MOSCOW, April 21 Two years have passed since divers and archaeologists discovered a unique monument in the Oryol region — the site of the Battle of Judgment in 1555, in which Russian soldiers repulsed the army of the Crimean Khan Devlet Giray. The first season of excavations brought scientists about 2.8 thousand finds — coins, arrowheads, bullets and other artifacts from the middle of the 16th century. What has been done by scientists since then? What kind of work are they doing today?
Battlefield and surroundings
Archaeologists continue to conduct reconnaissance, as well as explore previously known sites in search of finds. For example, they found fragments of sabers, a purse with coins from the time of Ivan the Terrible, and much more. They also began to study hard-to-reach places.
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“Last year, using aerial laser photography, we surveyed the site of the battle to find objects associated with the Russian camp. Then we discovered some kind of defensive structure — a small ditch with an embankment. Apparently, it was created quite quickly and by outdated methods. Since the structure is located almost at the epicenter of the battle, this allows us to assume that it could refer to the battle itself,» said Oleg Radyush, a researcher at the Archeology Department of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
For two years of work, the area of distribution of finds has expanded. Today it is quite significant, it includes a ravine with a length of more than a kilometer and a large area on the field. Researchers are studying these finds and trying to reconstruct different parts of the battle. At the same time, they are looking for other places of battles of the Battle of Judgment, because, in their opinion, the battles were not in one place.
“Now we are starting to explore the points of possible battles, which are at a considerable distance, 10-15 km from the battle site opened in 2021. For this we will need to carry out a significant amount of work, it will take years. If the case is crowned with success, then we will have a scientifically reconstructed picture of the battle, confirmed by archaeological facts,» the scientist explained. ratio=»0.5625″ data-crop-width=»600″ data-crop-height=»338″ data-source-sid=»rian_photo» class=»» />
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So far, the researchers believe that the main shooting battle of Russian and Horde warriors with the massive use of weapons took place in the beam. So far, only a few bullets have been found on the field. This suggests that there was either hand-to-hand combat or, rather, cavalry combat with the involvement of a small number of shooters from firearms.
This perception of the battle coincides with its description in historical sources, where it is said that the firearms battle took place in the area of the notch and the Russian camp, which stood in the log.
Interpretation of the finds
Researchers study all iron finds, but those that are not related to the battle will be screened out, Oleg Radyush noted.
“Still, the Muravsky Way was a very intensive land route until the 16th century and later. So, next to the battlefield, we found a small parking lot, a house of the 17th-18th centuries. «There was always some life in these places. We have finds even from the end of the 4th-5th centuries, that is, the era of the Great Migration. At that time, arrows flew there, and people lost their clasps … It is important for us to filter out this background, which is also interesting , but does not apply to the battle,» he explained.
Also, archaeologists, according to him, have not yet found an answer to the question of where exactly the Russian soldiers «took the Tatar kosh» — they captured about 60 thousand horses and camels. There is an assumption that this did not take place near Livny, as historians previously thought, but closer to the place of the battle.
«We will try to find traces of this battle, if they, of course, remain. Unfortunately, not always battles leave archaeological traces,» the scientist said.
Plans for the new archaeological season
In 2023, archaeologists will continue field research. In the summer, students of the Faculty of History of the Oryol University will have internships on the expedition. They will help researchers work out the parts of the field where the finds are still preserved.
“Our task is to find as many things as possible so as not to leave them to the robbers, but to save them for scientific purposes. We will continue work on the museumification of the finds. museum, a new memorial has been introduced, and so on,» said Oleg Radyush.
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He added that one of the main goals of researchers is to search for new battlefields , which they do not yet know about, but which they expect to find. They will also search for the burial places of fallen soldiers. The battle was great, several thousand people died in it, and even if some of the bodies of the dead were taken away, the other part, according to archaeologists, should have remained.
«Of course, anthropological studies. They would help us learn a lot, see, maybe even restore the portraits of the battle participants,» the scientist concluded.