Abstract
The discovery of an ancient stone bridge over the Uzunlar Rampart in 2016 has stimulated new interest in the study of this monumental fortifi cation. The investigation presented in the article is based on the analysis of the road network marked on the old maps of the Kerch Peninsula. The possible connection of the ancient passages through the Uzunlar Rampart with the intersection of the 19th century roads is considered. To test this assumption all available georeferenced maps from 18th and 19th centuries were studied in MapInfo and Google Earth Pro programs. Possible passages through the rampart were studied with help of satellite images and archival aerial photographs to identify particular areas that could confi rm the assumption of the existence of an ancient passage through the rampart. The fi rst confi rmation of this hypothesis was the fact that the newly discovered ancient bridge over the moat and rampart of the Uzunlar Rampart really served as an active passage up to the end of the 19th century. The most informative maps appeared to be the Betev’s map of 1842, three-verst map of the Military Topographic Depot of 1847 and half-verst map of 1897. Sixteen possible driveways were identifi ed in the area. The visual exploration, as well as the analysis of modern satellite images and archive German aerial photos of 1942 contributed to fi nd associated archaeological structures characteristic of the gate areas.
Keywords
Uzunlar Rampart, Bosporus, ancient gateways, historical maps, modern satellite images, archive German aerial photos of 1942
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