Archaeological studies in the impact area of Kuibyshev reservoir

At the beginning of this summer the specialists of the Institute of Archaeology named after A.Kh. Khalikov of the Tatarstan Academy of Sciences have continued archaeological reconnaissances in the impact area of Kuibyshev reservoir. This kind of works has been carried out systematically by the specialists of the institute for more than 70 years.

This field season archaeological studies cover sites located on the right bank of Kuibyshev reservoir in the Kamskoye Ustye district of Tatarstan. During the expedition the ancient settlements belonging to a wide chronological diapason, from the late Paleolithic to the Middle Ages, were examined and the clarifying data was obtained about the territory of OCH (objects of cultural heritage), their material culture, cultural layer thickness and about their current state.

As a result of the work carried out, it was found that the Yelhovskoye hillfort, “Sokol” I and “Sokol” II hillforts, Mordovskiy Karatay I and II settlements, Burtasy I hillfort are in a satisfactory condition. The slopes of headlands, where the sites are located, are sodded or afforested, that prevents the destruction of objects of cultural heritage by the Kuybyshev reservoir, whereas Kamskoye Ustye I and II settlements, Syukeyevo hillfort undergo a bank abrasion due to wave regime of the reservoir.

The annual monitoring of the cultural heritage objects in the impact zone of reservoirs is a planned scientific topic for the institute and will be continued in the future.