Russian Medieval Towns

Geo-archaeological survey of Russian Medieval Towns. A non-destructive research at the discovery of the urban origins of Russia.

A bilateral project between the Italian and Russian Governments under law n. 212/26.02.1992 stating: ”Promoting collaboration in Science and Culture fields among Italy and the East-Europe States, to support the European integration process, to consolidate the democratic values of pluralism, by enhancing human and natural resources”. Several prospecting campaigns were performed in Moscow as well as in diverse towns/sites of the Golden Ring like Vladimir, Suzdal, Stari Ryazan, Nerl and others. Several prospecting campaigns were performed in Moscow as well as in diverse towns/sites of the Golden Ring like Vladimir, Suzdal, Stari Ryazan, Nerl and others.

The project gave way to the collaboration among the Russian Academy of Science, the St. Petersburg Mine Institute, Moscow University, Moscow Municipality, and the Centre for Monuments Research and Restoration of Vladimir Region.

Within the project, Russian architects and archaeologists continued their studies about the historic-artistic origins of Russian Roman cathedrals, identifying their origin with the cathedral in Modena, as well as the Como churches, opposite to what previously suggested about their possible bizantine origin handed down from Federico Barbarossa’s German world (Ioannisian, O. 1997).

Suzdal Cathedral of the Nativity of the Virgin.

Map after geophysical prospecting.

Historically Kolomenskoe is mentioned in chronicles referring to Ivan Kalita in 1336 and in 1339 and from that time on is recognized as the ancestral residence of the Great Princes of Moscow and the most important of their summer residences on the outskirts of Moscow. The village of Kolomenskoe witnessed the victorious return of the troops of Dimitry Donskoy after his victory over the Tatars at Snipes' Field (battle of Kulikovo 1380). Here Dimitry Donskoy built his summer residence. The building underwent many alterations in the course of the centuries. The last renovation (1667-1668) was carried out by Tsar Aljeksjej Mikhailovich Romanov, the second ruler of the Romanov’s dynasty and father of Peter the Great. Peter himself stayed at Kolomenskoe in 1709 after the victory of Poltava against the Swedes. Part of the buildings at Kolomenskoe dating to the 16th-17th centuries has come down to us relatively intact, except for the building constructed for Tsar Aljeksjej Mikhailovich by the architects S. Petrov and I. Mikhailov in the years 1667-71 and subsequently rebuilt by S. Dementiev in 1681. The palace of Aljeksjej - Tsar Aljeksjej Mikhailovich Romanov - was considered by the Russians as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Built entirely of wood, with high towers (40-50 metres), it was splendidly decorated by onion-shaped domes, balconies, verandas and arches and was equipped with all the mod cons of the period (bathrooms, toilets, dumb waiters, etc.).

Kolomenskoe Church of the Ascension.

According to historiographic data, the area involved in the remains of the palace should have been of about four hectares in size. The geo-electrical anomalies drawn by the prospections featured a very regular geometrical shape much likely belonging to walls remains, preserved according to the geo-electrical processing, for about one meter in height.

Kolomenkoe palace: geophysical prospecting results.

Excavation test in sector A.

The excavation tests made in area A by the staff of the Superintendance directed by Architect Alexander Veksler, on the basis of prospections, drawn to light the remains of the XVIIth century kitchen, visited by the Moscow,s Major Jurij Michajlovic Luskov. The central sector belongs to the area of the zars’ residence.