Archeological, Geological, Geomorphological and Archival Sources to Reconstruct the Eastern Part of Moscow Bely Gorod Historical Landscape (the 14th-16th Centuries): Podkopaevo and the Rachka River Valley Reconstruction
The article studies a part of Moscow's historical center within Bely Gorod boundaries and is written as a part of the project aimed at creating a 3D-reconstruction of the historical landscape and the city layout in the 1760s-1770s. The authors create a map reconstructing the natural relief in the 14th century and the earth surface in the 1760s-1770s on the basis of archaeological data on the surface depth that preceded the urban life (the 14th century) as well as geological drilling data. The most difficult task was to reconstruct the landforms of the Rachka river valley which is now almost completely covered with a cultural layer. To solve this problem, the map underwent a geological and morphological examination by comparing it with the valley of the river – a natural analogue. The resulting digital reconstruction map of the river valley was verified by overlaying the buildings shown on the instrumental plans of the 18th-19th centuries and corrected. The research results are a series of schemes where the earth surface similar to that in the 14th century is shown by means of elevation contours and a separate map of the Rachka river historic bed. When comparing various materials, contradictions and inconsistencies were revealed that cannot be resolved using the data currently available, but the authors think that a detailed workflow presentation is sure to provide for completing and correcting the reconstructions presented in the article.