Scientists, archaeologists, historians, and philosophers from different countries of Europe and Asia are interested in studying the nomadic civilization that has successfully developed in the vast expanses of the Eurasian steppe belt for four millennia of world history. Specialists are particularly interested in studying the problems of medieval archeology of the Eurasian steppes. In the Middle Ages, the nomadic world experienced the highest growth in its development, which was clearly manifested in the flourishing of a powerful state, military affairs, urban planning, trade and crafts, monumental, fine and decorative arts. Therefore, the questions of research of archaeological sites, subject complex, works of art-

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The study of medieval cultures of the Eurasian steppes is very relevant for archaeological science, especially for the scientific communities of those countries where the study of steppe peoples ' cultures has achieved very significant results. These include research centers in the Russian Federation, CIS countries, Bulgaria, and Hungary. However, unlike Scythian-Sarmatian archaeology, which has long been an independent topic at scientific conferences, and the results of research in this scientific area are published in thematic collections and generalizing works, the problems of research of medieval nomadic cultures of the Eurasian steppe belt have not yet had a proper, stable organizational form, although reports have repeatedly been heard at archaeological meetings and published in the Russian Academy of Sciences. published in scientific publications.

The founding Congress of the "International Congress of Archaeology of the Eurasian Steppes" was held in Kazan from February 14 to 16, 2007. The Forum was held within the framework of events dedicated to the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Sh. Marjani Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan. It seems that there is a considerable amount of historical justice in the fact that the initiative to organize such an international scientific forum dedicated to the medieval archeology of the Eurasian steppes was made by scientists of Tatarstan. Kazan is one of the oldest scientific centers for studying the problems of history and culture of the countries and peoples of the East in our country. On the territory of Tatarstan, many archaeological sites of the leading medieval states of the Eurasian steppes of Volga Bulgaria, the Golden Horde, and the Kazan Khanate have been studied. And until now, this scientific center actively studies the problems of medieval archaeology.

The congress was attended by scientists from different cities of Russia: archaeologists, specialists in the field of medieval archaeology, from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Izhevsk, Penza, Samara, Ulyanovsk, Makhachkala, Omsk, Novosibirsk, Chelyabinsk, Barnaul, Vladivostok, archaeologists from other CIS countries and far abroad - Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Bulgaria and Hungary. Among the forum participants were well-known scientists-museum workers, numismatists.

The congress opened with greetings from the leadership of the Republic of Tatarstan, the Republican Academy of Sciences and the Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan.

At the first plenary session, presentations were made by scientists representing various research centers in Russia, Bulgaria, Hungary and Ukraine. Speakers ' presentations were devoted to a broad thematic and chronological coverage of the problems of medieval archaeology in steppe Eurasia.

F. Sh. Khuzin (Kazan) considered and analyzed the most pressing problems of studying medieval archeology of the Turkic-Tatar civilization. He presented the results of the latest research on archaeological sites dating back to the periods of Volga Bulgaria, the Golden Horde and the Kazan Khanate, and considered the stages of ethnoculturogeny of the Turkic and other ethnic groups of the Volga region. The main results of the research were summed up and prospects for further work in the field of medieval archeology in Tatarstan were outlined.

In a joint report by S. G. Klyashtorny and D. G. Savinov (both from St. Petersburg), some issues of migration activity of Turkic nomadic tribes within the western range of the Eurasian steppes were discussed. V. I. Molodim and A. I. Solovyov (both from Novosibirsk) devoted their presentation to the results of studying archaeological sites of the developed Middle Ages in the forest-steppe regions between the Ob River and Irtysh river. It was proposed to identify a new type of medieval burial complexes, which is an important evidence of the process of Turkization of the population of this area. Yu. F. Kiryushin and V. V. Gorbunov (both Barnaul) They also touched upon the issues of Turkization of the population of Western Siberia, which took place in the Xiongno-Xianbian period. The authors of the report noted similar components in the Bulan-Koba and ancient Turkic cultures, the monuments of which were studied in the Altai territory.

N. V. Polosmak (Novosibirsk) demonstrated the results of excavations of the burial mound of the Xiongnu nobility at the Noin Ula burial ground in Mongolia, conducted during the 2006 field season. The congress participants were particularly interested in the design features of this complex structure and artistic metal products revealed during the excavations. Among the finds was a silver phalar, which reproduced one of the plots of ancient mythology. Scientists who spoke in the discussion of the report noted that such findings indicate that the Xiongnu developed trade and cultural ties with the population of East and Central Asia. Thanks to its

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These nomads served as a link between ethnic groups and cultures of remote areas of Eurasia.

Yu. S. Khudyakov (Novosibirsk) presented the main problems and results of studying the military affairs of medieval nomads of Central Asia. The possibilities of using subject reconstructions of weapons complexes of Xianbian, ancient Turkic, Jurchen and Dzungarian warriors to analyze the functional properties of offensive and defensive weapons were demonstrated. Report by R. Rashev (Shumen, Bulgaria) It is based on the analysis of materials from the Early Middle Ages from the steppes of Eastern Europe and finds from Bulgaria. The author of the report interpreted these finds as belonging to the Proto-Bulgars who inhabited the Eastern European steppes in the 7th - mid-9th centuries. I. Fodor (Budapest, Hungary) highlighted the problems associated with the study of archaeological sites of ancient Hungarians in Eastern Europe, paying special attention to the controversial issues of ethnic interpretation of some monuments of the Early Middle Ages. The report of L. T. Yablonsky (Moscow) was devoted to the discussion issues of reconstruction of ethnogenetic processes and ethnic interpretation of archaeological sites.) analyzed the ornamental traditions of irrigation of Golden Horde ceramic ware. He illustrated his conclusions with the example of a colorfully ornamented bowl on a pallet, in the ornament of which Iranian and Chinese motifs can be traced.

The report of V. L. Myts (Ukraine), although it was called "Crimea as part of the Golden Horde", was almost entirely based on criticism of some provisions from the previously published works of M. G. Kramarovsky.

Some reports announced in the program of the plenary session were made later due to late arrival of speakers and overloading of the program.

S. G. Batalov (Chelyabinsk) presented the results of his research in the Southern Urals and demonstrated some monuments of ancient and medieval nomads that he had examined during his trip to Inner Mongolia and East Turkestan, as well as Semirechye. He offered his own interpretation of some types of archaeological sites of the Great Migration period in the Urals and Kazakhstan and explained their appearance by the migration activity of the Huns and Turks. A. G. Sitdikov (Kazan) considered the problems of studying monuments dating back to the era of the Kazan Khanate, which are very relevant for medieval archeology of the Volga region.

In the future, the work of the congress was carried out within the framework of three separate thematic sections, formed mainly according to the chronological principle.

The first section included reports on the topic: "Turko-Khazar archeology (VI-IX centuries)". Reports on the problems of early Medieval archeology of the Volga region and individual reports on the cultural monuments of the ancient Turks in the Altai and Semirechye were presented.

The second section, "Steppes and forest-steppes of Eurasia (X-XIII centuries)", presented reports covering the problems of medieval archaeology in different regions of Eurasia, from the forest-steppe and forest regions of Europe to the Tien Shan and the Far East.

The third section, " The Mongol State and the Golden Horde (XIII-XV centuries)", brought together reports that examined the problems of archeology of the advanced Middle Ages, based on the materials of monuments from the territory of the Crimea, the Volga region, the Urals, Western Siberia and Central Asia.

Each section had interesting presentations, but since the sessions were held simultaneously in different buildings, participants had to choose one of them. The author of this report participated in the work of the third section, as the Ural, Siberian and Central Asian issues were more widely presented in the reports announced in the program.

The reports in this section, as well as in the other two, were dominated by reports that presented the results of research on the Golden Horde cities. The authors of the reports addressed various issues in their speeches. They examined the features of the topography of urban settlements, the architecture of various types of buildings, including religious buildings, and assessed the level of development of ceramic and bone-cutting crafts. Some reports raised issues of protection of monuments of the Golden Horde period, where so-called "black archaeologists" conduct illegal excavations, or collect finds for the purpose of their subsequent sale. Speakers expressed concern about the preservation of historical and cultural heritage and suggested various measures for the museumification of specific monuments.

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The presentation of V. V. Shakhov (Astrakhan) was devoted to the analysis of the results of the study of an administrative building dating from the end of the XIV century, excavated in the area of the modern settlement of Komsomolsky in the Astrakhan region.

The report of a group of authors - R. A. Sigatullin, A.V. Ivanov, S. A. Bratashov (all from Kazan) - described geological processes that contribute to the destruction of the area of historical development and cultural layer at the Golden Horde settlement Ukek. Scientists have been observing and studying the condition of this monument for the past five years. L. F. Nedashkovsky (Kazan) analyzed the state and degree of preservation of the Tsarevskoye settlement and its surroundings. Based on the results of the research conducted, the author of the report found out that this monument is experiencing a significant anthropogenic impact.

Several presentations were devoted to the problems of studying nomadic burial complexes of the Golden Horde era.

V. A. Ivanov (Ufa) proposed the experience of classifying the burials of nomads of the Urals and Volga regions of the Golden Horde period on the basis of a significant number of excavated nomadic burial complexes dating back to the Mongol period. He traced local features in the funeral rites of the nomadic population. The topic of A. F. Yaminov's speech (Ufa) is the analysis of archaeological sites that the author of the report refers to the Kipchak culture of the 12th-13th centuries in the Southern Urals.

A number of reports contained interesting information about the archaeological sites of the developed and Late Middle Ages in Western Siberia and the Tien Shan.

S. F. Tataurov (Omsk) informed the audience about the results of his archaeological surveys conducted during several field seasons on ancient settlements dating back to the period of the existence of the Siberian Khanate in the Middle Irtysh region. K. Sh. Tabaldiev and Ch. M. Zholdoshev (both from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan) presented the results of excavations of burial complexes of the Mongol period in the Kochkor Valley on the Tien Shan. These studies allowed the authors of the report to show the features of the funeral rites and the subject complex of the nomadic population of Kyrgyzstan during the existence of the Mongol Empire and the Chagatai ulus. Numismatist N. M. Fomichev (Moscow) told the audience about the problems that specialists face when studying the coins of the Golden Horde. He shared his thoughts on how to improve the interaction between archaeologists and numismatists.

On the final day of the congress, the participants gathered again for a plenary session.

V. D. Kubarev (Novosibirsk) gave some examples of unsatisfactory preservation of ancient Turkic stone sculptures in museum collections and in the natural environment. As a positive example of the good preservation of stone sculptures, he noted the exposition of the Museum of Archeology of Altai State University. The speaker again repeated his version of the appointment of balbals as hitching posts in the memorial complexes of the ancient Turkic culture. A. A. Tishkin (Barnaul) demonstrated the fractional periodization of the "Turkic" culture of Gorny Altai proposed by him earlier in a number of works. D. G. Savinov (St. Petersburg) highlighted in his report some things in the subject complex of medieval nomads N. A. Mazhitov (Ufa) devoted his report to the analysis of the current state of the "Bashkir-Magyar problem". In his opinion, the monuments of nomad cultures of the early Middle Ages in the Volga and Ural regions, which a number of archaeologists consider ancient Hungarian, are Bashkir. Tikhonov (Omsk) spoke about the peculiarities of the mutual influence of the cultures of ethnic groups that lived in the steppe and forest-steppe regions of Western Siberia in the Middle Ages. This problem is also very relevant for other border steppe and forest-steppe regions of Eurasia. K. A. Rudenko (Kazan) described a large series of finds of iron horse harness items from the advanced Middle Ages, which he dated to the XI-XII centuries. The speaker considers the appearance of these objects in Volga Bulgaria to be a consequence of "eastern" influence, meaning the spread of such objects in the principalities of the Yenisei Kyrgyz in the Sayano-Altai.

E. D. Zilivinskaya (Moscow) analyzed the results of excavations at a large Khazar settlement located in the delta of the river. The Volga River. As the speaker noted, these fieldworks were carried out with the support of the Hebrew University. I. V. Volkov's speech (Volgograd) was devoted to the problem of studying and storing the most widespread category of finds in the Golden Horde settlements - ceramics. According to the author, the informative features of this material are:-

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riyals directly depend on its complete preservation and availability for researchers from different research centers. He proposed to organize special storage facilities at museums-reserves, the material from which would be available to all researchers involved in the study of ceramic dishes of the Golden Horde. Final report at the plenary session of IL. Izmailova (Kazan) contained an analysis of monuments of the Mongol invasion era in the Volga region. The speaker criticized the assumptions that a large series of iron elements of horse harness in the complexes of this time belonged to the alien "Askiz" population.

After discussion of the reports, the participants of the final plenary session heard and discussed the draft decision of the Constituent Congress. The participants of the meeting noted the great importance of the completed scientific forum. The decision stressed the need "to coordinate the efforts of archaeologists and other specialists in the study of current problems of the ancient and medieval history of the peoples of the Eurasian steppes to establish an International Congress "Medieval Archaeology of the Eurasian Steppes" with a frequency of once every three years." The First International Congress "Medieval Archaeology of the Eurasian Steppes" was scheduled to be held in Kazan in 2010 on the basis of the Institute of History of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan. The initiators and organizers of the establishment of the international congress were invited to create an organizing committee and form an executive committee, which was instructed to develop the regulations on the international congress and the program of work before the First Congress was convened. The first meeting of the future Congress Executive Committee is scheduled to be held in 2008. It was also decided to establish and organize a periodical scientific publication of the International Congress "Archeology of the Eurasian Steppes", as well as to create an online information publication "International Congress"Medieval Archeology of the Eurasian Steppes". At the suggestion of the author of this report, the draft decision included an item on the wide popularization of scientific knowledge on the history and culture of the peoples of the Eurasian steppe belt. The Organizing Committee of the founding Congress undertook to publish the second volume of materials of the completed scientific forum. The Founding Congress supported the initiative of scientists of Tatarstan aimed at ensuring the preservation of archaeological and epigraphic monuments on the territory of the republic, including industrial and agricultural construction zones and the coast of reservoirs, as well as in developing a targeted republican program and preparing a serial publication on the archeology of the Eurasian steppes.

The congress was accompanied by a rich cultural program. The congress participants had the opportunity to get acquainted with the specially organized exhibition of the latest archaeological discoveries of Tatar scientists "Archeology of Tatarstan", visit the exhibition of the Hermitage department in Kazan" Horse and Rider", archaeological expositions in the Historical Museum of Tatarstan and the Museum of Archeology at Kazan State University.

At the final plenary session, the participants of the Founding Congress expressed their sincere gratitude to the leadership of the Republic, the President and Cabinet of Ministers, the Academy of Sciences of Tatarstan, the Sh. Marjani Institute of History for supporting, well organizing and successfully holding this scientific forum.

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