The Study of the Pile of Charred Grain Found during the Excavations of St. Boris and Gleb Church Ruins in the Novgorod Detinets

The paper describes the comprehensive study of a pile of charred grain (rye) discovered during the excavation of St. Boris and Gleb Church in the Novgorod Detinets. Based on the stratigraphical data, this grain pile is dated to the second half of the 15th – early 16th centuries. Apparently, the grain was stored in the buildings located nearby that were burnt down or in the wooden antechurch that did not survive. The quantity of the carbonized rye was significant which was not less than two cubic meters was documented in the 2020–2021 excavation pit alone, whereas, given the information on the excavations carried out in 1940–1941, the quantities of rye were clearly much larger. Grain went through several stages of cleaning; however, presence of weeds preserved in this grain pile indicates that it was a winter crop which, most likely, was local.