HARVARD UKRAINIAN STUDIES - See also - Harvard University

324 JOHAN CALLMERstrictly followed is it fruitful at a later stage to compare and discuss theresults. A synthesis is only possible if due attention is paid to the differentcharacters of the source materials. We now turn to a consideration of thearchaeological sources and their implications.II. THE LANDSCAPE OF KIEVThe geographical position of Kiev is a central one. It is situated on theDnieper, Europe's third largest river, ca. 10km (kilometers) downstreamfrom the confluence of the Dnieper and its major tributary from the east, theDesna (fig. 1). As is often the case in this part of Eastern Europe, theriver's west bank is high, with steep slopes cut by many ravines—jary andbalky—in a pattern resembling the veins of a leaf. The riverbed itself ismore than two kilometers wide at Kiev, and there are numerous islands andshifting banks and shallows in the river due to the masses of sand that aretransported downstream during spring and autumn. Today the Dnieper'smain artery is ca. 500m (meters) wide at Kiev. By contrast, the river's eastbank is very low and marshy, and rises only slowly.Kiev is situated on a plateau, ca. 3km long and ca. lkm wide, cut offfrom the major portion of high ground between the Dnieper and the Irpin'Rivers. The latter flows from the southwest towards the northeast and joinsthe Dnieper ca. 30km north of Kiev. The valleys of the small Lybid' andSyrec' Rivers are the boundaries of the Kiev plateau to the west and to thesouth, with the Dnieper to the east and the Pocajna River to the northeast.The Kiev plateau is divided into a number of distinct parts by numerousravines. The ravines usually run at right angles to the main rivers, whichare orientated more or less north-south. As a consequence of the welldevelopedsystem of primary, secondary, and even tertiary ravines, there isa large number of promontories with excellent natural defenses; these needonly minor man-made complements to become first-rate, secure habitationsites. The ravine system as it exists today is to a certain extent the result ofrapid erosion, which in turn is a consequence of successive (and now almostcomplete) deforestation and exposure from the tenth-eleventh centuryonward. The essential character of the landscape is, however, unchanged.The Kiev plateau or, as it is often called, the Kiev hills stand up to ca. 100meters above the Dnieper. The subsoil of the hills is loess on clay, and theriver valley is composed of sand and clay. The natural vegetation is a leafforest with a dominance of oak. Maple, elm, ash, aspen and lime are alsocomponents of the natural forests in this part of the East European woodlandregion.