About expedition

In August, the Southern Medieval Expedition of the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine began research at the Great Settlement near the village of Tyahinka in Kherson region. Excavations were conducted at a settlement near the fortress. In different parts of the site, a cultural layer of different historical periods was recorded: from the Bronze Age to the late Middle Ages – early modernity. The work confirmed the prospects of studying a multi-layered monument, the history of which remained little known. The main task of the field season was to establish the specifics of the cultural layer belonging to the site and to check how well it could correspond to the cultural remains of the large Juchidian city. The found remains of objects with the use of processed limestone stones and especially important finds - fragments of clay water supply pipes, watering dishes similar to Crimean dishes of the XIV-XV centuries - not only confirmed the presence of a civilization of the late XIII-XIV centuries, but also the continued existence of the population in the territory of the settlement in the late XIV-XV centuries, in other historical conditions of the development of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the time of Vytautas the Great, Grand Duke of Lithuania.
Photos by: Svitlana Bilyaeva, Kim Gulenko, Natalia Bibmiraite.

In July-August, archeological excavations were carried out at two sites of the settlement. The first continued the site of the previous year. The second one was laid out on the highest part of the settlement, where, according to the excavations of other archaeologists, a cult building of the Dzhuchyd period could be located.
The most important finds of the season were two Lithuanian cross-shaped overlays for bag (bronze and iron, found in different excavations) on leather wallets, widespread in Lithuania in the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries, which testified to the presence of Lithuanian officials, possibly customs officers, on the southern outskirts of the principality, far from Lithuania.
To protect the fortress, the same crossbow bolts were used as at numerous Lithuanian settlements of that time. In addition, contacts with Genoa are evidenced by coins with a Kafinean countermark from the late 14th century.
Found coins, ceramics, and other artifacts from the late fourteenth century testify to the further development of the settlement, and the population did not disappear, as previously thought. The presence of Lithuanian subjects appears, indicating the development of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in these territories.

Photo: Kim Gulenko, Natalia Bimbirayte, Ibrahim Suleymanov.

The most important results of the season are related to works that allowed us to establish the layout of the fortress and its dimensions. Based on the results of bathymetric (underwater) surveys of the adjacent part of the Tyahynka River and the Dnipro River, the locations of the crossings and the marina were recorded.
During topographic research (led by O.Manigda and O.Grabovska) and aerial photography (O.Chubenko and M.Ievlev), archaeologists established the area of the settlement and fortress, the layout, and the defense system, which are genetically linked to the traditions of Kievan Rus’ and represent a pan-European type characteristic of lands from the Baltic to the Northern Black Sea. They are very close to the information known from the description of the eighteenth-century French historian Jean-Benoît Cherrier, and they almost coincide with the plan obtained through low-altitude quadcopter surveys and topographic research.
An open section of the southern wall with a system of buttresses, the remains of a monumental building - possibly a customs office, the outlines of the fortress of Vytautas's time and the later fortress of Mengli Girey of 1492.
In general, the archaeological collection of artifacts of Lithuanian origin, Byzantine and Crimean sgraffito pottery, glazed ceramics, and weapons (crossbow bolts, arrowheads, and stone cores) made it possible to reconstruct the syncretic culture of southern Ukraine and international relations of the time. The numismatic collection reflects the trade contacts of a vast area: from Krakow in Poland to Kafa on the Black Sea coast, from the Polish king Warnenczyk to the Crimean khan Mengli Giray.
Archaeological research has also made it possible to trace important features of the existence of the southern border of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which included the Kyivan principality, one of the main successors of the legacy of Kyivan Rus. The historical mission of Grand Duke Vytautas' strategy and practice of fortification activities to protect the borders of Ukrainian lands contributed to the establishment of new relations in the multiethnic environment of the South, and was fundamental to the emergence of the conditions for the formation of a new state of Ukrainian society-the Cossacks. The location of the Tyahyn fortress allowed for control over the water and land trade routes that ran from the Southeast to the West-to Kyiv, Lviv, Krakow, and beyond.
The discoveries made during the field season indicate the need to continue archaeological research, conservation, and museumization of the site of the southern border of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, as well as the study of the culture of southern Ukraine, its ties, and economic development during the existence of the federal state.
Given the significance of the Tyahyn Fortress in the history of Ukraine and Lithuania, the monument is not only of national but also international importance. It is a place where the historical paths of the civilizations of the Turkic peoples and the Baltic nations and Ukraine intertwine.

The first monograph “At the Crossing of Two Worlds” was published based on the results of research in 2016-2018.

P.S. The complex of archaeological research and the publication of the monograph were made possible thanks to charitable assistance within the framework of the project of the Ukraine-Lithuania Cultural Center “Protection of the Historical Heritage of Ukraine and Lithuania in the Kherson Region” funded by the Program for the Development of Cooperation and Support for Democracy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania.

Photo: Natalia Bimbirayte, Ibrahim Suleymanov, Kim Gulenko, Yuriy Mazuryk.

In July-August 2019, the Southern Medieval Expedition of the IA NASU continued excavations of the outer wall of the fortress, discovered in 2018. The upper part of the corner tower was cleared, and excavations continued the following year.
Funding was provided by charitable funds in the amount of 500 euros received from Lithuania from MB “Užupių manufaktūra” with the assistance of the Cultural Center Ukraine-Lithuania under the leadership of Natalia Bimbirayte.
The work was carried out by: PhD, leading researcher of the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine S.Bilyaeva (head of the archaeological part of the project); PhD O.Fialko, senior researcher of the Institute of Archeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine; PhD M.Ievlev; head of the “Historical Local History” club of the “Tourism Center” of the ZOR K.Gulenko; director of the “Mariam” Charitable Foundation V.Hrytsayenko, as well as the staff of the Southern Medieval Expedition: student of Zaporizhzhia National University O.Leto, student of Uman State Pedagogical University V.Nikitenko, students of the “Historical Local History” club of the “Tourism Center” (I.Kovanko, M.Proskura, M.Vitenko, A.Ganilov) and volunteers (O.Kanigin, D.Kanigin, O.Kanigin).

Photo: Kim Gulenko and Volodymyr Hrytsayenko.

The fortress beyond the outer perimeter of the fortifications of the north-western section, which is located above the road crossing the settlement from west to east, was investigated. In the north-eastern corner, a corner stone tower measuring 4.9 x 4.2 m was uncovered. The walls of the tower are made of limestone with limestone mortar; the wall thickness is 1.0 m. The exterior walls are plastered and covered with whitewash. Whitewashing and various decorative wall finishes were also typical for other castles in Lithuania, Poland, and Scandinavia in the 14th-16th centuries. The walls have been preserved to different heights, up to a maximum of 1.75 m. The north-western corner at a height of 0.3 m is surrounded by a frieze made of whole limestone, decorated with carved decor in the Seljuk style. Analogues are known on monuments of the Northern Black Sea coast, in particular in the Crimea, for example, at the 14th-century Mangup citadel, at the entrance to the Janike Khanum mausoleum of the first half of the 15th century.
A special discovery: wooden logs (8 boards) were found in the tower's interior, on which two fragments of an iron bombardment, an artillery weapon of the XIV-XV centuries, were found. At a depth of 1.6 m in the middle of the room, there are three pits for pillars that supported the upper tier of the tower.
A Polish coin made of bilon by Władysław Warnieczik (1434-1444) and a Tatar coin made of bronze were found in the tower.
There were no signs of fire in or around the tower. The floorboards also showed no signs of fire.
The 2020 collection includes 402 items, mostly ceramics. The inventory includes 61 items, or 108 units, including metal objects (bronze arrowheads, nails, musket lead balls with a calf, silver and bronze coins), glassware, and various ceramics. The rest of the materials were transferred to the museums of Beryslav and Tiahynka. Architectural details from the collapsed walls of the tower were also transferred to the museum in Tiahynka.

Part of the fortress’s eastern wall opened. The remains of a large monumental building with fragments of decorative elements were found inside. Discovery of a slab with Lithuanian heraldry was of particular interest this year.
An iron mace was found for the first time. The object could perform representative functions as a symbol of power and be used as a cold weapon.
It was concluded that the fortress materials reflected the progress of defensive architecture, which developed in line with European traditions. The population did not change, but construction workers of various ethnic groups and free army units that were part of Vytautas' army were added to its ethnic composition. They were the ones who could be the basis of the freedom-loving free army, which by the end of the 15th century became the Southern branch of Ukrainian Cossacks.