Round table, grandiose exhibition and lectures: what Chersonese has prepared in memory of the Byzantine Empire

This year marks 570 years since the fall of the Byzantine Empire, whose cultural and spiritual heritage is still alive. It was in 1453 that Constantinople was captured by the Ottoman Turks, which led to the death of a great power. In memory of the event, Tauric Chersonesus is holding a series of events designed to shed light on the history of the once powerful empire and acquaint everyone with its cultural heritage.

The first event dedicated to this date was the round table «Byzantine heritage in the Crimea», organized by the Museum-Reserve together with the Institute of Archeology of the Crimea of ​​the Russian Academy of Sciences. The researchers considered the influence of the empire on the peninsula, and also discussed archaeological finds, for example, a Christian temple at the northern gate on the Eski-Kermen plateau and recently discovered late Byzantine coins.

L. V. Sedikova, deputy director of the museum-reserve for scientific work, candidate of historical sciences, delivered a welcoming speech at the opening. She noted the importance of the forum and wished the participants an interesting and fruitful discussion within the framework of the round table.

The head of the department of Byzantine history of Chersonese Tauride, curator of the event T. Yu. Yashaeva, emphasized: “Byzantium is a great civilization and culture that has influenced the history of mankind, up to our days. A single project of Tauric Chersonesos, dedicated to the 570th anniversary of the fall of Constantinople and Byzantium, includes a round table and the opening of the exhibition «Gold of Byzantium». The scientific forum will discuss not only the influence and death of the empire, but also the history of medieval Chersonese-Kherson and Byzantine monuments in the Crimea, discovered during archaeological research.

Researchers from the museum-reserve, the Institute of Crimean Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the State Museum of Oriental Art, Moscow State University named after M.V. Lomonosov, Sevastopol State University, the Institute of Linguistics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Higher School of Economics and the Russian Academy of Arts presented their reports at the round table. In total, more than 20 messages were heard.

Very soon, a new exhibition «Gold of Byzantium» will open in Veliky Novgorod, organized by the Tauric Chersonese Museum-Reserve and the Novgorod Museum-Reserve. On it, visitors will be able to get acquainted with two hundred unique exhibits (frescoes, mosaics, coins, church utensils), clearly testifying to the former greatness of the empire— noted in the press service of the museum-reserve «Tauric Chersonesos».