In this audiobook, we learn about one of the most remarkable archaeological discoveries of the 20th century— the discovery of Novgorod birch-bark letters by Soviet archaeologists.
Valentin Lavrentyevich Yanin (born February 6, 1929, Vyatka) is a Russian historian and archaeologist, a full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor. He is a member of the Commission for Especially Valuable Cultural Objects under the President of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Museum Council at the Russian Cultural Foundation, a member of the advisory council under the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, and a member of the State Commission for the Restitution of Cultural Values. He is also the Chairman of the specialized council on archaeology and ethnography, a member of the specialized council of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the scientific supervisor of the Novgorod branch of the Institute of History of the Russian Academy of Sciences. He is an honorary citizen of Veliky Novgorod and a member of the editorial boards of the scientific journals “Russian Archaeology,” “Bulletin of Moscow University,” “Issues of History,” and “Ancient Rus’: Questions of Medieval Studies.”