Ukraine - Cultural Landscape of “Cave Towns” of the Crimean Gothia

Mangup-Kale: N44 35 32 E33 48 01 Eski-Kermen: N44 36 35 E33 44 22 Crimean Gothia appeared as a specific polity in the 3rd-4th centuries AD as a result of the Gothic tribes' migration to the northern Black Sea area. In the 6th cen­tury, the Goths and the Alans became phoideratoi (allies) of the Byzantine Empire and therefore numerous fortresses and fortified settlements were built in the mountainous Crimean area to protect the local population and the Empire's northern frontiers. During the complicated historical events of the 13th-14th centuries, an autonomous principality of Theodoro appeared in this area. This principality is considered to be the legal successor of the Crimean Gothia. The most important medieval settlements of the Crimean Gothia have acquired a specific naming, that of “cave towns”, due to their specific nature. Today we know about 10 sites of this type that look like monadnocks covered by the remains of the urban buildings and numerous cave constructions that sit on the tops and slopes of the plateaux they occupy. Among the numerous settlements situated in the area there are two - Mangup-Kale and Eski-Kermen, which are the largest in size and the most outstanding in value for the Crimean Gothia, the land with deep historical roots and unique natural landscapes.