Researcher Irina Tolochko announced that excavations in the ancient city of Tanais in southern Russia will allow scientists to build models to predict climate change.
This was reported by a spokesperson for the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Tanais is considered the northeasternmost city of ancient culture, founded in the 3rd century BC and flourishing until the 5th century AD. It was named after the Tanais River (the Don River), which flows into the Sea of Azov. Based on excavations at ancient Tanais, the first archaeological reserve in the Soviet Union was established in 1961, located near the city of Rostov-on-Don. For nearly eight centuries, the city played a significant role in the economic and political life of the northern Black Sea region and the Greater Steppe.
Tolochko said: "In the first and second centuries AD, the humid climate contributed to the flourishing of settlements in the lower Don River, and in the fifth century AD, the salinization of Taganrog Bay may have been one of the reasons for the end of Tannais, which is happening again now, in addition to the deposition of silt in the mouth of the dead Don River, which confirms that natural cycles repeat themselves, and that studying the past helps in predicting the future."
She explained that studying natural resources in different historical periods allows for tracing the stages of development of ancient settlements. The Don's climate in ancient times, as today, was unstable, with alternating periods of drought and wetness.
Tolochko pointed out that the current drought in the Rostov region in 2024-2025, and the salinization of the Sea of Azov, are within the scope of natural climate cycles and are temporary phenomena.
Tannais was a major economic center of the northeastern Azov region in ancient times. Its uniqueness lies in the excellent preservation of its urban buildings, the large number of dated complexes, and the unique archaeological collections that serve as a benchmark for the archaeology of the last centuries BC and the first half of the first millennium AD. Since 2009, Tannais has been included on UNESCO's tentative list of World Heritage sites.
