My Favorite Village

The village of Illyria, Luhansk region, Ukraine, has a long history. It was founded by Zaporizhia Cossacks in 1675 as the village of Rylovka. It was called after the nearby Cossack burial mould of Rylock. The village area served as the winter lodge of Ukrainian Cossacks. The State of the Ukrainian Cossacks was brought to deterioration by the Russian Empire. It was finally abolished by Empress Catherine II as “a harmful gathering” on June 29, 1775.

After the abolishment of the Cossacks State, the village was sold to a Greek officer Pangracius who had served in the Russian army. It was in the second half of the 18th century. Pangracius renamed the village into Illyria after the area of Illyria in his homeland. Now that area is on the territory of Croatia and Slovenia. A lot of new settlers arrived from Greece, Serbia, and Russia on the invitation of Pangracius. The population was about 700 inhabitants at that time.

The village bears the same name as the town of Illyria in the state of Iowa, USA. The Ukrainian Illyria is located on the picturesque banks of the River Olkhovka eleven miles from Lutuhine, the district center.
There are about 300 households in this village now. The population comprises about 800 inhabitants.
The village council administers the community affairs in the neighboring six villages: Yasne, Mala Martynivka, Velyka Martynivka, Mala Yuryivka, Zakhidne and Ushakivka.

The village was well-known for its cattle-breeding farms. Some of the villagers have worked and still work at the mines of Lutuhine District, where they are taken by buses, others engage in agricultural work. Only several households have cows. Mostly villagers keep other domestic animals and poultry. The villagers sell the milk to the town dairy, which is a source of their income. Besides, each household has a well and a plot.

Many plots go down to the River Vilkhivka that flows through the village into the River Luhanka, the river on which Luhansk stands. A number of houses in the village were on sale, when I was there.

The village is surrounded by picturesque hills, some of them having rock outcrops to the surface. You can see a lot of fences and houses built of the local natural building material - outcrop layer stone. Everybody calls that material savage stone. We visited an old sandstone quarry located on the outskirts of the village. The quarry occupied one of the hills surrounding the village. I was impressed by the quarry height: it exceeded the height of a nine-storey apartment house.

According to the present land reform, all the former collective farmers got a plot of several hectares on the fields of the former collective farm. These plots are not marked on the ground and exist on the maps.

Machinery remains a big problem for the present landowners. The villagers lease their land property to farmers and receive dividends.

The village has a secondary school designed for 130 students, although only 55 students attend it now. The village is famous for its old church built in 1885.

Illyria has a couple of stores, a bar and a club.

Like in many other villages, there is a common grave of the fallen Soviet soldiers who perished for the liberation of the village from the Nazi invaders in 1943. The war memorial is located opposite the club.

The residents of the village celebrate their Village Day on the second Sunday in September. On that day there is a festival program on the village stage located opposite the cathedral. The program is followed by a holiday dinner.

Another great holiday in the village is St.Alexander of the Neva Feast Day celebrated on September 12 every year.

You can get to Illyria by bus from Luhansk railway station. The bus stop is near the bridge and the café located opposite the building of the railway station. The distance to Illyria from Luhansk is about 30 miles.

You can also get there by cab. The cab drivers charge more outside the city boundary for their services. A day trip to Illyria from Luhansk would cost us about $50.

You can get to this village by car from Alchevsk, an industrial center in Luhansk region.
The distance is 10 miles along the earth roads.

The buses to Illyria depart from the bus station for local buses located opposite the railway station of Luhansk. Departure time for buses to Illyria: at 7.16 a.m., 12.03, 3.10 p.m., 5.47 p.m. (about one hour drive); and from Illyria to Luhansk: at 5.40 a.m., 8.30 a.m., 1.30 p.m., 4.25 p.m. and 7.00 p.m.

The buses from Illyria to Luhansk depart from Sovietskaya Street (near the village store, opposite Liudmila Store&Bar).
You can also get to Luhansk via Lutugino, the district center. The yellow Ukrainian bus called Bohdan manufactured in Chernihiv will take you to and from Illyria.

The cathedral is the first big sight you see when you arrive to Illyria. I visited the cathedral each time I was in Illyria. There were not many people at the everyday service. The village cathedral is called St.Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. It was called after the great warrior and diplomat Prince St. Alexander Nevsky, Prince of Novgorod, who, according to the legend, had routed the Swedish knights on the banks of the Neva in 1240 and afterwards had been canonized as a saint of the Russian Orthodox Church.

The cathedral was built in 1885 and survived Stalin's dictatorship. Father Alexander is the cathedral dean now. He lives in a small house in the cathedral courtyard. The parish celebrates St.Alexander of the Neva Feast Day on September 12 every year.

Like in many other villages, attending a liturgy on Sundays is a must here (not for all the villagers, though). Most pilgrims arrive to big holidays such as Easter, Trinity Day, St.Alexander Nevsky Feast Day and Christmas. You can light candles to the health of your dear ones. I always approach the icon of St.Alexander of the Neva, stand and ponder. The Most Holy Mother of God, save us! - This is what we say when we approach the icons of the Most Holy Mother of God.

There are several icons and images of the Virgin inside the cathedral. The dome has been refurbished as well as many other things in the cathedral.
I would say there are more passive believers than the active ones. Lots of villagers seem to be too busy with their chores to attend the liturgy. So do not be surprised if you see just a few people attending the service.

Besides, I had the feeling that there were more pilgrims in this church than locals.

The people get their bread and water sanctified and stand there praying and following the service conducted by Father Alexander. There are very old icons among the cathedral icons here.

This is one of the oldest churches in Luhansk region. The Old Church Bell is to the left of the entrance to the church courtyard. As you enter the church, look up and take a look at this painting. It is dedicated to the Day of Judgement. Be careful when you enter: there is a rounded wooden bar at the threshold.

We were privileged to take part in the Trinity celebrations at the village cathedral. There were a lot of people inside. They were mostly from the entire Lutuhine County.

We saw a lot of different icons in the left part if the interior. Each one has its own story to tell you...

On Trinity Day, like on no other day of the year, the floor of the church was strewn with green grass as the symbol of Trinity.

I remember visiting the village school located next to the cathedral. It is a nine-year secondary school. Overall, there are 55 school students here. They have self-governance at their school, and they call their school community a Periwinkle Country.

The Periwinkle Country has several "counties":
1. Daisies;
2. Little Bells;
3. Snowball Tree Kids;
4. Sunflowers.
You can see their pictures and posters in the school lobby.

One fine day in May, my American friend Lance and I decided to pay a visit to this village. Lance did not mind being a guest speaker at school. We were invited to this school by the daughter of the village mayor. She worked as an English teacher at school then. Since it was a very special visit, the staff was kind enough to bring the entire school community to the school lobby, where we had a meeting. It was great to talk to all school students who listened to the speech of my American friend Lance.

I also remember visiting the village museum located on the second floor of the school building. School students and their teachers created the museum. You can leave your entry into their guestbook at the museum.

During my visit to the school museum, I saw a poem of a local lady about her native village. I decided to translate it for you, fellow travelers.
Illyria by Natalia Mavrodi

Illyria is a flowering valley,
The Donbas land of paradise,
The light of your star sparked
In a happy time.
Who at least once
Was captivated by you,
Will not forget the willows over the river,
Wherever the fate leads him,
And the church on the outskirts of the village,
The green expanse of your hills,
And the silence of the shady oak forest,
The freedom of your boundless steppes.
And the wind that brings the spice of herbs.
You revive the soul and dreams
With your magical and primordial beauty.
May heaven be clear above you,
May the light of your star last long.

October 2004

After a lesson with Lance, the Canadian guest speaker

This hill can be seen from the cathedral area. This is the place where stratified stones come to the surface. The hill always attracted us. One day we allowed some time and visited it for the first time. Then we frequented it during our stay in Illyria. We climbed the hill several times and enjoyed the views of the village from its top.

You can approach the hill from Peace Street. Then you will reach the hilly side of the Village Hill. You can also take the path that leads you there from the cathedral. Then you will have to climb the rocks to get to the top. No mountaineering skills are required, just use your common sense and be happy!
The views are breath-taking indeed. They cannot be seen in every village.
You can take impressive photos of your company at the background of those stratified stones, and your friends, upon seeing them, might think you were somewhere in the mountains. I am sure this hill makes Illyria unique.
Address: Peace Street ("ulitsa mira" in Russian).
Directions: opposite the cathedral and near the cross located at the place of the ancient cemetery.
Website: Illyria Hill (the fourth picture from above).

Visiting the old quarry

An old stone quarry is located on the village outskirts. I found it to be a nice place to enjoy the countryside. This is where you can just stand and admire the countryside. It's especially nice in fine weather. Look around you! We stood at the top of the quarry that must be 100 feet deep. Locals still mine for stratified stone here. That stratified stone that is valued at the market and is used for making garden paths and fences. I would like to revisit that place. I think I will during my next visit of the village. It's nice to come here by car, but in dry weather you can make a shortcut across the field. The village church is about two miles away from the old quarry. The church is an outstanding landmark of Illyria.

The village stands on the banks of the River Olkhovka (in Russian), the River Vilkhivka (in Ukrainian), a tributary of the Luhanka that is a trubitary of the Seversky Donets. This is a small river whose waters are full in spring owing to snow. The majority of the village houses are located on its right bank. The river is very shallow and the wise locals never bather in it, although the water seems pure enough. However, they don't mind a picnic or a BBQ at the riverbank.

The River Vilkhivka (the Olkhovka in Russian, the Alder River in English) is the right tributary of the Luhanka, the river on which Luhansk stands.
The river name comes from the word “alder”.

The River Vilkhivka is heavily polluted. Villagers used to fish for pikes there, but this fish is hardly found in the river now. Therefore, anglers are happy to catch some perch, crucian carp, roach, chub, and sebel, if any.

This river is mostly less than a meter deep. Within Illyria, its depth reaches from two to three meters.

The Vilkhivka flows mostly in villagers' gardens. There are two bridges across the village on the territory of Illyria.

Here is a short Youtube video about the River Vilkhivka in Luhansk and the place where it turns into the Sea of Luhansk.

And another short video about Fishing at the Vilkhivka.

The villagers get the water from the wells made by themselves. The wells are from four to nine meters deep. I tasted the water and liked it a lot: I found it to be soft and pure.

Hiking and cycling are very popular here. There are hills around the village, about 5 km away. The hills there are 220-240 m above sea level, so you can have a beautiful panorama of the entire village in fine weather.

At the VIllage Rock

This is what you feel like doing when you look around standing on the top of the Village Hill. There are many hills that can be seen from there.

It is nice to see the huge pieces of stratified stone at the brink of the hill located in Peace Street (“ulitsa meera” in Russian) near the old village cemetery.

It's not Hymalayas

It is very easy to climb the hill. The wonderful views of the village are your reward.

Also, you can visit the higher hill that is located about five miles away. They call it the Grand Canyon. You can also find an ancient site located about five miles away – the Bronze Age pyramids. It was fun to explore the steppe around Illyria.

Thank goodness we have a very good local friend Basil who took us around in his car. There are a lot of earth roads, so if the weather is dry enough, you can drive safely. Thanks to Basil, we found the place called Bronze Age Pyramids.

The steppe is really worth visiting. However, the winds can be strong. The air is fresh and fragrant. The views are fantastic. You feel like soaring and singing...

There are a lot of wild plants out in the steppe:

- wild carnation;
- thyme;
- feather grass (Stipa);
- sweetbrier;
- houseleeks, or liveforever that is also called “hens and chickens” (Sempervivum).

As my friends Nada says, Sempervivum has recently been re-classified as Dudleya. The hills are covered with lots of feather grass and other rare plants.

We discovered this ancient place recently after reading numerous articles about it.
The ancient archaeologically site is officially called the Marl Ridge, although the stones there are not exactly marl.
The media gave this archaeological site several names:
1. “The Stonehenge of Luhansk”;
2. “The Second Great Wall of China”
3. “The Ukrainian Pyramids”.

Its dimensions are impressive: about 1.3 square kilometers, which is not the entire area of the site.
The archeological excavations began in 2005. Externally, the "Marl Ridge" is an integral complex of stone and earthworks (mounds, various "roads" and "rays" laid out of stone slabs), that occupies an area of 1.3 square kilometers.
Now this place is considered to be the first ancient sacral place in Eastern Europe where people used to worship the Sun God.
There are plans of turning this site into an archeological park, although it means a lot of studies and investments.

Thanks to my friend Basil in Illyria we found it rather fast. He took us there in his car, but we had to look for its exact location. During my subsequent visits, I discovered an easier way to that ancient site. When you leave your car at the foot of a hill, you might not think the hill is something special. However, after you have climbed it, a huge panorama opens before your eyes. It seems to be the highest point in the area.

Here is an article about this ancient site in “The Guardian”:

Bronze Age pyramid found in Ukraine

Tom Parfitt in Moscow, Friday, September 8, 2006, The Guardian

Archaeologists in Ukraine have unearthed the remains of an ancient pyramidal structure that pre-dates those in Egypt by at least 300 years. The stone foundations of the structure, which probably resembled Aztec and Mayan ziggurats in South America, were discovered near the eastern city of Lugansk.

It is thought they were laid about five millennia ago during the early Bronze Age by animists who worshiped a sun god. The "pyramid" is in fact a complex of temples and sacrificial altars topping a sculpted hillside with steps on its sides.

Viktor Klochko, head of the excavation, said the discovery was of international significance. "This is the first monument of its age and kind found in eastern Europe," he told the Guardian. "It changes our whole conception of the social structure and the level of development of the cattle breeders and farmers who were the direct ancestors of most European peoples."

There are about 100 pyramids in Egypt, and the remains of Mesopotamian pyramids are preserved in Iraq and Iran. Ziggurats are also found in Mexico, and the Nubians built pyramids as burial sites for monarchs in the Nile valley. But pyramid structures are rare in Europe. One of the few is a Roman-era pyramid near Nice, France, that may have been built by legionnaires involved in an Egyptian cult.

Although graves have been found at the Lugansk site, archaeologists think it was used for sacrifice by burning, rather than as a burial ground. "People lived in the surrounding valleys and climbed up it to carry out their ceremonies," said Mr Klochko. "They had a pagan cult that bowed down to the sun, as did the ancestors of the Slavs."

Remains of sacrifice victims, ashes and ceramics have been found at the site, but no jewelry or treasure.

The complex, which covered three-quarters of a square mile and was around 60 meters (192 ft) high, was probably used for 2,000 years.

"What surprised me most is the scale of this enormous complex," Stanislav Mogilny, a student working on the excavation, told the Russian television. It's just incredible - a titanic feat."

Visiting the Marl Ridge