Sarkel

Sarkel was a significant Khazar fortress constructed in the 9th century CE on the left bank of the Don River, with strategic assistance from Byzantine engineers. The fortress, built using white limestone bricks, functioned as a crucial defensive structure protecting the north-western border of the Khazar state. Notably, it served as a bustling commercial hub, overseeing the Volga-Don portage, a key trade route known as the Khazarian Way. In 965 CE, Sarkel was captured by the Kievan Rus' and renamed Belaya Vezha, marking a shift in its cultural and political landscape. The site, now submerged under the Tsimlyansk Reservoir, was pivotal in the regional dynamics of the Early and Late Post-Classical Periods.