Previously, Asiatic horsemen, as a generalization of Scythic and Achaemenid horsemen fought with their spears mainly overhand through a downward thrust, or in cases pertaining to smaller "palta"-type cornel-wood spears, these could have been used single-handed in a rather free-form manner. The introduction of a long fighting lance, the xyston, outside of the Macedonian armies, proliferated first during a reform of Darius III Codomannus, and later spread into the steppen equestrian culture; it implies the introduction of a fighting weapon for shock tactics, not the way to which it is applied (I personally am not aware of any Graeco-Macedonian cavalry wielding a xyston in the manner of later Parthian or Sarmatian cavalry; typically the Graeco-Macedonian usage rather evokes the imagery of the Kinch tomb) the two-handed grip as a tactical application is a completely independent concept, more associated with the kontos/contus, out of which, the artifact from Koi-Krylgan-Kala, at best, appears to be an anomaly, however with its early dating, the mention of introduced Macedonian-type lances becomes crucial. So, in order to correctly interpret the description, we must distinguish from the introduced Macedonian xyston, and its manner of application. Paraphernalia does not equal tactics.
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