What's new Kerch archaeologists have found. New wave of archaeological excavations in Kerch

In May - June 2017, the Crimean new building archaeological expedition of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (head of the expedition - Doctor of Historical Sciences S.Yu. Vnukov) excavated the Hospitalny mound in the city of Kerch (Fig. 1, 2). The research was carried out within the framework of a project for the preservation of historical heritage monuments falling into the construction zone. The excavation of the mound was supervised by a researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ph.D. I.V. Rukavishnikov, reports the press service of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The hospital mound is located in the southeastern part of Kerch in the Solnechny microdistrict, east of the Heroes of Stalingrad highway. It is named after a former military hospital located nearby. Hospital is the largest in the chain of mounds on the central rock ridge Yuz-Oba (One Hundred Hills - Tatar) in Kerch. The height of its embankment (Fig. 1) was more than 7 m, the diameter was 70 m, the total area of the monument was approx. 13,700 sq. m. The central stratigraphic profile of the mound showed a complex structure of its embankment and several periods of its formation. The embankment was erected in several stages, which are associated with various burial structures of the mound. In addition, in all stratigraphic sections, traces of numerous plundering excavations and trenches of different times that damaged the mound were recorded. Read: Research has shown that the earliest are two burials in stone boxes (Fig. 4, right) with slab ceilings, located side by side at the same level along the north-south line. One of the boxes contained a single intact burial, the other was completely looted in antiquity, apparently twice. In an intact burial (Fig. 5), a poorly preserved human skeleton was found in a wooden sarcophagus (Fig. 8), decorated with plaster ornamental overlays. The deceased was accompanied by numerous items related to sports. These are more than 10 alabastres - special vessels for oil, which was used in training and competitions, a shearing blade - a sickle-shaped scraper, used to clean the athlete's body from oil, sweat and dirt, as well as for massage after the competition. There were also found 150 astragalus dice. Particularly noteworthy is the painted red-figure jug for wine - pelika (Fig. 9), the so-called Kerch style. Judging by these findings, in the 2nd half of the 4th century. BC. a young male athlete was buried here. Above these two early burials, the first, comparatively small mound was built. On it, to the south and north of the burials, 2 stone eschara altars were erected (Fig. 7). Bonfires and pits with remnants of funeral feasts performed in memory of the dead were also discovered not far from them. They contained numerous fragments of painted red-figure vessels of the 4th century. BC. and other ceramics. Among them are fragments of a red-figure crater (a vessel for mixing wine with water) with images of maenads and satyrs. Read: After some time, apparently at the end of the 4th century. before. AD, a grandiose stone tomb was added to the early embankment (Fig. 4), placed on an ancient day surface. It was blocked by an additional embankment. The tomb is an antique crypt with a long dromos corridor, which led to a rectangular burial chamber measuring 5.20 x 4.80 m with a stepped ceiling. The length of the dromos is about 20 m; it expands towards the entrance. The entrance to the dromos apparently came out on the surface of a new embankment and was shaped like a stepped portal. It was laid with a torn stone (Fig. 3). The inner walls of the cell and the dromos corridor were covered with thin smoothed plaster. The later, higher mound of the kurgan, which overlapped the crypt, was erected in several stages as the structure was being built. This made it easier to lay the upper rows of masonry walls and floors. Each level of the embankment was separated from the overlying layer by a layer of stone chips formed during the laying of the next row of the tomb's masonry. In some places, the foot of the new embankment was reinforced with a special roller made of limestone chips. Numerous fragments of container and table vessels of the 4th – 3rd centuries were found in the embankment. BC. To this crypt, apparently, belongs one more memorial altar-eskhara, opened in the western field of the late embankment. Later, the crypt was repeatedly robbed, it was also dismantled into stone. As a result, it was very badly destroyed. Nevertheless, some architectural details of the rich decoration of the tomb have survived: a fragment of a frieze decorated with ovs, a pilaster capital, an architectural plaster decoration covered with blue paint. Fragments of pottery dating from the 4th century BC were also found in the filling. BC. and the middle ages. In the western part of the embankment, two later burials in the sidewalls, dating to the turn of the era, were also discovered. For some time, the destructible crypt stood open. One of these periods includes the most interesting schematic drawings (Fig. 6), applied to the plaster with ocher and soot, apparently in the 3rd-5th centuries. AD Shown are battle scenes, ships, solar symbols, etc. The style of the images resembles those in the crypt of the Sabazids in Kerch. Restorers of the State Hermitage and the Kerch Museum-Reserve took part in the work on their conservation. Read: The remains of a temporary dwelling with a hearth, arranged in an already destroyed dromos, date from the Middle Ages. The nearby small settlement "Hospital" is connected with the mound. There is reason to believe that the builders of this mound lived there. Thus, the Hospital mound is a complex burial complex of different times, the main burials in which were made in the 2nd half of the 4th century. BC. The destroyed crypt opened in it, apparently, was not inferior to the best examples of Hellenistic Bosporan burial architecture and contained the burial of a representative of the top of the local society. Also of great interest are the later drawings on the walls of the crypt. Excavations of mounds of this size have not been carried out in Crimea for over 120 years. For the first time, they were carried out in a comprehensive manner, at a modern scientific level. In addition to archaeologists, specialists - anthropologists, paleozoologists, palynologists, restorers and others - took part in the work. They received important information about the funeral rite of representatives of the Bosporan nobility, the burial structures of the Bosporus and the technique of their construction, about the material culture of the Bosporan kingdom in the Hellenistic era, in Roman and medieval times.

In the village of Podmayachnoye in the area of Golubina Bay, excavations of the ancient settlement of Gleyki-2 continue. This expedition was already carried out last year. The expedition is led by Professor, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Head of the Department of Primitive Traditional Society of the Institute of Archeology of Crimea, Russian Academy of Sciences, Alexander Evgenievich KISLOGO. Gleyki-2 is one of the oldest settlements in Crimea. During the excavations, many artifacts were discovered there. So, for example, back in 2016, a burial of a young warrior with a large grater on his shoulder was discovered in the settlement, and last year an archaeologist managed to find elements of three boats of different models. Read: “The uniqueness of this settlement is that we in Crimea do not know such a different culture. Here is a set of artifacts that make up the cultural fund. These are ceramics, products and from such a material cultural layer, we do not know. Nowhere else, in any settlement, we do not know such ceramics with such a culture, with such a form in Crimea, ”Alexander Evgenievich said in an interview. This year, the expedition is trying to find even more structures that may have remained from ancient times.

Archaeological expedition near Kerch delights researchers with new finds

Archaeologists received an invaluable gift during the construction of the Crimean bridge. On the site from the side of Kerch, a whole ancient village was discovered. According to scientists, the settlement dates back to the end of the 5th century BC.

While explorers delve into the mysteries the ancient world, builders adjust the project. The railway approach will be relocated to preserve the unique estate. This will not affect the deadline for delivery.

Literally across the street from modern residential buildings - outskirts the ancient world... The estate of the end of the 5th century BC - the time when the Bosporan kings ruled on this territory and worshiped the ancient Greek gods.

The estate was, as it were, separated from the outside world. The windows of all the buildings - there were 40 of them - overlooked only the inner cobbled courtyards. Judging by the area - about five thousand square meters, aristocrats lived here. This is evidenced by the found fragments of the tiles, luxurious for that time, and whole placers of coins with relief minting. Near the tables on which the grapes were pressed, scientists found Aegean amphorae and well-preserved pottery - black-lacquered wine goblets, presumably brought from Attica.

“Before us is a black-gloss saucer, almost intact, the rim is slightly chipped off. Imported tableware. At the bottom of this saucer there is a name or a wish that has been scratched, ”says Alexander Bonin, a specialist at the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

It was here, on the way to the Crimean bridge, that a new railway was supposed to pass according to the project, a section of 18 kilometers long. The ancient monument was stumbled upon by archaeologists who were conducting research before construction. Now the track will be moved - the rails will go around the estate. The developers assure the deadline that this will not affect. Trains on the Crimean Bridge will be launched on time - in December next year. And here scientists will continue excavations - you need to get to the lower layer in order to find out who was the first owner.

“I don't know any analogies either in Ukraine or in Russia. On the territory of the entire Black Sea region, no one has dug anything like this in the rural area. This is the first time this farmstead has such an area, such complexity of planning and such preservation. Don't be construction railroad, we would never have received such opportunities to work on such an area, at such a pace, with so many people, ”said Alexander Maslennikov, head of the field research department of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

It is very rare, scientists say, - the artifacts have been preserved in almost the same condition in which they were left by their owners. Archaeologists especially note the skill of the architects.

“The homestead is located on a slope. Naturally, during the rains, there was a powerful drain here, and the inhabitants of this estate built a rather complex and branched drainage system. We haven’t come across such a system yet, ”said Sergei Vnukov, a leading researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

But various antiquities during the construction of the Crimean Bridge are found regularly - in two years, more than one hundred thousand valuable exhibits have already been transferred to museums.

Archaeological excavations and finds captured by Kerch photographers in late XIX- the beginning of the XX centuries.

Excavation site in the south-west of the Panticapaeum settlement, survey date: 1899 - 1910.

A construction complex discovered by excavations of the director of the Kerch Museum Karl Evgenievich Dumberg in 1899. The photo shows three open rooms and a door - the remains of the building's basement floor.

Kerch antiquities, discovered in 1896 and 1897 in the exposition of the exhibition at the Imperial Archaeological Commission, organized in the spring of 1898. Date of shooting: 1896 - 1899.

Terracotta found in 1896 on Mount Mithridates during the excavations of Panticapaeum Date of photography: 1896 - 1899.

The picture shows four terracottas, two of which represent the masks of Satyr, the protome of Demeter and a figurine of a seated girl with a goose and a bunch of grapes. The terracottas were sent to St. Petersburg.

Earthenware: pixida, one-handed jug, lecythian and scyphos. Date taken: 1898 - 1899.

Discovered on February 24, 1898 in Tomb 2, Section IV of the Artemis Excavation on Mount Mithridates.

Colored plaster found in 1896 on Mithridates Mountain, date of photography: 1896 - 1899.

Fragment of a tombstone made of soft limestone, 4th century. BC Date taken: 1873.

The gravestone of the sons of Dzopir was found in a mound on the northern side of Mount Mithridates in 1873. There is a 4-line inscription on the slab. In addition, the snapshot serves as an inventory card - it contains short description, passport data.

Painted Bosporan crypt with two sarcophagi on low supports of soft limestone Date of photography: October 2, 1902 - December 31, 1905.

The crypt was opened by Vladislav Vyacheslavovich Shkorpil on October 2, 1902, behind the railway, to the left of the Katerlessky bridge. On the walls of the crypt, here and there, remains of fresco painting in the form of quadrangles and circles, painted with dark brown and green paints, have been preserved. The entrance to the crypt was closed from the inside with a limestone slab. The slab was covered with white plaster, in the middle there was an image of the head of Medusa the Gorgon with wings on her head and snakes under her chin.

Headstone in situ. Date taken: 1911.

The moment the gravestone was discovered in the wall of a high stone "booth" on Predtechenskaya Square and at the Fish Market, 1911. The slab was inserted into the wall of a building under construction in the 1840s. The tombstone of white marble, broken into two parts, was 4.2 meters high. At the top, it was decorated with two relief acroteria and a pediment. In the triangle there is a bust of a figure with raised arms, under the pediment there are two reliefs: in the upper one there are two male figures standing next to each other; and in the lower one - a rider on horseback, with a spear in his right hand.

Headstone. Date of photography: 1911-1915.

Discovered in the central part of Kerch under the pavement of Predtechenskaya square in 1911. There are three figures on the slab: in the center is the bearded god Sabazy with a mirror (?), A wriggling snake rises from the heel of the god, a female figure on the right, Hermes on the left. The photographs show two images of the relief depicting Sabaziy - before and after restoration.

Tombstone from marble IV century. n. Date of shooting: 1900-1910th.

Headstone with an inscription in 21 lines. Almost the entire front side of the tombstone is occupied by an inscription carved along thin lines. Translation of the inscription: “To God Almighty, merciful, vow. Aurelius Valerius Sog, the son of Olympus, the chief of Feodosia, the famous Augustus, honored by Diocletian and Maximian, also called Olympian in the province, traveled a lot, absent for 16 years and stayed in many sorrows, on a vow he built a prayer house from the foundation in 603. " For more than forty years the slab served as the threshold of a house in the courtyard of the Kerch bourgeois woman P. Krasheninnikova.

Clay cart (children's toy) Date of photography: June 6, 1903 - December 31, 1905.

A carriage on four wheels made of dark red clay, inside which there was a set of sheep astragals (21 copies). The toy was found by Vladislav Vyacheslavovich Shkorpil on June 6, 1903 in a devastated children's tomb on Glinishche, not far from the local prison and the city slaughterhouse. Probably, the carriage and astragalus, as especially favorite toys of the child, were put in the coffin by his relatives. The toy is kept in the funds of the Russian State Hermitage Museum and is exhibited at an exhibition dedicated to the history of the Bosporus.

The marble lion at the Lion Barrow excavation date: 1894 - 1900.

The excavation was opened in 1894 by the director of the Kerch Museum, Karl Evgenievich Dumberg, in the garden of Lieutenant Colonel Voloshkevich. The garden is located at the bottom of the northern slope of Mount Mithridates. The statue occupies a central place in the contemporary exhibition on the history of the Bosporus kingdom at the Russian State Hermitage Museum.

Excavation of Zelensky Kurgan on Taman Peninsula, held under the leadership of the director of the Kerch Museum Vladislav Shkorpil in 1912 Date of shooting: 1912.

Two pithos with lids in an excavation pit in 1898 Date of photography: 1898.

The digger is on the right.

August is the traditional time for summing up the results of the work of archaeological expeditions. Special attention in last years chained to excavations in the Crimea. Large-scale infrastructure projects are being implemented on the peninsula. Archaeological research always precedes the construction of new roads, the construction of power plants, and the reconstruction of airports. Scientists themselves diligently avoid loud statements, but it is already clear that this year will be one of the most "fruitful". Portal site found out what riddles ancient Crimea the specialists managed to find out.

Cetotherium on land

Taurus, Cimmerians, Goths, Greeks, Romans, Huns - many peoples have left their mark on the history of Crimea. However, one of the largest finds belongs to the era when man had not yet appeared on Earth. On the Kerch Peninsula, researchers discovered the spinal column and ribs of an ancient whale that had lain in geological layers for about 10 million years. The fossils were found at a depth of only 1 m.According to scientists, the skeleton belongs to Cetotherium, a marine mammal that could reach a length of 30 m.

The found individual grew up to 5 m. She lived in the Sarmatian Sea, which occupied, among other things, the territory of the modern Kerch Peninsula. Over time, where there was a sea, land was formed. An uplift of the geological layers took place, and the skeleton of the whale ended up on a hill, although earlier it lay at the bottom.

According to the leading methodologist of the Zoological Museum of the Tauride Academy of the KFU named after IN AND. Vernadsky Dmitry Startsev, the main value is that an articulated skeleton was found. “The cranial bones are not preserved, but the vertebral column is fully represented - from the thoracic region to the caudal. All fragments belong to one instance. The structure of the bone tissue is clearly visible, ”he said. Startsev added that the find would allow obtaining useful information about the structure of the ancient organism.

Scythian gold

In the vicinity of Sevastopol, scientists were in for a different success. An ancient necropolis with Scythian burials of the 2nd-4th centuries AD was discovered here. For many centuries, burial grounds in Crimea were plundered during wars and invasions, recently it was done by "black archaeologists", therefore, the intactness of the burial place amazed scientists.

Thousands of artifacts have been found in the burials. Many earrings, necklaces, bracelets, glass vessels, buckles, and ceramics were found in early burials. In the later ones - many weapons, including swords, polearms, and shield fragments. From one of the graves, archaeologists took out an ax.

Search engines found vessels near the skulls. In some of them, the remains of the funeral food have been preserved. Fragments of a heavily corroded dagger and the remains of a belt set in the form of a bronze buckle with a bent tongue were also found. Among the finds, a gold thread (thread for beads) and a teardrop-shaped pendant with a red insert and beaded edging stand out. Noteworthy is the ring with a cut out insert-signet of carnelian.

“We have rich grave goods. On the chest of one of the remains there is a large bow fibula (fastener for clothes), on the left hand there is a bronze bracelet, in the area of the right hand we see a crushed but superbly made glass vessel, "said Alexei Sviridov, a researcher at the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Khazar massacre

On the Kerch Peninsula, scientists were waiting for a more terrible find. At the excavations of the Kyz-Aul necropolis, a mass grave of people from the times of the Khazar Kaganate was discovered. The remains were literally piled up. Some of them were lying in unnatural positions. For example, one of the deceased seemed to be pressing his hands to his head. The search engines who cleaned his skeleton got the impression that the unfortunate man was simply buried alive and he tried to cover his face before dying. In total, more than 10 such skeletons were found in a small area of the excavation.

Development Director of the Archeology Foundation Oleg Markov noted that the skulls are badly damaged and it is impossible to understand whether they had any lifetime injuries or not - this will be dealt with by anthropologists. Perhaps they were the victims of a massacre or an epidemic. So far, it is only clear that death occurred at the same time and did not stand on ceremony with the bodies.

“They just dumped it in one heap. At the same time, they did not put any accompanying grave goods at all. Excavations at the Kyz-Aul necropolis continue, and scientists still hope to solve this terrible problem, "Markov emphasized.

"Flounder" at the bottom

However, not only monuments of distant antiquity are of interest. The location of the pre-revolutionary submarine "Kambala" has been established off the coast of Sevastopol. She sank during the exercises of the Black Sea squadron on May 29, 1909. After practicing a night attack at the entrance to the South Bay of Sevastopol, the submarine collided with the battleship Rostislav. As a result of the disaster, it fell apart in two and sank at a depth of more than 60 m. Three officers and 17 sailors were killed.

“A joint expedition of the Russian Geographical Society, the Russian Sevastopol State University and the Nakhimov Higher Naval School localized the place of the sinking of the Russian submarine“ Kambala ”. The cadets of the Nakhimov school figured out this place. And we established this place with the help of a side sonar, as it was lost over the years, ”said Viktor Lebedinsky, a senior researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies.

Before the tragedy, the submarine was part of the Separate Submarine Division of the Black Sea Fleet, which consisted of five submarines: two American-built - "Sudak" and "Losos" - and three German - "Karp", "Karas" and "Flounder".

An elderly German stood for a long time on the shore

Another marine find is a German bomber that sank off Cape Tarkhankut during the Great Patriotic War. Director for scientific work of the Black Sea Center for Underwater Research Viktor Vakhoneev said that the researchers learned about the landing of the aircraft from local residents... They argued that in the 90s an elderly German came to the cape, who stood for a long time on the shore and looked out to sea. Presumably, he was the pilot of this plane.

“We made a reconnaissance expedition and found it perfectly intact at a depth of 44 m. All elements, standard armament, cockpit are visible, ”Vakhoneev said. The exact type of bomber has not been identified, but it is believed to be Heinkel. They do not plan to lift the find because of the great depth; they are going to equip a new expedition to the plane in order to study it thoroughly.

Our era of archeology

Archaeologists say that a search boom began in Crimea after reunification with Russia. Yes, during the Soviet period, research was carried out intensively, but after the collapse of the USSR and Ukraine's independence, funding problems arose. The second difficulty was the capacity of archaeologists. In 2010, in Ukraine, about 70% of representatives of this profession have reached retirement age.

After 2014, large infrastructure projects began to be implemented: energy, gas, transport. It took construction and land work, which was preceded by archaeological research. As a result, excavations are being carried out throughout the entire territory of the peninsula from Kerch to Sevastopol.

In the Ukrainian Crimea, 20-40 open sheets (permits for excavation) were issued per year. In 2017, the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation issued 136 sheets. Each expedition has between 50 and 100 people. We can say with confidence that new discoveries will occur in the near future.