekpieces of the Pokrovsk-Abashevo and Sintashta-Petrovka cultures. The results of this investigation suggest that the three cheekpieces from Sărata Monteoru are of Eastern origin, and they arrived in the Carpathian-Danube area very probably along with the horses who wore the bridle.

在东海-里海草原和森林草原地区的波克罗夫斯克-阿巴舍沃文化和辛塔什塔-彼得罗夫卡文化（公元前3世纪末和2世纪初），镶有钉子的圆盘形颊甲是用来控制战车马的缰绳元素。在喀尔巴阡-多瑙河地区也发现了一些此类物品。本文介绍了针对来自萨拉塔蒙泰鲁（罗马尼亚）青铜时代定居点的三件镶嵌圆盘形颊板的调查结果。使用计算机断层扫描和数字显微镜来识别原材料、工艺流程和使用磨损痕迹。这些研究表明，萨拉塔蒙泰鲁的护颊是由麋鹿鹿角制成的，来自顿河和外乌拉尔山脉南部地区的大多数圆盘状物品也是如此，并采用类似的技术制成。我们的文物上的使用痕迹表明，它们与缰绳的连接方式表明它们被用来控制战车上的马匹，与波克罗夫斯克-阿巴舍沃文化和辛塔什塔-彼得罗夫卡文化的圆盘形颊甲相同。这项调查的结果表明，来自萨拉塔蒙泰鲁的三块颊甲起源于东方，它们很可能与戴缰绳的马一起到达喀尔巴阡-多瑙河地区。