ARCHEOLOGY OF THE "PRINCELY PALACES" OF ANCIENT HALYCH

Abstract

In the archaeology of ancient Halych, which is just over 150 years old, two major themes have always been present, posing simultaneous challenges for further study. Up until 1936, the primary goal was to «find the Dormition Cathedral», essentially meaning «to locate Halych». This task was successfully accomplished by Yaroslav Pasternak. Afterward, the focus shifted to the task of «finding the prince’s chambers», synonymous with «locating the prince’s court». The latter topic remains open for debate. Since 1890 (according to Oleksandr Cholovskyi), the site of the princely court has been identified as «Zolotyi Tik», where archaeologists have conducted research since the late 19th century. During 1938–1941, Yaroslav Pasternak came closest to solving this problem. Although he didn’t discover the «stone foundations of the princely palaces» at that time, he persisted in the belief of their existence specifically at Zolotyi Tik. The scientist’s role remains paramount in modern archaeology, particularly concerning ancient Halych. This article outlines the stages of the archaeological study of the «princely chambers», with a focus on the author’s latest research. Additionally, we present the first attempt at reconstruction (based on the planigraphy of the pillar pits excavated in 1938 by Yaroslav Pasternak) of the «farm buildings» discovered at Zolotyi Tik. In our opinion, the researcher unexpectedly identified two large palace complexes of the Assumption Cathedral monastery during his time. These complexes bear similarities to other monumental wooden structures found in princely and monastic «courts» of ancient Halych, according to the author’s conceptualization.