In 1862, the traveler Yuri Kushilovsky, who was studying the northwestern region of Siberia, discovered the remains of a medieval city on the banks of the Mangazica River. This is where the legendary city of Mangizia used to be, the most important commercial center of northern Russia. Around the North Pole, in an atmosphere of eternal freezing, the city was founded sometime in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Despite the harsh natural conditions, Mangizia had flourished and prospered, but after nearly a hundred years, its inhabitants had said goodbye to the city. What happened that forced them to leave the city? From the 16th century onwards, the first Russians began exploring the infinite region of Siberia. Mangazia was one of the richest trading cities in the world, with Russian historian Mikhail Obolensky. Wrote: "Mangazia was an old city. A rich city, where the inhabitants of the northern hemisphere struggled to obtain the precious fur of the animals. " Mangazia came to be known as the "city of gold." It is known that in the seven years from 1630 to 1637, merchants from here bought about two and a half million precious fur of animals. Mangazia's trade relations were not limited to Russia. The samurai obtained from Siberia were also transported from the northern port of Arhanglisk to cities in Western Europe.
The first one-third of the seventeenth century was the time of the "gold rush" of the city. Mangazia had spread, with new homes, warehouses, and churches emerging. In addition to the manufacture and trade of samurai, the citizens were also involved in fishing, hunting, and various handicrafts. Mangazia's role in Russia's geographical discoveries is no less. From here, caravans of travelers set out in search of new lands. Who mapped the coastal regions of Yakutia, the Peninsula, and the rivers Annecy and Lena.
But then, a few years later, things changed. The settlers had moved further east. New trade centers were established in Siberia. Mangazia could not compete with these centers because of the constant shortage of wild animals in the forests around the city. Eventually, Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich set up camps for civilians and soldiers on the banks of the Anisi River. The city of New Mangazia was founded there, today it is called Starotorokhansk. The old "gold-filled" Mangazia did not exist.
Time passed and Mangazia was forgotten. But with the discovery of Koshylovsky, the fate of this short-lived city near the North Pole was once again the focus of historians and archaeologists. Older documents could not answer many questions. For example, some researchers claimed that Mangazia was not a city but a small walled town.
Unraveling all these secrets was only possible in 1968 after extensive excavations by Soviet astronomers. Mangazia was a city. It was inhabited by about a thousand people, just as other Russian cities were inhabited in the 17th century. Mangazia was divided into the Kremlin and the general population. The common settlement itself was divided into two parts, the craft, and trade-related areas. The people had laid out wooden planks in the streets.
Archaeologists arrived on time. The river licked the shore where Mangazia once stood. Experts estimate that by 1968, a third of it had been submerged. But there was also the good news that the ancient relics were well preserved because of the eternal freezing. Thus, there was room for a better study of Mangazia in terms of archeology. The excavated material made it possible to reconstruct the period of its history. The exact date of construction of almost every building was determined. Archaeological finds from the excavations were extremely helpful in the study of this sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Siberian city.