Women of the Rurik dynasty in the Semiotic space of the Princely necropolis (late 11th–70s of the 12th centuries)

The purpose of this article is to investigate the role and significance of women from the Rurik dynasty within the semiotic system of burials during the late 11th and 70s of the 12th centuries. The noveltyof this study lies in its focus on the female burials of the dynasty as a distinct object of research, based on two positions: about women as an essential component of matrimonial strategies among medieval elites, and the extreme selectiveness of Russian chroniclers in recording information about women's graves. This study analyzes chronicle texts about representatives of the dynasty who were wives or daughters of princes of Kiev. The author has selected news about women whose burial sites are mentioned in the chronicles, within the indicated chronology and geography. The information about burials has been divided into two large groups: those in family monasteries and those in monasteries without the status of a family tomb. Based on the analysis, several final conclusions were reached. The chronicler referred to the burial sites of women from the Rurik Dynasty in non-trivial cases, from the perspective of medieval morality and worldview. These were instances of disruptions to the functioning of matrimonial ties and strategies. Most often, these events were embedded in the political agenda of the time, where the role of a woman from the dynasty became crucial in symbolically consolidating the power claims of a particular branch of the Rurik family.