Posted by from the Moscow Patriarchate (dcalvert) on 11/9/2007, 9:04 am
Archaeologists carrying excavations at the Church of the Tithe in Kiev, are inclined to believe the remains discovered in 1939 to be those of the sainted princess Olga
KIEV. Archeological excavations ended today at the Church of the Tithe, the first stone church in Kievan Rus. Dedicated to the Theotokos, the church was built by Russian and Byzantine during the years 988-996. Prince Vladimir appropriated a tenth of his income to build it - hence the name. Icons, receptacles, crosses were brought from Korsun (Hersonesos). The Church of the Tithe was burned during the Mongol-Tatar invasion in 1240. Rebuilt several times later (in 1635, 1758 and 1848), it was finally destroyed in the 30s of the last century.
"In the X century the Church of the Tithe was one of the largest in the Christian world," explains Oleg Ioannisyan, doctor of history, a specialist in ancient Russian architecture. It was 44 meters in length and 30 meters in width. It was not much smaller than, for example, the Cathedral of St. Sophia in Istanbul (Constantinople) which survived. This once again demonstrates that at that time Kiev was Europe's the third largest city in importance and wealth. Only Constantinople, with more than a million residents, was larger and wealthier.
This season's interesting finds, said the scientist, are not only the luxurious ring, which is now being restored, and also rings and coins, but, in addition, two (brick) plinths from the time of the temple's construction with the Russian letters sounding "s" and "N". These plinths have the oldest Slavic handwritten inscriptions ever found on the territory of Kiev.
Regarding the coffin with the body Princess Olga ... Back in 1939, an expedition lead by Leningrad scientist Mikhail Karger discovered some hidden recesses. Within these recesses lay the remains of people, including a female skeleton with golden ornaments.
Today, we are close to confirming that this is the tomb of Princess Olga. "
The Princess' enigmatic figure has been the subject of attention of historians and writers throughout the centuries .... Olga became head of the Druzhinniki (armed escorts) and avenged the death of her murdered husband, Prince Igor, by the Drevlyany tribe. It is she who ruled Rus' while her son Sviatoslav was a minor and during his countless campaigns. Without a strong character and will this would have been impossible.
(News from the Moscow Patriarchate's Russian-language Sedmitza.ru site, 11/8/07)
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