Archaeological Sites of Podillia in Scientific Heritage of Serhii Hamchenko (on materials from 1909 to 1913).

Abstract

The purpose of the research paper is to study the available materials of the personal fund of S. Hamchenko, related to archaeological studies in the territory of Podillia from 1909 to 1913, to determine their potential for modern archaeological, historical, and local lore studies. The scientific novelty. For the first time, the content of Serhii Hamchenko’s personal archival fund, which is stored in the Scientific Archive of the Institute of Archaeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, is studied thoroughly in detail for the presence of materials related to the archaeological sites of Podillia. The high volume of the available materials, their completeness, and prospects for further study in both archaeological science and local history are analyzed.

Conclusions. Serhii Spyrydonovych Hamchenko was undoubtedly an extraordinary person in the world of archaeological science. For five years, he performed colossal research work on the identification and study of archaeological sites associated with different cultures in the territory of Podillia gubernia. To this day, the entire volume of his work has not been introduced into scientific circulation, because a large number of works are preserved in handwritten, and even draft, versions, which require scrupulous and professional work on them. The scholar’s materials are represented with finds dating from the Stone Age to the Early Slavic times. The digitalization of Serhii Hamchenko’s fund has become an important step in making the achievements of Ukrainian archaeology more accessible to scholars. However, this should be only the first step, because the Scientific Archive of the Institute of Archaeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine contains numerous funds that could help both practical archaeology and researchers of the history of archaeological studies, local historians, and genealogists. Familiarization with the materials of S. Hamchenko’s fund shows that it needs careful scientific processing, systematization of materials because even within one folder (writing-book, notebook, collection, etc.), the materials are unsystematized (as evidenced by our description of the diary for 1909). Almost the entire fund is represented by handwritten materials, which, due to the peculiarities of the scholar’s handwriting, require deciphering and commentary by experts in archaeology, familiar with the scientific heritage of the scholar and the described objects.We are deeply convinced that only a full-fledged archaeographic publication of the materials of the fund will give the opportunity to maximize their introduction into scientific circulation.