SUMMARY

The administrative and cultural centre of the Old Russian Dniester-river region (Ponizie) in 12th-13th centuries was the town of Bakota. Bakota is mentioned more than once in the records of the 13th-14th centuries.

The first archaeological investigations in the village of Bakota were started by V.B-Antonovich and E.N.Melnik in 1883 year, later on they were continued by V.B-Antonovich and E-LSetsinsky in 1891-1892 years. These investigations resulted in discovering the remains of an Old Russian rocky cavern monastery.

A new stage of the archaeological investigations of the Bakota annals dates back to the late fifties-early sixties (B.A.Timoshchuk, G.N.Khotyun, I.S.Vinokur). The investigations and excavations of the 50th-70th years played an important role for studying the history of the Middle-Dniester-river region and Bakota in the middle of the ImillenniumA-D. ( M-A-Tikhanova, I.S.Vinokur, O-M-Prikhodnyuk, L-V-Vakulenko, V.D.Baran, A-T-Smilenko, A-LZhurko and oth­ers).

The 1969-1981 investigations conducted by joint expeditions of the Kamenets-Podolsky Teachers Training institute researchers and those of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences Archaeology Institute (I.S.Vinokur, O-M-Prikhodnyuk, R.A.Yura, M.P.Kuchera, P-A-Gorishny) enabled us to get an idea about the formation and further development of the Old Russian Ponizie capital. This monograph summarizes the Bakota archaeological excavations re­sults and synthesizers them with the data of old records and special historical literature dealing with the problem in question. An attempt has been made to reconstruct the prehistory of the town of Bakota, its 12th-15th centuries historical topography, as well as to elucidate its role in the historv of South-West Russia-Ukraine.

Section I presents the archaeological monuments of Bakota and its periphery. It focuses attention on the micro-region antiquities from ρalaeolite to the medieval period and systemizes them. A considerable concentration of old agricultural population oeneolitic trypol culture (IV-III thousand years B.C.), the Age of Bronze (II thousand years B.C.) and the Early Iron Age (I thousand years B.C. - middle of I thousand years A.D.).

The settlements of the Chernyakhov culture reffering to the 2nd-5th centuries A.D., those of the early midieval Slavs (6th-8th centuries A.D.) and settlements of the 9th-13th Old Rus epoch were discovered in Bakota and its suburbs and thoroughly investigated (Bakota, Teremtsi₁ Sokol, Ustye₁ Luka-Vrublivetska and others). Monuments of paganism - an altar and an offering place are discovered and investigated in Bakota. Bakota as a town grew up from the "nest" of Old Russian 8th-9th centuries settlements. A significant role in the growth of the town was played by the pagan centre; a rocky cavern Christian monastery was functioning at its site in the 1 lth-14th centuries.

Section II is devoted to the results of archaeological investi­gations in the country Na klinu. Here 54 dwellings and economic constructions of the Chernyakhov culture were discovered (among them there are 38 half-mud-huts), 16 half-mud-huts reffering to the late 4th-5th centuries A.D.₁ 10 6th-8th centuries half-mud-huts, 7 dwelling and economic constructions of the 9th-llth and 12th-13th centuries. It is necessary to point out the stability of socio-economic and historical and cultural development of the Eastern Slavs during the I millenium and the beginning of the II millenium A.D.

Among the findings testifying to the economic activity of the population in the country Na klinu we should mention: an iron naralnic and a plougshare₁ a scythe, a sickle and fragments of sickles, debres of round stone rotary millstone. Among domestic finds plastic and pottery ceramicts, iron scissors, knives, awls, scissors for shorning sheep, a bone spade, pierces, needles, a clay hand-spinning, glass bracelets (among the 11 th-13th centuries finds) are worth mentioning.

Section III considers the results of investigating the site of the ancient town and its suburbs. The remains of another ancient town­castle can be seen on the field side. This castle must have guarded the approach to the town. Ten dwellings were discovered on the territory of the ancient town and its suburbs during the excavations. The dwellings were heated by clay stoves, stone stoves and hearths. The walls of the dwellings are of felling and pillar constructions. Ceramic materials testify that the objects belong to the 12th-13th centuries. Other finds, such as debris of glass bracelets, iron knives, a cavalery spur, spears and arrows heads, a bronze fastening for a book cover, bronze buttons and clothes and head-dresses tabs, also testify to this fact. Remains of metallurgy blast-furnaces as well as two pottery workshops with 12th-13th centuries clay stove-furnaces were also discovered on the suburb territory.

Section IV presents materials dealing with an Old Russian rocky cavern monastery dating to the llth-14th centuries. An attempt is made to reconstruct graphically a wooden two-storeyed tambour which covered the access to cells, the monastery church and led to the rocky monastery cemetery. The frescos fragments which were preserved due to the late 19 century photographs are presented graphically.

Section V systematizes written records characterizing the general historical situation of the town of Bakota in the second half of the 13th, the 14th and the early XV centuries. This period witnessed the further struggle of South-West Russia-Ukraine against the Horde as well as the seizure of the Podolie lands by Lithuanian and Polish feudals.

Stormy events took place on Bakota land its countryside in the. period of 1431-1434 years. In 1431 year the peasants rose against their feudals. Only in 1434 year' Polish feudals succeeded in supressing the uprising and they seized a considerable part of the Podolie.

New historical conditions took shape in Bakota. The remains of the cultural layer as well as historical and architectural monu­ments of the 15th-17th centuries in Bakota, Studenutsa and other nearby settlements testify to this fact.

Section VI illuminates the role of Bakota in the history of South-West Russia-Ukraine. The territory of the Middle Dniester region including Bakota, Ushitsa and Kalius was situated in the south of GaIitsia. According to the records it was an area which witnessed the events of intestine struggle of Kiev and Galits principalities in the 12th-13th centuries. The relationship between Great Galits duke Danila Romanovich and Bolokh princes and boyards as well as Bakota boyards is given prominence to in this section. Bakota and its agricultural periphery played an important role in the developments of the 14th-15th centuries when Polish and Lithuanian feudals seized the Podolie.

The final part is devoted to the conclusions made on the basis of the investigations which were carried out. The appendix contains short descriptions of the archaeological, historical and architectural monuments which were discovered on the territory of Bakota and around it. Chronological, historical and archaeological succession of materials in question is observed here.