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The second part of the article deals with the issues of tracing and dating the external line of the fortifications of the city of Bolgar, which existed in pre-Mongol times. The task of this line was to defend the territory adjacent to the citadel and inhabited by craftsmen and tradesmen. Until now, it was assumed that there was only one such line. However, excavation materials indicate several lines (at least two). The problem is aggravated by very approximate dating of the ditches discovered during excavations and the absence (or extremely low degree of preservation) of embankments, which are no longer visible in the relief. Lack of reliable information about the fortification of the Bolgar at the beginning of the 13thcentury casts doubt on the catastrophic destruction of the city by the Mongols in 1236.

The article deals with the problematic issues of tracing and dating the fortifications of the city of Bolgar in pre-Mongol times (from the end of the 9th to the beginning of the 13th centuries). On the basis of topographic referencing of the excavations, in which the filled ditches were discovered, all the data available on the placement of the defense lines of the early Bolgar are systematized. There is not enough data to exactly date them, therefore, the sequence of appearance of these lines is not obvious. The ditches indicate that there were ramparts next to them, the earth of which was used for the subsequent filling of ditches. Interesting tracks, on which, immediately after filling the earlier ditch, a new one was pulled out, with an indent to the outside. The task of new studies of the early fortifications of Bolgar will be to clarify the dates of their creation and spatial distribution.

The study results of the buried soils revealed in the excavations CCV and CCVI at the Bolgar fortified settlement are presented in the paper. Buried soils content the information about past environmental conditions including anthropogenic impact. The aim of the study was to identify and show the different types of land used activity during the development of the city of Bolgar. This was done by the example of comparison of soils buried under the different parts of rampart. The investigations aimed to identification the characteristic features of soils, determination of profile horizons, pHH2O, and calculation the phosphorus content of organic carbon as well as total phosphorus and phytoliths content. Radiocarbon dating of humus horizons of buried soils was carried out. The results show that soils buried under the different parts of the ramparts have not the same characteristics and properties. This is due to the long and different anthropogenic impacts. One place (excavation CCV) was the arable land for a long time and strong agrogenic erosion. Another (excavation CCVI) have no plough horizon, it was used as a road place but we can say about eroding processes too.

The article is dedicated to the jubilee of Leonid Andreevich Belyaev, a renowned Russian archaeologist, scientific figure, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and chief editor of the Russian Archaeology journal. The milestones of his life are considered along with the role of the Volga region archaeology in his development as a researcher, as well as the contribution made by Leonid Andreevich to the study of the medieval antiquities of the Volga region. Today, Leonid Andreevich Belyaev is one of the most recognised archaeologists-medievalists solving the fundamental theoretical problems of historical science, managing large field projects, and establishing new directions in the scientific research process. The range of Leonid Andreevich’s scientific interests vividly characterizes the tremendous scope of his personality.

The long-term archaeological studies of the central part of the Golden Horde Bolgar have resulted in the discovery and study of a unique structure for Eastern Europe – the building of a town bazaar of the mid-14th century. The article considers the stages of development of the town district where the structure was erected. The study area featured the first underground iron-smelting catalan hearth studied in territory of Bolgar fortified settlement, which are similar to the “Saltovo type” of hearths in term of their design features and dated 10th century. At the end of the pre-Mongol period and during the Golden Horde period, iron production complexes were replaced with manors accommodating production facilities associated with the smelting and processing of non-ferrous metals, primarily copper. Craft industries of the region reached their highest level of development in the first half of the 14th century. This period is associated with the operation of copper-smelting, glass-working, jewellery and bone carving workshops. An iron processing district was located in the immediate vicinity of the region. Thus, the emergence of a town bazaar in the study area is in no small part related to the maximum concentration of craft industries in this area of medieval Bolgar.

The article addresses a series of container vessels (amphorae and pithoi) found during the recent digs on Bolgar, attributed as Spanish production. All finds come from layers and structures of 1330–1360s. Three groups can be distinguished among the Spanish imports, different in terms of their technological and morphological features. Two of them belong to Barcelona production (and possibly from Paterna in Valencia environs). The third group includes sherds of amphorae, probably from Andalusia (Seville?). Spanish amphorae and pithoi could be used to import such exotic products as olive oil or grape wine (?) to Eastern Europe. The examined finds demonstrate Bolgar’s far reaching trade relations in the middle of 14th century.

The categories of stock-in-trade items found during excavations of the city market building on the Bolgar city of the Golden Horde period are discussed. According to the numismatic data, the bazaar was constructed in the 1340s or 1350s, and its destruction, accompanied by a strong fire, happened in the 1360s or 1370s. The stock-in-trade items include parts of scales, weights, touchstones, lead seals. The weights of copper and lead vary in weight and origin, some bearing marks, probably indicating the weight. An attempt was made to relate them to the weighing systems common in the Muslim East – the Baghdad and Khwarezm ones. Weights and seals of Western European origin are also met. There is a group of bronze weights with relief images and lead filling inside, which had been previously attributed as “seals” or “stamps”. A series of lead pendent seals from the towns of 14th-century Flanders (Tournai, Ypres, etc.), which used to be attached to rolls of fabrics, is of interest. The absence of connection between lead mushroom-shaped weights (still called “seals”) with trade is established: they were probably intended for domestic purposes.

The ruins of a large brick building were revealed on the Bolgar city site to the southwest of the Cathedral mosque. The structure was studied during the 1989-1993, 2000 and 2011 excavations. It has been found that that its outer walls were built of baked brick and the inside walls were made of mud brick. The roofing could be beamed and resting on light pole supports. The layout of the building and the finds of stock-in-trade items confirm the hypothesis that the structure could serve as the city trade yard (marketplace) or bazaar. The coins found make it possible to date the structure back to the 1340-1350s and its collapse in the fire to the 1360-1370s. The construction features of the building point to its relationship with the architectural tradition of the Lower Volga settlements, that of Iran and Central Asia.

These are comprehensive baseline data on the geochemical composition of archeological ceramics analyzed using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The data obtained support the research article conducted to evaluate the elemental composition of 70 sherds that were collected from different locations [1], [2], [3]. The mass fractions in wt% and in mg/kg of 39 oxides and elements were determined, respectively. Quality control of analytical measurements was carried out using different certified reference materials. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses were performed. The common geochemical composition of the archeological pottery was used to decipher the provenance of ceramics and to establish reference groups based on various statistical approaches. For instance, hierarchical clustering (HC), linear discriminant analysis (LDA), principal component analysis (PCA) were used. The data was used to extract information about the important elements using machine learning (ML) methods. The obtained data show that chromium was the most important element and was used along with other elements as a fingerprint to distinguish the fragments. The chemical and statistical analyzes help to establish reference groups for medieval archeological pottery, which will be used in the future to classify and identify various unknown sherds. These reference groups serve as baseline data for determining where the fragments were made and are considered a reasonable judgment based on experimental data., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper, (© 2023 The Authors.)