Updated

Updated · nashaniva.com · Aug 20

Russia Weighs Sending Dmitry Donskoy Relics to Ukraine Front as Putin Hails July Discovery

Updated

Updated · nashaniva.com · Aug 20

Russia Weighs Sending Dmitry Donskoy Relics to Ukraine Front as Putin Hails July Discovery

Q: What hidden artifacts did archaeologists uncover beneath the sinking floors of the Moscow Kremlin that Putin is calling a miracle?

The “miracle” Putin referred to was the discovery beneath the sinking floors of the Archangel Cathedral of three white-stone sarcophagi, including the one believed to contain the relics of Prince Dmitry Donskoy. Archaeologists uncovered the sarcophagi during emergency restoration work in the Moscow Kremlin after subsiding floor slabs threatened the tombs. According to the Russian Orthodox Church and reports citing restoration officials, the three burials were identified as those of Dmitry Donskoy, his father Grand Prince Ivan Ivanovich the Fair, and Prince Dmitry Ivanovich Zhilka of Uglich. The most significant find was the nearly complete remains attributed to Dmitry Donskoy, the 14th-century Grand Prince of Moscow and Vladimir who led Russian forces at the Battle of Kulikovo in 1380. Church officials said the skeleton was almost fully preserved, missing only the left heel bone, and experts linked it to Donskoy through its archaeological context and physical characteristics such as age and height. So the hidden artifacts were not treasure objects but medieval princely burials: intact sarcophagi and the relics of one of Russia’s most revered warrior-princes, discovered in a crypt whose exact layout had long been uncertain.

3 articles · Updated · nashaniva.com · Aug 20

Relics of Prince Dmitry Donskoy, uncovered in July at the Kremlin's Archangel Cathedral, are being considered for transfer to Russia's combat zone in Ukraine.
Vakhtang Kipshidze of the Russian Orthodox Church said sending them to troops would be expedient so servicemen can venerate the prince's remains as soon as possible.
The church said the remains are almost fully preserved, missing only the left heel bone, and plans to distribute some parts to churches while still deciding where the main relics will stay.
Vladimir Putin visited the cathedral on Aug. 20, viewed the relics and joined prayers for the president and "victorious warriors," calling the find miraculous and a reinforcement of Russia's historical heritage.