CRIMEAN CITIES OF THE XIII–XV CENTURIES AND SOME FEATURES OF THEIR HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS

Abstract

After the Mongols conquered Crimea (1223–1278), the peninsula had favorable conditions for the formation of new urban structures. Due to the fact that in the XIII–XV centuries transcontinental trade arteries passed through Crimea, connecting East and West, North and South, the interaction of three civilizational paradigms was noted here: late Byzantine, Golden Horde and Ligurian, represented by three forms of state formations. Despite the traditional polyethnicity and polyconfessional character of the medieval urban population of the peninsula, they had signifi cant diff erences. The most distinct distinguishing features were the urban planning structure, the architectural character of civil, religious, fortification and residential buildings. The main cities of the peninsula were the late Byzantine Cherson and Theodoro, the Golden Horde Solkhat and the Genoese Caffa. Despite a long study and a great number of publications, the modern historiography of the medieval Crimea is devoid of monographic works dedicated to Theodoro, Solkhat, Sougdaia, Caffa, etc.

Keywords

• archaeology
• crimean cities of the xiii–xv centuries: byzantine
• golden horde
• genoese
• cherson
• solkhat
• caffa
• theodoro