View from the lighthouse to the remains of the Slavic settlement. Now tourists are brought here and no secrets of its Slavic origin are made.
So the events with the "digging up and burying" of the Slavic boats found in the ground did take place. But, as in the case of the memorable "Fiuma Incident", it was all "a little different." We can say that it is not at all! But about how it really was, it is probably worth telling in more detail. Learning, they say, is light, but for some reason non-scientists are still darkness! So we'll scatter it a little …
And it so happened that back in 1967 in the city of Ralsvik on the legendary island of Rügen, which at that time belonged to the GDR (the German Democratic Republic, our satellite and a member of the Warsaw Pact), they found an ancient Slavic boat, later completely reconstructed. Now we will again move somewhat away from the "lodge theme", since it is necessary to explain why this island is legendary. The fact is that once upon a time, namely a very long time ago, tribes of Rugians or Ruians lived on this island, belonging to the Slavic clan-tribe. In general, the Slavs were there unequivocally, because on the island on Cape Arkona there was a temple of the god Svyatovit (or Sventovit), which was very popular among the neighboring peoples. Why Svyatovita and Svyatovita at all, and who decided so, and why, I do not know. And to be honest, I am not at all interested in finding out. The knowledge that these same Ruyans were engaged in cattle breeding, farming and fishing is also enough. And, by the way, it would be strange if they did not do this, living on an island in the middle of the Baltic. They also had a large fleet and were engaged in trade with Scandinavia and the Baltic states, and also went on military campaigns, fought with their neighbors. These wars ended unsuccessfully for the Ruyans, in 1168 their capital Arkona was destroyed, and the temple of Sventovit (Svyatovit) was destroyed. In fact, the Slavic Ruyan dialect had ceased to exist by the 16th century. Moreover, it is even known which of the nobility was the last to speak it. A kind of the last of the Mohicans, that is, of the Ruyans! Well, and then, whoever was there, right up to the Soviet army, which was stationed on the island until 1992. So the opening of the mentioned rooks took place back in Soviet times. And as always in the most banal way.
A mound on the island of Rügen with sacrificial stones at the top.
Road works were carried out, and the bucket of an excavator lifted oak planks fastened with wooden dowels from the ground. The builder carried his find to the archaeologists working nearby, they began to dig and very soon found four ancient Slavic ships and a large trading settlement that had existed since the VIII century. Today it is believed that it was here, in a bay well protected from the weather, that the Ruyan fleet was based. They also found traces of a fire, so that the city, which was here, obviously died as a result of an enemy attack. They also found a treasure of 2,203 Arab dirhams (that's where they got from the East, such was globalization at that time, no worse than today!). It may well be that these boats were buried in a hurry by the Ruyans in order to hide them from their enemies.
And since this archaeological discovery did not happen yesterday, but in the late 60s, these ships had to be buried back in the ground, since there was no money for their conservation. Planning is the foundation of a socialist society! Everything should be according to plan, and work on these boats was not foreseen, then finance - bye! And there were no rich patrons, they were still equal! And where does the money for conservation and restoration come from? Who will give them? They were dug up again in 1980 to show them at an international conference. Here, they say, what we have. We sit on values, but neither ourselves nor people! And in the end, as they dug it up, they buried it again, they could not think of anything better than to bury these most valuable finds again. And it is not known how long these strange manipulations of a purely "soviet type" would have continued if the unification of Germany had not taken place. In the new German state, money was immediately found, as, by the way, they were also found in the Czech Republic, where the Krumlov castle was abandoned in Soviet times, and then they immediately began to restore and restore it so that today it is just a feast for the eyes. So it was only with the fall of the Berlin Wall in Germany that the time came for an adequate attitude to historical values of world importance, and in 1993 the boats were dug out again for the third time. And they did not just dug out, but began to preserve them, and after a while they also created a working group to recreate the best-preserved boat. It is believed that this boat was built around 977 from oak timber from Rügen or Pomorie; Moreover, it is the use of wooden dowels that suggests that the Slavs built this ship, since the same Scandinavian Vikings used iron nails.
In 1999, the archaeological community of Mecklenburg published a small but beautifully illustrated brochure that told about the history of the reconstruction of this vessel. Moreover, the reenactors made two identical boats at once, so that the memory of the Slavic roots in Germany is not buried in the ground on purpose and no one betrays anathema. What was, what was. Overgrown with dust.
Here is a find from Ralsvik, 1993.
Drawing of the ship for reconstruction.
Danish specialist Hanus Jensen was invited to help with the reconstruction, who had already restored the Viking ships. The reconstruction was carried out using both the technology and the tools of that time. The material for the boat - oak - was brought from Gross Raden.
The boards were obtained by splitting the trunk in two with a wedge. After that, each half of the trunk, in turn, was split into boards.
This is what happened as a result of this operation.
The boards were hewn with an ax to the desired thickness. Hence, by the way, the name - tes! Remember? "If we are three of us together, we will open the board gates!" All it took was to split three trunks. And process 11, 580 cubic meters. m of wood! Truly, such work must be loved very much! And still it was necessary to soak the finished boards in water. This was followed by processing the stems.
A set of tools of the time.
To give the boards a curved shape, they were heated over coals and moistened with water. Then the sides were sheathed with them, using wooden pins instead of nails. Then the vessels were first caulked and then tarred.
This is how wooden pins were made.
As a result, the vessels turned out, and today you can see them. In terms of value, this is not much inferior to the finds in Oseberg and Gokstad. Here it is, our past and the past of the peoples of that distant era!
