Ukraine is a country with a vast cultural heritage. It is dotted with sites of profound historic, artistic and archaeological importance – from Unesco world heritage monuments such as the Cathedral of St Sophia in Kyiv to exquisite examples of Cossack baroque architecture. But this rich cultural history is now at risk.

As the Russian war machine envelopes Ukraine and attempts to overwhelm Ukraine’s defences, its forces are indiscriminately targeting the civilian population. Heavy artillery, rockets and airstrikes deployed to break the morale of the Ukrainian people are also destroying cities and the priceless artefacts they hold.

Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital city, is under heavy bombardment. The city’s Museum of Natural History houses some of the earliest examples of architecture to survive anywhere, including huts made of mammoth bones, which date back 15,000 years to the Old Stone Age (Paleolithic period).

Perhaps the best-known artwork of Ukraine’s early civilisations is the Scythian pectoral (breastplate). Found in an ancient burial mound called Tovsta Mohyla (“fat barrow”), the Scythian pectoral dates back to the 4th century BC. Made of 24 carat gold and weighing 1.15kgs, it’s decorated with intricate and delicately modelled scenes of daily life and animals.

The pectoral’s current home is the Museum of Historical Treasures of Ukraine located in Kyiv’s Monastery of the Caves. The shelling of this museum would efface the archaeological and visual record of numerous cultures unique to Ukraine. Works of Scythian art were already taken from Ukraine during the Soviet period and fill Russian museums.

The 11th-century Monastery of the Caves in Kyiv is a Unesco world heritage site, among the most sacred in eastern Europe. It features underground caverns with chapels and miraculous relics. Above ground, the monastery boasts numerous churches and buildings that represent architectural and artistic styles from the Middle Ages through to the early modern period and into the modern age.

Another World Heritage site – and the jewel of Kyiv – is the 11th-century Cathedral of St Sophia.

Read full story at The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/ukraines-cultural-heritage-faces-destruction-as-russian-bombing-continues-178563

Image courtesy:
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