Even a person far from history, when it comes to cave cities, interest is aroused, because immediately something unusual and mysterious appears. The oldest buildings, reports of which appeared about a thousand years ago, are shrouded in legends and secrets.
Invalid term
It was believed that our ancestors lived in caves, which served as both a home and a place of worship for spirits. However, scientists do not agree with this opinion, since the buildings were located on the ground, and not under it. Until today, these structures have not been preserved, and all that remains for us is the caves, which were intended to perform religious rites and domestic needs.
In the XIX century, archaeologists discovered ancient monuments, which, due to erroneous assumptions, were called "cave cities". Monasteries, small settlements or fortresses were their main part, which allowed us to consider this term conditional, because people did not live underground. However, this definition was firmly entrenched in the deserted structures erected on steep cliffs.
Museum complexes in Crimea
We know cave treasures in Jordan, Turkey, Iran, China, Spain, France, Italy and other countries. Unusually looking natural formations attract the attention of tourists from different parts of our planet with their mystery, because it is not known who the nameless masters were who turned real masterpieces in stone.
However, in the Crimea, in which various civilizations have existed for many centuries, cave cities, which are real open-air museum complexes, have been preserved. The center of unique buildings is Bakhchisaray, and tourists who dream of touching the secret begin with this city. Throughout the history of existence, the statuses of mysterious buildings of past eras and the ethnic composition of residents have changed, and their unique talent is united by those who, at the cost of great work, created stunning stone works. It is known that historical monuments even became the centers of regions, near which there were important trade routes.
Ancient monuments
Cave cities of Crimea, carved into the rocks, have nothing to do with primitive people, and many researchers believe that ancient monuments appeared during the reign of the Byzantine Empire. Although other scholars who disagree with this version claim that the history of the settlements cannot be reduced to some kind of pattern, and they arose in different eras. Residents of such cities cannot be called warriors, since their main occupations were trade and agriculture, although in case of danger they could also take up arms. It is believed that the cave cities abandoned by the inhabitants fell into decay after the Tatar-Mongol invasion in the 13th century.
Mangup Kale
Located on the Babadag mountain plateau, a unique place with incredible energy was inhabited by people until the 15th century, when it was captured by the Turks. Scientists do not have a unanimous opinion about the time of occurrence of local attractions. The largest cave city in Crimea Mangup-Kale, once called Doros, was the ancient capital of the powerful principality of Theodoro. The first mention of an unusual village dates back to the 1st century BC.
The impregnable fortress not far from Bakhchisaray, carved into the rock, really represented a real city with industrial production, a prison, a mint, a princely residence, Christian churches and other buildings. Now tourists see only the ruins of a huge ancient settlement, in which about 150 thousand people lived. Gloomy caves, in which the wind blows, beckon guests of the Crimea, who have heard about the amazing energy of this place. Here appear neon glowing balls hanging over the city and dissolving in the air, and the Tibetan lama, who visited Bakhchisarai, says that he feels the powerful power of the ancient monument.
Eski-Kermen
Ceased to exist around the XIV century, the cave city of Eski-Kermen was one of the largest and most developed. At the top of the mountain, about 400 caves were hollowed out, which were used as living quarters and warehouses for household needs. Later, the inhabitants of the fortress built ground structures and surrounded them with defensive walls. In the heart of the city was the main temple, the ruins of which can be seen now. In addition to it, other religious buildings were located here, and the temple of the Three Horsemen deserves special attention, where wall murals have been preserved.
The complex, located a few kilometers from the village of Red Poppy, whose name translates as "old fortress", delights all visitors. Here there are ruins of land structures, casemates, a necropolis, a granary, and a well 30 meters deep. Tourists look with regret at the time-damaged rooms cut down in the mountain.
It can be said that Eski-Kermen, which lies in ruins, is a real cave kingdom, providing its guests with a variety of underground structures that it is impossible to meet in one day. Often, defensive towers were erected along the fortress walls, and here nature itself contributed to the protection of people and created rocky capes that protruded beyond the plateau.
Scientists suggest that the medieval cave settlement was built by the Byzantines, but no one knows the time and cause of his death. Perhaps it was destroyed by the Mongol warriors.
Chufut-Kale
The main defensive center of Byzantium recognized the cave city of Chufut-Kale, the exact date of occurrence of which has not been established. It is known that the Tatars captured it at the end of the XIII century, and two centuries later the fortress was the first capital of the Crimean Khanate. Here they kept in custody rich people for whom ransoms were requested. It is known that among the prisoners there were Russian ambassadors and the Polish hetman, who fought against the Cossacks - the old enemies of the Crimean Tatars, but even this fact did not help him. Khan Haji Giray did not divide anyone into allies and opponents and demanded a ransom for each. But the Russian governor Sheremetev, for whom Kazan and Astrakhan requested no less, spent almost 20 years in the walls of the fortress.
When the Tatars left the city, they were settled by Karaites engaged in leather dressing. In the afternoon they traded in Bakhchisarai, and from evening to morning guarded Chufut-Kale. New residents added another wall, as a result of which the cave city increased in size. Now it was divided into two parts, and each could independently hold the defense. It was during this period that it got its name, which translates as "double fortress", a historical monument. During the reign of Anna Ioannovna, Russian soldiers who captured Bakhchisarai destroyed the cave complex.
Surprisingly, in the very center of Chufut-Kale, the first printing house in the Crimea was built, which began its work in 1731. Inside the city, festive services were organized, to which believers gathered, they tried those who violated the moral standards of the community.
Tepe Kermen
When it comes to cave cities, one cannot fail to mention one of the most mysterious monuments of our history. An ancient fortress resembling an uninhabited island appeared in the VI century. A defensive structure hollowed out in a rock is not as easy to destroy as ground structures. The cave city of Tepe-Kermen, which was compared to a giant altar towering above the valley, is visible from afar. Scientists judge its size by the remaining complexes, well preserved to this day.
This is the so-called dead city, the former name of which history has not preserved. From the eleventh to the thirteenth century, the heyday of the settlement fell, which became the major center of the Kacha Valley, but already in the fourteenth century, due to the constant attacks of the Tatars, life was dying away, and the only inhabitants were the monks who left the fortress after several decades.
Archaeologists have discovered more than 250 artificial caves that differ in shape and purpose. They contained both burial complexes and utility depots. By the way, many rooms reached six tiers, and it was possible to get to the upper floors only from a mountain plateau, and cattle were kept in the lower.
Riddles of an ancient building
Many caves were closed with wooden doors and were divided by partitions into several rooms. Scientists have discovered an unusual religious structure, stretched from north to south, and not along the axis, as is customary among Christians. But the most interesting thing is that unknown architects cut a window with a secret: on Easter days the light falls so that the shape of a cross appears on the wall.
Menhir is also surprising, resembling a sundial in shape, in which, according to researchers, all the strength and power of the destroyed ancient city is hidden.
Multi-storey complex Vardzia
Not only Crimea can boast of unique sights, the visit of which excites the imagination. In Georgia, there is Vardzia - the cave city of Queen Tamara, considered a tourist Mecca. Appearing about eight centuries ago, it is carved into a mountain monolith. And this is a whole multi-storey complex, inside of which there are streets, stairs, tunnels. Six hundred rooms are connected by secret passages, extending to the height of an eight-story building and 50 meters deep into the cliffs.
The city, containing up to 20 thousand people, also performed a spiritual function, since it was also a monastery, in the center of which architects carved the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin. Fragments of beautiful frescoes created in the 12th century are preserved in the religious building. There is a legend saying that Queen Tamara is buried here.
When Vardzia suffered from an earthquake, the cave city ceased to be an impregnable fortress, and after the Mongol invasion fell into decay. Today, the historical monument is declared a museum reserve.
