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Connections of Crimean Archaeology with Ukraine (19th–20th Centuries)

In the 19th and 20th centuries, archaeological finds and models from Crimea were systematically transferred to museums in mainland Ukraine — Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, and Kerch, demonstrating the deep historical and scientific connection of Crimean archaeological endeavors with Ukraine.

Overview

Archaeological discoveries in Crimea and their connection to Ukraine represent a history of transferring models and artifacts from the peninsula to museums in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, and Kerch during the 19th and 20th centuries. Based on publications in the journal Kievan Antiquity (Kyivska Staryna) and the newspaper Yuzhnye Vedomosti, one can trace how Crimean antiquities became part of Ukrainian collections and scientific heritage.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Dmitry Strukov (1868–1871): artist-restorer of the Moscow Armory Museum, who by "imperial command" excavated, discovered, or cleared more than 20 cave and stone ancient Christian churches and monuments along the Southern Coast of Crimea. Plaster models were made of them, which were awarded a gold medal at the Moscow Polytechnic Exhibition.
  • Collection of Models in Kyiv: plaster models were purchased by the Imperial Academy of Arts and transferred to the Church-Archaeological Museum at the Kyiv Theological Academy; in 1874, Strukov personally donated several plaster miniatures of Crimean churches to the museum. This became a unique, complete collection of models of ancient Crimean structures.
  • Kyivska Staryna (1882, No. 5): provided a list of 36 sites (Inkerman, Tepe-Kermen, Mangup, Ayu-Dag, Sudak, Gurzuf, Chersonesus, Ai-Vasyl, Nikita, Artek, Demerdzhi, Otuzy, Kozy, etc.). A hypothesis was put forward that Crimean caves served as prototypes for Kyiv's underground churches.
  • Ethnographic Museum of Kharkiv (1904): according to a note in Kyivska Staryna (No. 4, pp. 28–30), the Kharkiv Historical and Philological Society, under the leadership of Prof. Mykola Sumtsov, set up an ethnographic museum that included a "small Crimean collection" gathered by Privatdozent Vasyl Danylevych.
  • Kerch and the Odesa Society (1913): on November 9 (22), 1913, Yuzhnye Vedomosti reported that the building on Mount Mithridates in Kerch (a former military church) was transferred to the Odesa Society of History and Antiquities to establish a branch of the Kerch Museum; artifacts were to come from the Royal Kurgan and the old building of the city museum.
  • Dismantling of Ancient Monuments in Kerch (19th century): prior to the mass arrival of imperial settlers, Crimean Tatars refrained from dismantling ancient Greek masonry and marble slabs due to religious beliefs. From the beginning of the 19th century, settlers began dismantling the ancient structures of Pantikapaion for house-building materials; as a result, as early as 1820, Alexander Pushkin and later researchers were unable to find preserved ruins of the Tomb of Mithridates.
  • Oleksandr Takhtay (20th century): a prominent Ukrainian archaeologist who worked in museums in Poltava, Kherson, and Sevastopol (Chersonesus). He was the first to point out the typological similarity between the cultures of Crimea and the Lower Dnieper region in pre-Scythian times, which made a significant contribution to confirming the cultural and historical links of Crimea with mainland Ukraine. For more details on his work, see the article Oleksandr Takhtay.
  • Research by Oleksandr Lyeskov (20th century): his work in the North Crimean and other expeditions, particularly the study of the Burial Ground near Shyroke in the Kherson region, confirmed O. K. Takhtay's scientific hypotheses regarding the cultural and historical unity of Crimea and the Lower Dnieper at the turn of the Bronze and Iron Ages. For more details, see the article Oleksandr Lyeskov.
  • Tauric Chersonesus: an ancient Greek city-state near Sevastopol, now a National Preserve and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2013. Following the 2014 russian occupation, it faces threats of destruction, illegal construction, and transformation into a religious-propaganda site. For more details, see Tauric Chersonesus.