Scientists of the Novosibirsk State University and the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of SD RAS excavated land previously known as fortress and found leaguer of 17^th century in the Krasnoyarsk Krai (Mount Unyuk, Krasnoturansky District). Monuments are significantly connected with dynastic conflict of Mongol khans.

“The main fortification on Mount Unyuk - it is a quite big fortress with a separately fortified citadel. Part of the wall, located on a cliff, was made of stone, further there was an earth mound with ditch where loose deposits on gentle slopes of the mountain start. Opposite the fortress a fortified camp was discovered, which was built by the rules specific to the Manchus and the Mongols in the 17^th century. Time of construction of the fortress is unknown, most likely, it refers to the medieval period, but the siege camp was first mentioned in Russian written sources and dated from 1652. There are a lot of such defensive structures on the territory of Southern Siberia. The uniqueness of this find is that it is rare to name the exact date and to connect a particular archaeological site with a specific historical person. In our case, it can be done, "- said Associate Professor of Archaeology and Ethnography of the HF NSU Sergei Skobelev.

So, it is known from a letter of governor of Krasnoyarsk Mikhail Fedorovich Scryabin to the czar that in 1652 Altyn Khan (literally "Golden Khan" - the title of the rulers of northern Mongolia) laid siege to his nephew Mergen Taishi and came into conflict. Of course the scene is well described in a governor’s report to the czar. Fact of siege is proved, but there are no detailed information about the fighting between Altyn Khan and his nephew. The outcome of the dynastic conflict was reconciliation of the warring parties. Having united the army, they went back to Northern Mongolia.

“The story took place in South Siberia, which is formally at that time already was a part of the Moscow state, moreover, the Mongolian Altyn-Khans took an oath of loyalty to the czar. But in reality, the Russian authorities have not been strong enough to control the situation in the region, so Altyn-Khans used great autonomy in their actions. Governors of provinces simply did not have any real opportunity to interfere in the internal dynastic wars of Mongol rulers, but they monitored the situation and informed the central authorities about what was happening", - said Sergey Skobelev.

Students and postgraduates of NSU took part in the field work on the mount Unyuk. They also carried out a detailed shooting of all defensive objects, studied three medieval mounds, what gave interesting implements, including such a rare find as backsword. In the next field season scientists will try to answer the question of a possible link between the burials and fortifications, as well as to establish the characteristics of their construction.