Mysteries of the ―small town‖: from the history of the graphic reconstruction of the Voronezh fortress in 1670

Abstract

Introduction. The Voronezh fortress of 1670 is one of the largest outposts on the southeastern edge of the Russian state. However, the exact location and configuration of the walls and towers of this fortress are still unknown, which serves as a serious obstacle when making its plans. This article is devoted to the problem of graphic reconstruction of the most mysterious part of the Voronezh fortress - the so-called "small town" (detinets), which can serve as a key to reconstructing its external appearance and internal structure. Materials and methods. The absence of a description of the walls of a small town in the Built Book of 1670, as well as the loss of the former landscape, make graphic reconstruction the main means of studying the question of its exact location. The article analyzes four small town plans developed by researchers G. A. Karimov, V. A. Mitin, P. A. Popov and A. I. Dedov in 1977-2011. Results. Based on the descriptions of the Voronezh fortress of the second half of the 17th century, the main "riddles" of the small town are determined (the exact position of its three towers, the total length of the walls and the location of two hiding places); the main variants of its graphic reconstruction are considered (their sources, distinctive features and the degree of compliance with the available descriptions); a comparative analysis of the plans of the small town is carried out for the most reasonable solution of the riddles listed below. Conclusion. At the moment there are two main options for localization of the small town of the Voronezh fortress of 1670: at the beginning of the ravine along Voroshilova Street and between this ravine and Sevastyanovsky congress. Of these, the plan of the Voronezh fortress by V. A. Mitin should be recognized as the most promising for further development. At the same time, the configuration of the small town proposed by the researcher (in the form of a figure eight) needs to be finalized, because the fact of its expansion during the last rebuilding of the fortress in 1670 is not proved.