Expeditions in Search of the Site of the Battle on the Ice (Based on the G. N. Karayev Expeditionary Diaries)

Abstract

An assessment of the reliability of results obtained during the work of the Combined Expedition, aimed at clarifying the location of the Battle on the Ice of 1242, has gained particular relevance over the last decades. Unpublished sources still not in scholarly circulation, especially diaries kept by expedition leader G. N. Karayev in 1956–1960, but these have a great significance for studying this problem. An analysis of their content allows ones to specify that at the first stage (in 1956) there was preliminary research (field trip, examining data from historical studies on the microregional geography, collecting information from locals). In 1957, thanks to the efforts of G. N. Karayev, specialized organizations were involved in performing such tasks as diving work, and after 1958 the expedition’s significantly expanded activities were done under auspices of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. Documents preserved in the archive indicate that all the observations were carried out according to plan and were thoroughly recorded. Moreover, research that required special skills (diving work skills, work with equipment, etc.) were carried out exclusively by the people with special training. The documents also convey the emotional atmosphere that used to rule in this expedition: enthusiasm and the desire of participants to qualitatively complete the task.