Unique places in Russia that you have hardly heard of: Divnogorie

Continuing to travel across Russia, we go to the central region of its European part - to the Voronezh region. This region has a glorious history and is known for its black soil. But few people know that there is a unique place there, somewhat reminiscent of the lost world of Conan Doyle. Welcome to Divnogorie - the land of stone Divas!

Divnogorie plateau

“When approaching the Quiet Pine and videhom, the stone pillars are white, marvelously and red, stand side by side, as if they are small, white and light green, over the river above the Pine”, - this is how he wrote in 1389 about the place where the winding Quiet Pine flows into the mighty Don, traveler Ignatius Smolyanin.

The plain towering over the river, in the middle of which there are white boulders, seemed to our ancestors an unprecedented marvel. That's what they called her - Divnogorie. Centuries have passed, but today this ancient place cannot be called anything other than a miracle.

Divnogorye is a steppe plateau in the Liskinsky district of the Voronezh region. From a geological point of view, it is a chalk sediment - solid layers of chalk covered with a thin layer of soil. This is evidence of the distant past of the Earth: continents formed, oceans parted.

Cretaceous outliers in the form of pillars are multi-meter giants, towering in different parts of the plateau. Once there were about twenty of them, but now there are only six left. Locals call them Divas.

Photo: CatTheSun / Photogenica

The plateau has a special microclimate: the raised surface heats up quickly, and the hot air disperses the clouds; the weather is usually dry and hot. Surprisingly, despite such peculiarities of the climate and soil, more than 40 species of unique plants grow on the territory of the plateau and rare animals are found.

For the flora of Divnogorie, scientists call the plateau "Lowered Alps". In spring, the plain is replete with wildflowers: katran, adonis, breach; turns brown-green in summer. In the middle of the last century, a protective strip of maples and ash trees was planted on the plateau. Due to the peculiarities of the chalky soil and low humidity, the trees still seem young.

Divnogorie plateau

It is located at the confluence of the Tikhaya Sosna and Don rivers.

Unique soil in Divnogorie

Photos: 1, 2, 3

The fauna of the plateau is no less unique. There are rare bustards and golden eagles, many owls, larks, harriers. Among mammals, you can find a hare, a fox, a ferret.

For nature alone, the Divnogorskoe plateau can be considered a reserve. But these places are also unique from a cultural point of view. Remains of the Khazar villages of the 9th century, cave temples, an ancient monastery and chalk Divas make up today the Divnogorie Museum-Reserve.

What to see in Divnogorie?

Proposals to assign the status of a reserve to Divnogor were heard at the beginning of the twentieth century. But with the advent of Soviet power, the natural and cultural value of these places was forgotten. The monastery, which had been operating there since the 17th century, was closed, placing first a rest house and then a hospital for tuberculosis patients.

Only in 1988 a museum was opened in Divnogorye (a branch of the Voronezh Museum of Local Lore). Divnogorye received the status of a state natural architectural and archaeological museum-reserve in 1991.

Currently, the area of this open-air museum is about 11 square meters. km. It includes several attractions, the main of which are the Mayatskoye settlement and the Assumption Monastery with cave temples (Big and Small Divas).

Mayack settlement

The Mayatskoye settlement is an archaeological site of the 9th-10th centuries. In those distant times, Divnogorie was inhabited by Alanian tribes. This semi-nomadic people founded several settlements here, cultivated the floodplain lands near the plateau, and engaged in pottery.

Politically, this land belonged to the Khazar Kaganate. The Khazars needed reliable outposts that would protect it from the oppression of the Slavs. One of these was the Mayatskoye settlement. The settlements of the Don Alans were surrounded by a white-stone fortress with six-meter ramparts, and a deep ditch was dug at the walls.

The fortress performed defensive and fiscal functions (local residents brought tribute to the Khazar Kaganate there). In addition, trade caravans stopped there to rest and change horses.

In the 10th century, the fortress began to be exposed to the raids of the Pechenegs. At the same time, the Khazar state weakened. The Don Alans, together with the Khazar governors, left the settlement.

Archaeological park

Dwelling of Alanian tribes

Life of the Alanian tribes

Photos: 1-3

At present, the Mayatskoye settlement includes the remains of a white-stone fortress and settlements, as well as a burial ground and pottery workshops. Here you can see artifacts found during excavations: dishes, jewelry, weapons, etc.

But most clearly the life of the Don Alans is demonstrated by the archaeological park, located not far from the settlement. This is a reconstruction of a village from the 9th-10th centuries. Semi-dugouts, adobe huts, similar to yurts, household items - you look and think: "Did people really live like this?"

Big and Small Divas

There is a beautiful legend that in the XII century, two Greek monks Xenophon and Ioasaph, who lived in Italy, tired of the attacks of Catholics, left for Russia. They took with them an icon of the Sicilian Mother of God. The monks came to Divnogorie, saw chalk pillars and dug a skete in one of them.

However, there is no written evidence of this. Divnogorsk Monastery was officially founded in 1653 with the aim of protecting against the raids of the Tatars.

The two main buildings of the monastery are cave churches in the Big and Small Divas.

Bolshiye Divy is a two-story cave, carved into the rock of one of the chalk outliers. It was there in 1831, according to legend, that the icon of the Sicilian Mother of God was found, allegedly brought once by Xenophon and Joasaph. (At present, the original of the icon has been lost.) After some time, the cave came under the jurisdiction of the Divnogorsk Monastery and became a temple.

Church in Big Divas

The temple bears the name of the Sicilian icon of the Mother of God

Photo: nikolay_safonov / Photogenica, tiplyashin / Photogenica, vlad_k / Photogenica

The church has an unusual architecture. On the first "floor" there is an altar and long corridors with semicircular arches; on the second - the upper rooms where the monks once lived. Inside the temple, the temperature is the same all year round - about 12–15 ºС of heat.

There is a staircase next to the church. If you climb it, you will see a wonderful view of the plateau. And opposite the temple there is a spring, the water in which is considered sacred.

Another cave church of the Divnogorsk Monastery (Small Divas) is named after John the Baptist. It is smaller in size, but inside it is quite similar to the church in Big Divas.

In general, there are much more caves on the territory of Divnogorye. Monks who have lived here for centuries dug complex underground passages so that they could take refuge in times of trouble.

What to do in Divnogorie?

The best time to visit Divnogorie is late spring: the plateau is filled with bright colors of flowering plants and their heady aromas. In addition, at this time it is not yet as hot as in summer.

Of course, item number 1 in the program of events in Divnogorye is a visit to the museum-reserve. Since it is located in the open air, the entrance to it is free - you can wander for hours admiring the local beauty. But in order to get to the museum objects located on the territory of the reserve, for example, to the archaeological park, you will have to buy an entrance ticket. At the same time, like any institution, the museum has its own opening hours.

If you want to get inside the cave temples, you will have to sign up for an excursion. This can be done in the administration house, which is not far from the Divnogorie farm.

Also at the administration you can buy a tour along one of the proposed routes. In this case, a guide will lead you through all the objects and tell you about the history and mythology of these places. But the prices for excursions, frankly, bite.

Photo: nikolay_safonov / Photogenica

Great luck if you visit Divnogorie on days when various events are held there (usually this time is from the beginning of May to the end of August): ethnographic holidays, historical performances, exhibitions, plein airs and much more. As a rule, entertainment programs are held on the territory of the so-called Divnogorsk courtyard (a stylized estate serving as a platform for holding folklore festivals and master classes for artisans).

The plateau is located on the Tikhaya Pine River. The coastal zone is a favorite place for tourists with tents. It is allowed to make fires on the shore, and to fish and swim in the river. Therefore, a visit to Divnogorye can become for you not only an acquaintance with natural and cultural monuments, but also an excellent rest.

By the way, for lovers of active pastime, the Museum-Reserve organizes kayak rental for rafting down the Quiet Pine.

Item number 2 of the minimum program when visiting Divnogorye - Divnogorsky canyon. It is located not far from the Mayatsky settlement and is a bizarre ribbed chalk ravine with a depth of about 30 m. This is an amazing place for photography: you can catch more than a dozen picturesque shots.

How to get to Divnogorye?

Divnogorye is located 80 km south of Voronezh.

Museum address: Voronezh region, Liskinsky district, Divnogorye farm.

You can get there by road and rail.

By car

The distance from Voronezh to the Divnogorye farm is 150 km.

If you go not by your own car, but by public transport, please note that there is no direct bus from the regional center to the farm. You can get to the city of Liski. Several flights run daily (see the schedule for more details here). There is also a bus from Liski to the Divnogorye farm (route: Liski - Kovalevo to the Divnogorie farm; departure time: 11:15).

From Moscow to the farm Divnogorye - 650 km. In this case, the path runs along the federal highway M4 (route E115). After passing Voronezh, you need to turn onto Liski, and then go through the settlements Nikolskoye and Kovalevo and, before reaching Selyavnoye, turn to Divnogorie.

There is a parking lot for automobile transport on the territory of the museum-reserve.

By train

You can also get from Voronezh to Divnogorye by electric train. True, you will have to go with a change. So, first you need to get to the Liski station, and then to the station 143 km.

A detailed timetable for all trains is available on Yandex.

Note! You should get off exactly at the station 143 km, and not at the Divnogorskaya station, which is located a little earlier along the route. Platform 143 km is located in close proximity to the administration building of the Divnogorye Museum-Reserve. This is a convenient starting point to start your excursion.

Why is it worth seeing Divnogorie?

Wonder … According to etymology, this word comes from the ancient "deva", that is, "deity", "spirits." Epochs changed - pronunciation changed, but the root remained unchanged. Gradually the "devas" became "dives" and the "dives" became "divas". And what, if not a deity, were the boulders for the tribes and peoples who lived on the plateau?

Looking at these places, one does not leave the feeling of something outlandish. Ancient natural landscapes and ancient architectural monuments peacefully coexist with each other, creating a unique atmosphere.

Divnogorsk Divas

The nature of Divnogorie

View of the monastery

How old are the chalk Divas? It is not known for certain. But one thing is clear: they stood under the Khazars and Pechenegs, they survived the Russian Empire and Soviet power. Divnogorsk pillars will certainly amaze our great-grandchildren, but we still have a unique opportunity to see the Divas with our own eyes.