Hungarian prehistoric expedition to Russia organised by the Department of Archaeology of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and the Hungarian Prehistory Theme Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences
Uelgi, August 2013
Before 895 AD, the ancestors of the Hungarians lived east of the Carpathians, eventually settling under the leadership of Árpád. The archaeology of early Hungarian history seeks to uncover where these ancestors lived prior to this period and to trace the origins of the material culture associated with the Age of Conquest.
Recent archaeological findings in Hungarian prehistory have highlighted the importance of participating in excavations at an archaeological site on the shores of Lake Uelgi, located in the southeastern Urals in Chelyabinsk County, Russia. This site has drawn significant interest from the Hungarian archaeological community, as it represents the closest and most extensive eastern parallel to the archaeological heritage of the Conquest Period discovered so far.
Situated in a forested steppe environment, the site was inhabited and used as a cemetery by various groups across several periods between the 8th and 13th centuries. Among these, the 9th–10th century phases are of particular significance to Hungarian research, offering valuable insights into the era closely tied to Hungary's early history.
The last Hungarian prehistoric archaeological expedition in Russia, conducted between 1975 and 1982 (when the region was still part of the Soviet Union), marked a significant milestone. Since then, much of the scholarly work has been conducted "at the desk" within Hungary. However, the region stretching from the Urals to the Carpathians has yielded a vast amount of new medieval archaeological material that requires ongoing examination.
Russian archaeologists have been investigating sites in this area since 2010, with our research team actively contributing to their efforts. The expedition was organized by the Department of Archaeology at Pázmány Péter Catholic University in collaboration with the Hungarian Prehistory Theme Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, along with researchers from its Institute of Archaeology. The primary sponsors of the expedition included the Foundation for Research and Training in Eastern and Central Europe and the Tolstoy Society for Hungarian-Russian Cooperation.
In addition to contributing to the excavation, the Russian team also requested the involvement of specialized experts to analyze the finds. Among them was Gusztáv Balázs Mende, an anthropologist from the Institute of Archaeology at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, who examined the anthropological material recovered over the past three years. He also conducted archaeogenetic analyses, which will be compared with the Hungarian Conquest-era genetic database. Further exploration of this extensive site will be supported by magnetometer surveys, aimed at determining its precise boundaries. This phase of the project was overseen by Gábor Bertók from the Department of Archaeology at Pázmány Péter Catholic University (PPKE BTK).
A key objective of the expedition was participation in the 2nd International Hungarian Conference (following the inaugural event in Ukraine in 2011). This conference, held in Russia, brought together experts in Hungarian prehistory from Eastern Europe, primarily archaeologists, including three from the Hungarian team, who delivered lectures. Notably, it was the first archaeological conference in Russia to focus exclusively on Hungarian themes, serving as a productive forum for collaboration and planning future research efforts.
Reflecting on the expedition's results, it is clear that our expectations were met. After a 31-year hiatus, Hungarian archaeologists once again conducted fieldwork in Eastern Europe, gathering critical data to address questions about Hungarian prehistory. Beyond the academic achievements, the expedition fostered the development of new professional relationships and offered participants the opportunity to improve their Russian language skills—an invaluable asset for archaeology students and emerging researchers.
Looking ahead, we plan to continue the work next year, with the aim of producing a joint Russian-Hungarian publication to present the findings and further solidify this fruitful collaboration.
