© Ville Laakso 1998-2008.
The archaeological research project of
Papinniemi in Uukuniemi, eastern
At the
archaeological site of Papinniemi in Uukuniemi, eastern
Papinniemi is one of the numerous Greek Orthodox settlements that existed in
Papinniemi is an archaeological site protected by the Finnish law.
Archaeological excavations at the site have begun in 1995 and are going to
continue for many years. In charge of the excavations is the Archaeology
Department of the
The exceptionally rich finds of Papinniemi make
the site unique in eastern Finland, where the Orthodox culture or the
historical period in general have not been archaeologically researched in any
extent until recently.
The Chronicle of Uukuniemi Papinniemi
AD 1500 The
1580-97 The
1589 Uukuniemi is mentioned to have an orthodox chapel church. It is
situated in the
1597-1614 Uukuniemi becomes an independent parish with an Orthodox parish church. The exact date is not known.
1611
1618 In a tax book, four houses are mentioned as being situated na pogoste or near the church. Most probably this refers to the Papinniemi area.
1638 Jaakkima, son of Terentti, is mentioned as the Greek Orthodox priest of Uukuniemi.
1642 Ilja, son of Jyrki,
is mentioned as the Greek Orthodox priest of Uukuniemi.
A map from the 1650's
presenting the two churches of
Uukuniemi. Top left is the newer Lutheran church,
and bottom right is the Orthodox church in Papinniemi.
The National Archives of
1651 According to the tax books the majority of the people of Uukuniemi are still Orthodox in the beginning of the 1650s.
1656-58 The so-called Rupture war between
1657 The last priest of the Orthodox parish of Uukuniemi, Ilja, son of Iivana, flees with
his three sons to the town of
1694 By now almost all the inhabitants of Uukuniemi are Lutherans.
There is still one Orthodox family in the
1804 First map showing the Papinniemi area in detail. There are no longer any houses in the vicinity of the future excavation area.
1882 The Papinniemi site is mentioned in the archaeological literature
for the first time as Kustaa Killinen
visits the place. According to oral tradition there has been an orthodox church
and a cemetery at the site, which is now a meadow. A huge pine-tree called the
Altar Pine is growing at a place which is said to be the location of the altar
of the Orthodox Church. The pine is said still to be worshipped by many people.
Stone
1935 There are 62 Greek Orthodox inhabitants in the parish of Uukuniemi, i.e. about 1% of the total population.
c. 1955 The altar pine is blown to pieces by the landowner, who doesn't like the amount of the people who come to see it.
1986 Olavi Ahokas,
who was born in Uukuniemi, takes interest in the Papinniemi site, after having
heard from his father stories of an orthodox church at the site. He finds and
brings to the
1993 Olavi Ahokas finds around a thousand coins from the mid-1600s at the site. They were hidden half a meter under the ground, wrapped into birch bark. Other finds include the clapper of a Churchill, weighing 6 kilos, a piece of a crucifix pendant, an icon pendant of bronze, three finger rings, about a dozen of coins from the 18th-19th centuries, as well as many finds indicating settlement at the site (e.g. ceramics, a lock, nails, knives, a fish-hook). The site is inspected by Markus Hiekkanen from the National Board of Antiquities and defined as an archaeological site, protected by law. Hiekkanen concludes that since settlement finds are so numerous and come from a large area, there probably has been a whole deserted orthodox village at the site.
The icon pendant found in
1996.
Photo © Ville Laakso.
1995 Trial excavations at Uukuniemi Papinniemi begin under the supervision of Leena Lehtinen from the Provincial Museum of Savonlinna. Finds include ceramics, glass, nails and a Russian coin from c. 1700.
1996 The trial excavations continue under the Archaeology Department
of University of
1997 Three weeks' fieldwork is completed in July. First house floor in the area is found and partially excavated. Lots of burnt clay, ceramics and some smaller metal artifacts are found.
1998 Another three weeks of excavation takes place in May-June. Among
others two cross pendants and pieces of other two pendants are found in the house
floor. One Russian and three Swedish coins dating from mid 16th century to mid
17th century are also found. Other finds include again ceramics, lots of burnt
clay, and e.g. a fish hook. The cemetery is located as two graves of east -
west orientation are found. Because of lack of time the graves are not
excavated until 1999.
The cross pendants found in 1998.
Photo © Ville Laakso.
1999 The fifth season of fieldwork. In three weeks during May-June
the house floor is excavated further and one of the numerous clearance
2000 In May-July two separate excavations are organized in Papinniemi, lasting one month in all. In the house floor ceramics, coins, different kinds of small metal artefacts, and glass, e.g. pieces of a green bottle, are found. In the cemetery another grave is excavated.
2001 The seventh season of fieldwork. In February, a pollen sample
was taken from a small lake called Kirkkolampi, c. two kilometers from the
site, for palaeoecological analysis of the
surroundings of Papinniemi. Analysis of the sample will bring new information
on the settlement history of the Uukuniemi and
2002 Excavations lasted for three weeks in July-August; the fieldwork was led by Hanna-Maria Pellinen, MA. Four inhumation graves were excavated and documented. Trial excavations of the area were also continued. Finds included ceramics, pieces of iron artefacts, and burnt clay.
2003 The ninth season of fieldwork. Part of the site of the Orthodox
Church was excavated in June-July. This was the first ever excavation of such a
site in
2004 The find location of the coin treasure from the year 2003 is excavated more closely. Several more coins are found.
2005 The excavations continue in July, in small scale.
2006 The excavations and general mapping of the area continue in October.
2007 The excavations and general mapping of the area continue in October.
Participating in the Archaeological Research Project of Uukuniemi Papinniemi are:
University of
Turku, Department of Archaeology
National Board of Antiquities
Supporting the project:
The Orthodoxian Church of Finland
Some other links to archaeology, prehistory and history:
Byzantine & Medieval Web
Links
The Finnish History Network
A short history of Karelia by Mauri
Rastas
Medieval Castles
in Finland
Comments and additional information e-mail to: vilaakso@utu.fi.
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