Amazing South: the ancient metropolis of the Northern Black Sea coast

Mykolaiv region is home to one of the oldest monuments in Ukraine, the Olvia National Historical and Archaeological Reserve. This protected area is one of the largest tourist attractions in the region, which has been attracting many historians, archaeologists, travelers and people interested in the past of their native country for many decades. Intent continues the"Amazing South" series with a story about it.

The Olvia Reserve was founded in 1926 to preserve valuable archaeological and historical monuments located on the territory of the former ancient city. It consists of two parts: the city of Olbia itself - a settlement with a necropolis covering an area of more than 290 hectares - and the city of Borysfen, located on the modern island of Berezan (23.6 hectares). Today, the reserve has a museum that displays finds from archaeological excavations - more than 96,000 artifacts and a lapidarium that stores architectural details, tombstones, tools, statue pedestals, plates with inscriptions, etc.

The entrance to the Olvia reserve. PHOTO: o-go-go.com

The main part of the museum is represented by an open-air exhibition of architectural and construction remains. Here you can see: the main square of the city - the agora, temenos - cult areas with the remains of altars and temples, shopping arcades, dozens of residential buildings of different times, sections of the protective walls, the northern and western city gates, the dicastery - the court house, wineries, pottery kilns, a large necropolis, and other historical monuments. The so-called suburbs were discovered near the western wall of the city, and in the flooded part of Olbia, the ruins of the defensive walls and the area of port warehouses. The reserve also includes a scientific library and scientific collections.

History of the ancient city-state

Once upon a time, more than 2500 years ago, one of the largest, most famous, and majestic ancient cities that existed in the past on the territory of present-day Ukraine emerged on the high hilly banks of the Bug Estuary. It was a huge Greek colony called Olbia, which covered the entire territory of the Lower Pobuzhzhia. Translated from the ancient Greek, "Olbia" means "happy". Indeed, for many years the city lived up to its name and experienced happy times.

Olbia. PHOTO: we.org.ua

Historians believe that the founders of Olbia were immigrants from the ancient Greek city of Miletus, who settled in the area around 650 BC. Most likely, they chose this area because it was ideally suited for the founding of the city - a picturesque plateau with low hills on the shores of the estuary, which was surrounded on both sides, from the west and north, by beams that served as natural defenses. And from the east, the territory was protected by a water barrier, the Hypanis, the name of the Southern Bug River in ancient times.

The city of Miletus played a very important role in the Greek colonization of the Northern Black Sea region. The aristocracy of this city was even called "eternal sailors". The metropolis maintained relations with its established colonies, including Olbia, in the status of a union of equal and sovereign partners. Most often they were united by economic, religious, and cultural ties and traditions.

At the beginning of its existence, Olbia was a small settlement whose"housing stock" consisted of dugouts and half-dugouts. Later, stone buildings began to appear here, and the economy began to develop. Gradually, Olbia became not just a city, but a strong and prosperous state that lasted for more than 1000 years, from the sixth century BC to the fourth century AD. In the heyday of the ancient colony, its area was more than 50 hectares, and the population reached about 15-20 thousand. In addition to the city itself, the territory of Olbia included hundreds of settlements around it, which made up the city's rural district on the banks of the Bug, Dnipro, and Berezan rivers. The inhabitants of the polis were engaged in farming, fishing, agricultural activities, and various crafts. Ancient Olbia was rich in craftsmen: potters, stonemasons, and woodworkers.

The remains of a residential neighborhood in Olbia. PHOTO: Wikipedia

The city-state of Olbia consisted of two parts: the upper and the lower. The upper part was the central square of the city, the agora. Trade was conducted here, public meetings were held, and performances by philosophers, poets, and musicians were organized. Nearby was the central quarter, where the court, gymnasium, and probably the theater, which every ancient Greek city had, were located. The agora was adjacent to the temenos, a sacred area with religious buildings, including temples dedicated to Zeus, Apollo, Achilles Pontarchus, and the main altar. The hippodrome was located a little further away. The inhabitants of the ancient polis paid a lot of attention to sports and often organized competitions in running, javelin and discus throwing, and archery.

Olbia was a slave-owning democratic republic and an important trade center in the Black Sea region, specializing in the export of grain, salted and dried fish, fur and leather, which the Olbians received from the Scythians and resold, various agricultural products - livestock and livestock products, and handicrafts. In return, the Olbian state received wine from the islands of Chios, Lesvos, and Heraclea, olive oil from the Mediterranean, ceramics, and luxury goods such as marble, jewelry, and textiles.

The Greek colony was constantly expanding the geography of trade connections that stretched far beyond its borders. Olbia served as the main intermediary between the ancient civilization and the Scythian world, ensuring the exchange of various products. Because of its active trade, Olbia was a member of the First Athenian Maritime Union.

Olbia, museum. PHOTO: tourist.wiki

This colony was also very often associated with Borysfen, the ancient Greek name of the modern Dnipro River in honor of the river god. Since Olbia was located at the mouth of the Dnipro, the name of the river was often used in reference to the polis itself, as well as to the oldest colony on the island of Berezan, which later became part of the Olbian state. In the ancient Greek literary tradition, the names "Olbia" and "Borysfen" were sometimes used synonymously.

From the middle of the fifth century BC, a Scythian protectorate was established over the lands of Olbia. The ancient state was forced to recognize the power of the Scythian king Scylurus. This period was reflected even on its coins - at that time they were issued with the image of the Scythian king. A found tombstone from that time bears the inscription that Olbia was a Scythian city. However, Scythian rule over the city did not last long. An unsuccessful attempt to conquer this Greek colony was made in 331 BC by Zopyrion, one of Alexander the Great's governors in Thrace, but the Olbians, in alliance with the Scythians, were able to repel the attack, defeat the Macedonian army, and kill Zopyrion.

From the end of the third century BC. Olbia was regularly raided by various barbarian tribes, which caused the city-state to fall into a deep economic and social crisis.

In the middle of the first century BC, Olbia was completely defeated by the robber tribes of the Goths under the leadership of their leader Burebista. The ancient city was destroyed, some of its inhabitants died, while others managed to escape by fleeing to neighboring settlements. This was the tragic end of the first period of ancient Olbia's existence, which lasted for five centuries.

After the Gothic defeat, the ancient state remained in this state for about 100 years, after which it was again settled by the Borisfenites, as the ancient Greek eloquent Dion Chrysostom noted in his speeches.

There was little to remind us of the old Olbia, but gradually the city was able to recover, but on a smaller territory. And later, at the beginning of the new era, it became part of the Roman Empire. From that time on, a new round of Olbia's prosperity was marked, which did not last long.

The Olbian totem. PHOTO: travel.24tv.ua

In the third century AD, the situation of Olbia deteriorated. Like other ancient states of the Northern Black Sea region, the once majestic city entered a period of general economic and socio-political decline. At the same time, the invasion of barbarians from outside intensified at this stage. First, the city was attacked and defeated by the Goths, and the final "point" in the life of the former flourishing Greek colony was put by the invasion of nomadic hordes of the warlike Asian people of the Huns at the end of the IV century AD.

After the destruction of Olbia by the Huns, the territory remained uninhabited for 14 centuries. The ruins of the Greek city-state became a place of stone quarrying. Thus, the Ottomans, who managed to rule this territory, dismantled most of the ground buildings, and even built the Achi-Kale fortress, the future Ochakiv, from ancient stone. And the city's residents, starting in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, also built their houses from the remains of Olbia's ground structures.

According to scholars, such a long existence of the polis in the Northern Black Sea region had a great influence on the culture and history of the entire region.

Coins of ancient Olbia

Olbia coins are unique numismatic monuments. In early times, the state issued bronze banknotes in the shape of dolphins in honor of the god Apollo Delphinus, and in the 5th - 4th centuries BC - bronze cast asses. Silver coinage began in the fifth century BC. In the 5th - 3rd centuries BC Olbia minted gold, silver, and copper coins. Coins from the second half of the second century BC bearing the name Scylura testify to the conquest of the city-state by the Scythians. In the I - III centuries AD, the city was ruled by the Roman Empire, and this is why Roman coins were distributed. In the last quarter of the IV century AD, there was a reduction and then the disappearance of its own money circulation, which indicates the decline and death of the city.

Olbian dolphin coins. PHOTO: Wikipedia

How to get there and what are the tourist locations on the territory of the former Olbia

Olbia is located near the village of Parutyne in Mykolaiv region. This village, where the entrance to the reserve is located, is reached by shuttle buses from Mykolaiv's Dachna station (30 minutes on the way) and from Ochakiv (20 minutes).

Parutyne is located on the right bank of the Bug estuary, 40 kilometers from Mykolaiv. It was founded in 1787 by the Old Believers of Nekrasivka. It was owned by Count Ilya Bezborodko, and was named Ilyinske in his honor.

Back in those days, the ruins of the ancient Greek polis Olbia were discovered nearby, and the village itself was located on the site of the Olbian necropolis. Residents used Olbian stone for their buildings until the middle of the XX century. Only in 1900 did systematic archaeological research begin on the territory of Olbia. Many highly artistic works of art were found, which are now exhibited in many museums around the world. Since 1926, the territory has been under the protection of the Olbia Historical and Archaeological Reserve.

The tourist infrastructure in Parutyne is poorly developed.

Dolphin coins of Olbia. PHOTO: myslenedrevo.com.ua

Before Russia 's open armed aggression against Ukraine, the following objects were found on the territory of Olbia:

• Excavations of residential and public neighborhoods: the foundations of ancient Greek houses can be seen.
• Temenos (sacred area): remains of temples, including the Apollo of Delphi.
• The central square (Agora): a place of public life.
• Olbian Museum: an exhibition of finds made during excavations.
• Necropolis: an ancient cemetery.

Юлія Сичова