Monasteries of Moscovia: stages of archaeological excavations and the current status

The paper provides an overview of the history related to development of monastery archaeology of the late medieval period and the Modern Period in Russia in the last third of the 20th century and the early 21st century. Three stages are singled out. The first stage is related with the study of the earliest monasteries in Moscow (the Danilov Monastery, the Theophany Monastery, and the St. Peter High Monastery) at the end of the 1970s - early 1990s and clarification of their key characteristics as complex historical, cultural and archaeological sites. This stage is followed by more wide-scale excavations in Moscow and the startup of active studies of large monasteries in the Russian North (the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, Solovetsky Monastery); exploration of specific historical and cultural themes (excavations of burials and necropoleis; Russian headstones; construction technologies; topography). This intermediary stage is followed by the current stage characterized by multi-year excavations covering large areas; emergence of a group of scholars specialized in monastery archaeology; enlargement of practical tasks including restoration of necropoleis and separate historical graves; creation of museum expositions on the excavated sites; requirements to engage archaeologists in construction and restoration works within monasteries...