The first chapter of the project examines issues related to the discovery of the first Paleolithic site in Russia - Voennyi Gospital in 1871. Considering 20-year-gap since the last publication included comprehensive historiographical review of the materials of the site in the proceedings of the International Symposium “Modern Problems of Paleolithic Studies of Eurasia”, this paper is a new attempt of “research” reflection, timed to the 150th anniversary of the discovery of the Irkutsk Paleolithic. A detailed analysis of the first publications about the site is presented as well as a historiographical review detailing the process of acceptance and interpretation of Voennyi Gospital site in the academic world. The results clearly indicate the location of site on the territory of the current Military Hospital on Hospital Street in Irkutsk, thereby refuting the hypothesis put forward in the early 2000s about its placement on the brick sheds of Kosovich. In addition, with links to relevant articles and reports of the East Siberian Branch of Imperial Russian Geographical Society, the composition of the paleofauna collected by I. D. Cherskii is analyzed in detail; the destruction of the main part of the collection in the fire of 1879 was confirmed; the typological content of the Cherskii’s term “stone arrows” was revealed. The materials of the historiographical review show the difficult path of acceptance in the academic world of the Paleolithic character of Voennyi Gospital, its connection with the discovery of the Malta site. Despite the fact that the source data is built on materials that have already been processed many times, the authors propose a more detailed approach to the study of problematic issues of historiographical research, including an updated composition of the collection obtained by I. D. Cherskii.

Entheseal changes (EC)--morphological changes to muscle and ligament attachment sites on the skeleton--have been used by bioarchaeologists since the 1990s to understand past activity patterns such as mobility, subsistence strategies, and gendered division of labour. Entheseal interpretations are based on the concept of bone functional adaptation, where bone morphology reflects mechanical stress during life. However, the relationship between entheseal changes and activity is complex because multiple confounding variables, including age, sex, body size, and genes can affect entheseal expression. This article discusses application of EC research in bioarchaeology by 1) describing entheses, entheseal changes, and documentation methods; and 2) summarizing the main factors influencing entheseal morphologyand outlining the benefits and limitations of this research. In addition, because the use of EC methods on archaeological populations with supporting data can bolster interpretations of activity in the past, an example of its application to Neolithic and Bronze Age human remains from the Cis-Baikal region in Eastern Siberia is discussed. Overall, entheseal changes can be difficult to link with activity due to their multifactorial etiology, various methodological challenges, and the limitations of working with human remains. However, recent studies continue to demonstrate the usefulness of these methods to reconstruct activity of past populations.

The article presents the results of the analysis and interpretation of materials of the warrior burial from mound No. 9 of the Karban-I necropolis of the Bulan-Koby culture, excavated in 1989 by the expedition of the Barnaul State Pedagogical Institute (now the Altai State Pedagogical University). This complex is located in the Chemal district of the Altai Republic, on the left bank of the Katun River, 1.7 km northwest of the Kuyus village. The recorded features of the burial structures (mound with an oval-shaped crepe-laying, a shallow grave pit, a stone box) and the method of inhumation (a single corpse lying on the back, the orientation of the deceased to the western sector of the horizon, without the accompanying burial of a horse) testify to the belonging of this object to the Karban ritual tradition of the Altai population in II century BC - V century AD. The authors carried out a detailed description of the accompanying inventory, represented by weapons (bow, iron arrowhead, dagger), equipment (belt buckles), tools (bone arrowheads, knife, awl) and jewelry (beads). Mutual occurrence of items made it possible to date the considered burial by the early Xianbei period (II - first half of 3rd centuries AD). It is concluded that the buried man belonged to the ordinary population of the Bulan-Koby society, apparently, to its prosperous part. This individual could be part of a group of professional warriors who made up the lightly armed cavalry. The published data expand the range of sources for studying the evolution of the society of pastoralists of the Northern Altai in the first third of the I millennium AD, and also update the conduct of research aimed at identifying burial sites of the early stage of the White-Bom stage of the Bulan-Koby culture.

The article provides information about the medieval hillforts - Bolonskoye-1, Bolonskoye-2 and Kadachan, located in Khabarovsk Territory in the region of the largest lake in the Lower Amur region - Bolon. The Bolonskoye hillfort-1 is located in 1.5 km south-south-east of the central part of the village Achan, on unnamed peninsula, between the riverbed Amur River and Lake Bolon. The peninsula is washed from the east by the Nakki channel, from the north by the Siy channel, from the west by the Muli and Ekchen channels. The hillfort was discovered in 1965 by members of the Far Eastern Archaeological Expedition of the Institute of History, Philology and Philosophy of the Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences, headed by Academician A. P. Okladnikov. The hillfort and the ground burial cemetery located 0.5 km from it, were attributed by V. E. Medvedev to the culture of the Amur Jurchens and date back to the 11th century. A survey by the author of this fortification in 2020-2021 showed that the Bolonskoye hillfort-1 is a valley settlement in terms of its geophysical location, simple in terms of planigraphy, with a double rampart open along the perimeter with passages in the form of gaps. There are no analogues of the Bolon hillfort-1 among the known settlements and fortified settlements of the Eastern Amur region. The Bolonskoye hillfort-2 was discovered in 2016. The fortification belongs to the cape type of fortification. It is a rectangular trapezoid in shape, without additional internal fortifications and towers. The site has two layers. The lower layer belongs to the Voznesenovskaya culture, the upper one is represented by the Mohe culture and dates back to the 1st millennium AD. According to its shape and topographic characteristics, it corresponds to the Sikachi-Alyan settlement of the Mohe culture. The Kadachan hillfort belongs to the cape type and represents the culture of the Amur Jurchens (Pokrovskaya). Thus, the three surveyed fortifications of the Mohe and Jurchen cultures near Lake Bolon testify that this territory required protection, including the waterway passing here.

By the end of the Middle Ages, in the traditional Jewish society of Europe the most important religious institution of Judaism, which regulating the life of the community in matters of burial and mourning had arisen. It was called the funeral brotherhood (holy brotherhood, Chevra Kadisha) and functioned in all Jewish communities without exception in Europe and Russia until the beginning of World War II. The burial brotherhood was necessary for any community for two reasons. Firstly, the closest relative of the deceased was forbidden to engage in the burial of the deceased themselves. Secondly, this organization made it possible for every Jew to perform Gmilut Hassadim, the so-called good deeds from a pure heart, prescribed for execution by Jewish law. It was an honor to be a member of the funeral brotherhood, and the condition of membership in it was the impeccable fulfillment of the commandments of the Torah. All rituals associated with the funeral were performed by members of the brotherhood free of charge, however, the relatives of the deceased paid the brotherhood for a place in the cemetery and organization of the funeral. As a result, any funeral brotherhood had a significant amount of money, which it used for further charity (maintenance of Jewish schools, colleges, libraries, almshouses, shelters, hospitals, etc.). By the middle of the 19^th century Siberian Jewish communities have grown stronger both quantitatively and materially. Each had not only its own cemetery, but also a funeral brotherhood, performing its functions in accordance with the laws of burial and mourning prescribed in Judaism. In the last quarter of the 19^th century, a funeral brotherhood was also established in the Irkutsk Jewish community, which lasted until the middle of the 20^th century. The work of the Irkutsk brotherhood can be divided into two periods - pre-revolutionary and post-revolutionary, each of which is covered in detail in this article.

This article is based on a large body of unpublished documents from the Russian State Military Historical Archive (RSMHA). The author analyzes the current situation in Omsk and Irkutsk Artillery Magazines in 1899. In that year there was a visit of the War Minister of Russian Empire Aleksey N. Kuropatkin to Siberian Military District. That visit was of historic importance as it took place about 4 years prior the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, and less than 7 months before the Siberian Military District mobilization in response to the Boxer Rebellion in China. Its purpose was personal acquaintance of the War Minister with the recently created Siberian Military District; specifically, evaluation of the actual state and combat readiness of the dislocated troops, the current situation with military infrastructure, data gathering to further develop defense plans and regional military reforms in Siberia. Traveling by Trans-Siberian Railway, Kuropatkin inspected troops of the largest Siberian garrisons and military objects in cities, including Omsk and Irkutsk Artillery Magazines. In this article is first published the most detailed descriptions of the Omsk Artillery Magazine in the end of XIX century, and Irkutsk Artillery Magazine by the moment of its reorganization in 1899. It has presented the data about the military resources, kept in the Magazines. It has analyzed the reasons, which provoked the liquidation of Irkutsk Artillery Magazine, and the implementation difficulties. It has described the problem of utilization an old cartridges, and also concluded that in conditions of the low level of regional military infrastructure development the liquidation of Irkutsk Artillery Magazine was an obvious error.

The article is devoted to the Irkutsk Artillery Depot during the World War I and the Civil War. Following the results of the Russian-Japanese War of 1904-1905, there were fundamental changes in the name of the warehouse as well as the staff structure, and the location of the deployment. Until 1911, the Irkutsk Artillery Warehouse was called the Irkutsk Division of the Chita Artillery Warehouse. In 1911, the warehouse was transferred to a new staff, the number of personnel was significantly increased, and since 1913, the military unit was relocated to new areas from the city of Irkutsk at the junction of 3051 versts of the Siberian Railway (since 1918 Batareinaia station). At the beginning of the World War I, the warehouse formed three local artillery parks and a repair shop, these units were later sent to the front. Units assigned from the personnel of the warehouse in the period from 1914 to 1917 on the basis of orders from the headquarters of the Irkutsk Military District, they were periodically sent for replenishment to reserve battalions and artillery units. New soldiers were called up to replace the declining lower ranks, and the vacant positions of officers were replaced by military officials. During the war the warehouse performed its intended tasks, and provided newly formed units with small arms, artillery and ammunition. On the basis of the unit an equipment workshop was deployed, where ammunition was assembled. During the Civil War, the warehouse was repeatedly seized by the opposing sides, and was under the control of the Red Army, Czechoslovaks and the Siberian Army, which did not affect its condition in the best way. After the retreat from the city, the former government tried not to leave the most valuable reserves to the enemy, as a result of which the storages with gunpowder and ammunition were blown up.

Having seized the operational-strategic initiative during the Brusilov breakthrough and subsequent offensive operations, the troops of the Southwestern Front continued their offensive. The article is devoted to a little-known episode of the 1916 campaign on the Russian front of the First World War - the hostilities of the combat troop of the 7th Army of the Southwestern Front in the area of the Burkanuvsky Forest. Burkanuvsky Forest is a forest landscape in the area of a battle unfolded on July 25-30, 1916, in which the 16th and 22nd Army corps (supported by the 6th Don Cossack and 9th Cavalry Divisions of the 2nd Cavalry Corps) of the 7th Army of the Russian Southwestern Front and formations of the Austro-Hungarian 7th Army took part during the so-called 1st Kovel Battle (one of the stages of the Offensive of the Southwestern Front in 1916). The July battles of 1916 in this direction are unknown to a wide range of readers, and we eliminate this gap. The Russian directive of July 30 summed up the results as follows: “The six-day stubborn battles of the left flank of the Army in connection with the breakthrough of the enemy's fortified position at Chernekhuv ended tonight with its complete retreat. The enemy was forced to clear his impregnable fortifications by his own definition along the Khodoryshche - Burkanuv line”. The Russian 7th Army forced the enemy to leave fortified positions on the Stryp, and significantly facilitated the 9th Army delivering main blow. As a result, the operation of the left flank of the Southwestern Front - the 7th and 9th Armies - was of the most important strategic importance. The 9th Army took Tlumach and Kolomyia, threatening the flank of the Southern German Army, which forced the enemy to transfer reinforcements and form a new (12th) Austrian Army.

The founder of the Chita Military School was ataman G. M. Semenov. A detailed description of his combat activities and general role in the fight against the Bolsheviks is given. By November 1918, it was decided to create a military educational institution in Chita to train a Special Manchurian detachment of officers from the youth. A reserve of personnel was required, immune to revolutionary agitation, capable of becoming the core of the recreating Russian Army in Transbaikalia. Colonel M. M. Likhachev was appointed head of the school. The article deals in detail with the officer staff of the military educational institution, the composition of students, financial aspects of functioning. Special attention is paid to everyday living conditions. The courses taught law and administration, tactics with examples from military history, fortification (later replaced by a course of radiotelegraphy for some junkers), drill regulations, artillery, machine gunning, topography, Russian language, hygiene and first aid to the wounded. In the future, the curriculum was expanded. During extracurricular time, junkers provided security for state institutions, banks, prisons in Chita, and patrolled the streets. It is noted the great importance of unwritten laws and rules, traditional for cadet corps and military schools of pre-revolutionary Russia, brought by former cadets and cadets of other military educational institutions. Being among the junkers of the school, they contributed to the formation of a unique atmosphere, the establishment of that true military spirit that distinguished the Chita School from the ordinary schools of ensigns. March 30, 1919 on the military holiday of the Trans-Baikal Cossack Army, a parade of the military units of the Chita garrison took place, where the Chita cadets made a special impression on those present with their bearing and drill.

The article presents a comprehensive analysis of historical literature dedicated to one of the largest and most tragic uprisings of the Civil War period in the Yeniseysk Governorate. Upon studying more than twenty publications related to the subject of the uprising, it was revealed that interpretation of events that took place within Yeniseysk and Maklakovo Uprising of 1919 significantly changed both in Soviet and post-Soviet historiography. The anti-Soviet-minded contemporaries of the events unambiguously characterized the uprising as a revolt of lumpen proletariat. During the period of 1920-30s the authors of studies and memoirs, not yet burdened with ideological frameworks, paid considerable attention to the facts of disorganization and disintegration among the rebels. However, in the period of 1950-80s, these facts were hushed up by historians who broadcast an exclusively heroic image of the uprising. The main role in the preparation and organization of the revolt was assigned to the Bolsheviks. The participation of other political forces was excluded. Historians considered the superiority of the enemy in numbers and weapons as the main reason of the failure of the revolt. At the same time, the authors used with a narrow source base. Significant positive changes took place in post-Soviet historiography. The authors used a large array, including unpublished sources, and did not tend to hush up hard facts. However, to date, historians have not been able to create an objective and complete picture of the uprising. A number of controversial issues, inaccuracies and interpretations have accumulated in historical literature. Only introduction of new historical sources into scientific circulation and a comprehensive analysis of all known documents and memoirs will expand and clarify the historical picture of events.

The publication reveals the history of the participation of the Ostyak-Vogul justice bodies in the criminal law campaigns of the Soviet State. The specificity of the activity of repressive bodies in an isolated region of the RSFSR is revealed. The judicial authorities of the north of the Ural region were formed in 1921, and gained relative autonomy in 1931 with the creation of the Ostyako-Vogulsky and Yamalo-Nenets National Districts (autonomous since 1940). A number of specific features: inaccessibility, low personnel and its extreme mobility, low population density, lack of industry and developed agriculture formed the special features inherent in Soviet justice in the northern regions of the RSFSR. Thus, the bodies of the Soviet justice of the North did not participate in all state criminal law campaigns, and in those in which they participated, they acted superficially and brought a small number of citizens to court. Using the remoteness of the territory, the repressive authorities could, to a large extent, ignore the campaign justice imposed from Moscow under the plausible pretext of the inaccessibility of the vast Siberian lands. In the Ostyako-Vogulsky District, some of the criminal prosecutions were permanent and targeted including the endless struggle against misappropriation, embezzlement and theft. Other persecutions such as the fight against "political criminals" were chaotic and, as a rule, did not last long. Longer than in arable Russia, the campaign to dispossess the prosperous natives took place. Due to the low quality of judicial and prosecutorial personnel in the North, it was not possible to effectively carry out many criminal law activities. Justice officials made numerous mistakes, delayed the consideration of cases, and did not conduct office work.

Irkutsk region is a region with the richest reserves of mica of various types. In Russia, mica has been used since the XVI century for inserts into window openings. Subsequently, since the beginning of the XX century, mica has been used for the needs of electronics as an electrical insulating material. The development of the mica industry was especially widespread after the Great Patriotic War. This article examines the history of the development of the mica industry in the Irkutsk region. Much attention is paid to Irkutsk and Nizhneudinsk mica factories. It tells about the main products produced at these factories. The stages of development of the Nizhneudinsk mica factory and the main directions of scientific research conducted by scientists of Irkutsk universities are considered in detail. Special attention is paid to the crisis of the mica industry in the early 2000s. The main prerequisites, problems and causes of the extinction of the former glory of such a mineral rich in properties as mica are considered. It is noted that mica today is a popular component for the production of material products in such areas as electronics, paint and varnish industry, perfumery and cosmetics, mica is used for the production of polymers, adhesives, sealants, mastics, as well as the needs of the rubber industry. Mica materials are used as heat-resistant materials in various industries, including the aerospace industry. Non-traditional applications of mica are also known: protection from radiation and disposal of radioactive waste, use as a sorbent for water purification from pollution. The article provides provisions on promising areas of mica application and formulates a conclusion on the path of possible revival of the mica industry in the Irkutsk region in particular. It should be said that at the moment there are working personnel, the scientific potential of past research has been preserved and new ones are being conducted. Some leading personnel of the region have already addressed this problem. The authors of this article very much hope that the rare natural qualities of micas, the new promising fields of application that have opened up and the ongoing scientific research in this area will help to maintain interest in this mineral in the near future.

The history of the Orthodox Church in the north and northeast of China during the World War II and the first years after its end has found some reflection in the pages of scientific and popular science publications. However, at the momemt, it has not been fully studied. The article gives a general description of the features of the existence of Orthodoxy in the named region with an emphasis on the management of the church and the disagreements that existed at the same time. The Orthodox Church in the territories under consideration existed within the boundaries of the Harbin and Manchurian Diocese with two vicariates. The study is based on a systematic approach, which made it possible to consider the development of Orthodoxy in Northern and Northeastern China against the backdrop of national trends. The chronological method predetermined a consistent presentation of facts. Highlighting the problematic aspects in the study of the history of the Orthodox Church author notes that today there are controversial issues regarding certain dates, as well as the ranks of the ruling bishops in different years. Author also talks about the presence of contradictions in the available publications and sources. The principle of objectivity of historical knowledge predetermines the appeal, first of all, to the sources. These are documents of the State Archive of the Russian Federation (SARF). Today there is no unambiguous assessment of the role of one or another ruling bishop in the history of Orthodoxy in North and Northeast China. Documents allow us to say that some of the researcher’s proposals are questionable. The need for further work with documents to resolve controversial issues and recreate the most complete history of the Orthodox Church in China, in general, and in the north and northeast of the country, in particular, is noted.

The article is a review of the book by A. V. Sushkov “The Leningrad Case”: a general purge of the “cradle of the revolution”. Within the framework of the study presented in the monograph, the author tried to formulate his own version of the purge of party cadres in Leningrad. In the process of studying various archival documents of St. Petersburg, Karelia, the Sverdlovsk region and other repositories, Sushkov collected and cited evidence of the corruption of the first persons of the city, outlined the features of their management both in the post-war years and during the blockade. All this information is based on various documentary materials. However, the scientist himself leaves the opportunity to supplement, and perhaps change the idea of the “Leningrad case” as the ban on the study of so far unknown archival sources is lifted. The work of A. V. Sushkov will be useful to a wide range of people interested in the history of the USSR.

We have long-term friendship with Nikolai Nikolayevich Kradin. On April 17, 2022, he turned 60 years old. We studied together at the Faculty of History of the Irkutsk State University and remember this time as the period of our formation as future scientists. In many ways, our teachers P. E. Shmygun, V. V. Svinin, G. I. Medvedev, V. I. Dyatlov, L. M. Dameshek contributed to this. Even as a student, we became interested in the ancient history and archeology of Central and East Asia, devoting most of our scientific works to this topic. In 2008, at the initiative of N. N. Kradin, I joined the project for the study of archaeological sites of the South-Eastern Transbaikalia of the X-XIV centuries. The third participant of the project was E. V. Kovychev. One of the objects of our research was the rampart of Genghis Khan and the settlements located along it. This fortification stretched for more than 750 km across the territory of Mongolia, Russia and China. In 2008-2009 our expedition worked along the Russian section of the rampart. In 2012, the Mongolian section of the rampart was examined from its starting point in the upper reaches of the Ulz Gol River to the railway line from Choibalsan to Solovyovsk. In 2013, work in Mongolia continued. A section of the shaft from the railway to the border with China was examined. In the western and central parts of the rampart, trenches were laid to cut this fortification. On the basis of radiocarbon dates and fragments of pottery, the rampart and the settlements located along it are dated to the 10th-11th centuries.