CONCEPT OF THE SPATIAL-TEMPORIAL DESIGN OF...

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International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET)

Volume 10, Issue 02, February 2019, pp. 1168-1180. Article ID: IJCIET_10_02_114

Available online at http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=10&IType=02

ISSN Print: 0976-6308 and ISSN Online: 0976-6316

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CONCEPT OF THE SPATIAL-TEMPORIAL

DESIGN OF CULTURAL LANDSCAPE

A. A. Yamashkin

D.Sc. (Geography), Professor, Geography Faculty, National Research Mordovia State

University - 430005, Saransk, Russia

S. A. Yamashkin

Ph.D. (Engineering), Associate Professor, Institute of Electronic and Lighting Engineering,

National Research Mordovia State University - 430005, Saransk, Russia

ABSTRACT

The article gives the description of the basis for building the ethno-cultural park

“Tavla”, based on the formation of the cultural landscapes of the upper Tavla river

basin. The research is based on the engineering and landscape analysis of spatio-

temporal design of geo-systems and natural heritage, landscape-cultural analysis of

material and spiritual heritage, ecological and landscape analysis of interaction of

natural, social and production systems

Keywords: cultural landscape, spatial-temporal design, ethnocultural park.

Cite this Article: A. A. Yamashkin and S. A. Yamashkin, Concept of the Spatial-

Temporial Design of Cultural Landscape, International Journal of Civil Engineering

and Technology, 10(2), 2019, pp. 1168-1180.

http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=10&IType=02

1. INTRODUCTION

On the ethnogeographical space of the north of Eurasia, the Finno-Ugric peoples are

distinguished, who anciently settled in the Northern Europe (from Scandinavia to the

Northern Urals); in the Middle Volga and the Volga-Kama basin in the Urals; in Central and

Eastern Europe, in the basin of the river Danube, as well as in some areas of Western and

Eastern Siberia. The special ethnogeographic region stretching from the tundra in the north to

the forest-steppe landscapes in the south is the Middle Volga and the Kama Region. Since

ancient times, it is inhabited by peoples that make up the Uralic language community - the

Volga Finns - the Mordva and the Mari, the Permians - the Komi-Zyryans, the Komi-

Permyaks and the Udmurts. The most southern areas of distribution are formed by two

Mordvinian sub-ethnoses, Moksha and Erzyan, who were formed on the basis of local

archeological cultures, in close cooperation with Russian, Chuvash, Tatars, Bashkirs and

other peoples.

Concept of the Spatial-Temporial Design of Cultural Landscape


The natural conditions and resources of the regions determined the development of the

culture of life support for ethnic groups, the features of people's adaptation to the surrounding

landscape, the formation of consumption objects-types of domestic animals, agricultural

crops, and components of settlements, housing components, clothing, and food [5].

Components of the culture of life support are reflected in the sphere of spiritual culture - the

system of knowledge of the spatial and temporal structure of the cultural landscape, the social

norms of interaction between nature and human communities, toponymy, mythology, etc.

The creation of ethnographic parks including the enclosing natural landscape, collections

of architectural monuments, traditional crafts, handicrafts, household items, costumes, folk

traditions, and other elements of the material and spiritual heritage of the population are

among the most important areas of scientific and practical activity to study the centuries-old

experience in the formation of life support systems at different stages of economic

development of landscapes [12]. Together, ethnographic parks are designed to preserve

cultural (national) landscapes, harmonize the interaction of natural, social and production

systems [13].

Successful examples of the functioning of ethnoparks as centers for the preservation of

material and spiritual culture, the development of recreation, cultural and cognitive and ethnic

tourism are the experience of Germany (the Hessenpark Museum), Great Britain (the

medieval village of Kosmeston), Sweden (the ethnographic complex Skansen), Serbia (ethno-

village of Drvengrad) and other countries. In the cultural space of Russia ethnic cultural parks

in the regions of compact living of Finno-Ugric peoples occupy the individual place: Kizhi

Museum-Reserve, Museum of Wooden Architecture “Malye Korely” (both Republic of

Karelia); Finno-Ugric ethnopark (the Republic of Komi); Moksha Center for National

Culture in village Old Terizmorga (Republic of Mordovia); Mari Ethnographic Open-Air

Museum (Republic of Mary El); Architectural and ethnographic museum-reserve “Ludorvai”,

Cultural-tourist center “Mansion Tol Babaia” (both - the Udmurt Republic); Erzyan Museum-

Ethnopark (Nizhny Novgorod Region); “Ethno-graphic Museum under the open sky” Torum

Maa” (Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous District - Ugra), etc. The listed ethno-cultural parks

are formed as multifunctional centers, often being the core of the tourist cluster. Ethnoparks

are self-sufficient tourist brands or they represent key objects for visiting as a part of tourist

and excursion routes. The tourproduct formed by them is based on the involvement of objects

of natural and historical heritage of the surrounding cultural landscape, the characteristic

features of everyday life, material and spiritual culture of ethnic groups.

The significant potential for the establishment of the ethnocultural park as a result of the

harmonious interaction of natural, social and production systems is developed in the area of

settlement of ancient Erzyas in the Republic of Mordovia, the upper part of the Tavla river

basin. The key link in the development of the concept of Ethnocultural Park is the study of

the features of interaction between landscapes and ethnos. Thus, in the Course of Russian

History, V. O. Kliuchevsky notes “Beginning the study of the history of a people, we meet

the force holding the cradle of every people in its hands - the nature of its country” [3].

Developing this subject, further in the section “The Nature of the Country and the History of

the People” he notes “Our thinking is accustomed to dismember the studied subject into its

constituent parts, and nature does not like this dismemberment in itself or in its action on

people; it has all the forces working together, in every action inconspicuous employees help

the dominant factor, in every phenomenon there are heterogeneous conditions. Undoubtedly,

that a person constantly adapts to the surrounding nature, to its forces and ways of acting,

then adapts to himself, to his needs, which he cannot or will not refuse, and on this bilateral

struggle with himself and with nature develops its wits and character, energy, concepts,

A. A. Yamashkin and S. A. Yamashkin


feelings and aspirations, and partly its relationships to other people. And the more nature

gives excitement and food to these abilities of a person, the wider it reveals its internal forces,

the more its impact on the history of its surrounding population should be recognized

stronger, even if this influence of nature affects the activities of a person who is excited and

turned to it same self”. Thus, V. O. Kliuchevsky formulates a provision on the constant and

multifaceted interaction of nature and society. The historical experience ac-cumulated by

ethnic groups in the economic development of natural landscapes, reflected in the

organization of the spatial temporal structure of nature management, material and spiritual

culture requires detailed research and preservation.

The interaction of nature and society manifests itself in the formation of a cultural

landscape, a system of material and spiritual heritage. Based on the work of V.O.

Kliuchevsky the cultural land-scape is the harmonious interaction of natural, social and

economic subsystems. The resulting natural and socio-productive system (NSPS) includes the

enclosing natural landscape, regulating environment and resource-reproducing processes,

established settlements systems with the routes of economic development of the territory;

production potential and types of land use, adapted to the structure of the natural framework;

ethnographic peculiarity of the area, especially valuable monuments of nature, history and

culture, located in a functional and spatial connection with the landscape environment.

2. STUDY OF THE SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL CHARACTERISTICS

OF THE REGION

The comprehensive analysis of the spatio-temporial design of cultural landscapes involves

the use of a complex of cultural and geoecological methods. The most important research tool

is geographical information systems (GIS). Problem-oriented GIS “Mordovia”, used in the

complex geoecological and cultural analysis of the Tavla river basin, includes more than 100

layers of electronic layers of thematic maps and databases on the natural-social and

production systems of Mordovia, characterizing: 1 - medium and resource-replicating

components of the enclosing natural landscape: geological environment with groundwater,

air, surface water, soil, plants and fauna; 2 - traditions of regional nature management; 3 -

archaeological and historical monuments, which are carriers of information about the material

and spiritual culture of ethnic groups; 4 - landscape images, representing the reflection in

literature and art of the features of interaction be-tween nature and society; 5 - mythological

layer, based on a set of characters of folk art and literature; 6 - cultural traditions building the

interaction of a human and the environment; 7 - toponymy, system-typing spatial objects in

the mind of a human; 8 - innovative elements characterized by the introduction into the

cultural landscape of qualitatively new modern objects, traditions and technologies leading

naturally to significant changes in the cultural enclosing space, deformation (including

irreversible) of its traditional structures. To disseminate information about the natural and

cultural heritage of the Republic of Mordovia, the author team developed a geoportal

tourismportal.net [15].

2.1. Regional processes of economic development of landscapes

The Tavla River is located in the forest-steppe of the Volga Upland. The oldest settlements in

this physicogeographical province by archeologists date back to the Neolithic period (5-3

millennium BC). The main sources of existence of people of this time were fishing, hunting

and gathering. Therefore, settlements were selected on terraces of rivers and their remains,

near floodplain lakes. At the stands of ancient hunters and fishermen in the valley of the Sura

near Lake Inerka, flint tools and fragments of coarse clay ware, ornamented with round holes



and prints of a dentate stamp, were identified as archeologists as “pits-combed” ceramics

[11]. As the researchers suggest, these were distant ancestors of the modern Volga and Baltic

Finnic-speaking peoples. In the valley of the Sura on the shore of Lake Inerka, settlements of

the Volosovo culture have also been found, in relation to which there are suggestions of their

Finno-lingual affiliation.

In the first quarter of the II millennium BC, the metallurgy was developed in the

province, the distribution of bronze tools and arms began. Among the ancient cattle, breeders

and farmers of the Bronze Age were the Indo-Iranian tribes of the carving culture. In

Mordovia, archeological monuments of the carcass culture (burial mounds and settlements)

were spread mainly in meadow-steppe landscapes [8]. In the forest landscapes of the region

traces of the stay of the tribes of Balanovo culture, with characteristic for this population of

stone battle-axes were found. The most famous settlement of Balanovo residents in the region

is “Osh Pando” near village Sainino [9]. Researchers consider Balanovo culture to be a part

of the wider Fatyanovo cultural-historical community.

In the III-V centuries the ancient Mordovian tribes occupied the vast territory of the Oka-

Sur land between the heads of the Sura and Moksha in the south to the right bank of the

Volga in the north. Materials of archeological excavations testify to the rich and original

culture of the ancient Mordva, about the occupation of the population by farming, cattle

breeding, hunting, fishing, and beekeeping. A variety of jewelry made of silver and bronze

speak for great skills and fine taste in art. Many of them reflected ancient ideas about the

world, pagan beliefs: pendants - symbols of the sun and moon, pendants in the form of

horses, birds, etc. The ancient Mordovian tribes had connections with many peoples of

Eastern Europe. The objects of trade exchange were furs, honey, wax, products of agriculture

and livestock [10]. From the middle of the VI century Mordovians are mentioned in Western

European sources - in the work of the historian, the Jordan [2].

In the V - VII centuries in Middle Posura the tribes of the Imenkov culture settled.

Settlements of Imenkovs were unfortified settlements and small settlements. In the Prisura,

they were known near the villages of Simkino (in place of the ancient fortress of the early

Iron Age), Engalychevo, Morga, Nikolaevka, Sainino, Chindyanovo. The evolution of the

economy of the an-cient Mordovians proceeded in the conditions of developing economic

contacts with other ethnic groups not only on Mordovian soil, but also far beyond its borders

- with the Slavic tribes (since the VII century), the early Bulgarian (VII-IX centuries), Volga

Bulgars (X century), Polovtsy, Khazars (VIII - IX centuries), Burtas (XI century), etc. [14].

The first mention of the ethnonym Mordva, Mordvin belongs to this period. The first

writ-ten mention of Mordens is found near the Jordan (VI century). In the Russian chronicles,

the same name appeared in the form of Mordva (with the suffix of collective significance).

The basis of mord-, in the opinion of ethnographers, is probably of Iranian origin; mid. anct.

ind. Martah “man, mortal”, New Persian, Tajik mard “man, husband, human”. Significantly

later, the names of the Erzya and Moksha people appeared. The origin of these names is

unclear and dates back probably to times that are more ancient [6]. From these ethnonyms,

the names of the Moksha River (the right tributary of the Oka) and the river Sura (the right

tributary of the Volga) are inseparable. On the Volga-Oka interfluve, the border of the

settlement of ethnos passes mainly along the watershed of these rivers. Transitions from the

main areas are related probably to subsequent migrations.

Thus, the culture of the ancient Mordovians was formed over many millennia on the basis

of local archaeological cultures, and subsequently in interaction with the Turkic and Slavic

peoples. Environment- and resource-producing characteristics of the nature of the basin of the

upper Tavla River. The landscape location of the Podlesnaya Tavla village is unique - at the



intersection of a number of contrasting natural boundaries. On the surrounding villages, the

residual watersheds crowned by the Oligocene leveling surface, the maximum absolute

elevations are up to 322 m, and the minimal ones are confined to the Tavlya valley, where the

mark of the water edge is 205 m. In deep forest beams, many high-yield springs originating

from many small rivers, including the Tavla. Meadow steppes dominated the lower and

middle sections of the slopes from old times and the oak forests dominated the upper steppes.

This zone of contact be-tween forest and meadow-steppe geosystems of the Volga Upland is

the oldest center of ethno-genesis of the Mordovian people.

2.2. Geological structure

The most elevated massifs of the upper Tavly are composed of Paleogene moldings with

interlayers (up to 0.4 m) of diatomites, sands, sandstones and clays. These marine deposits

can be observed in a quarry near the eastern edge of the village Podlesnaya Tavla. Opokas are

gray, yellowish-gray, individual interlayers silicified, dense, strong, less often fractured,

smearing, and finely osseous. Diatomites are dark gray, strong with the conchoidal fracture

and sharp cutting edges. Siliceous organic remains of six-ray corals, shells of diatoms are

recognized in diatomites.

On the steep slopes in the vicinity of the village, on the daytime surface, sediments of the

Upper Cretaceous period often appear - chalky marls, dense, fissured, with rusty divorce and

writing chalk stone. Sandstones bands and sands with inclusions of gravel-stones of

phosphorites are confined to the lower part of the carbonate layer. The thickness of the marly-

Cretaceous stratum varies from 13 to 30 m. In the marly-Cretaceous stratum there is a fauna

of brachiopods, belemnites and foraminifera. Lower Cretaceous deposits, forming the slopes

and base of the Tavla valley, are represented by clays.

Indigenous rocks on the slopes overlap with deluvial loams, often with a large amount of

crushed stone, and less often chalk and marl. The thickness of these formations is 1.0-3.0 m

at the tops and slopes and over 15 m at the foot of the hills. Closer to the hilly elevated part,

the deluvial clays overlap the eroded Upper Cretaceous (Santonian) gray siliceous marls and

clays, and on the remaining lower part of the area - to the washed down Lower Cretaceous

clays and sands.

In the valley of Tavla, in the lower part of the alluvial deposits, there is a pebble horizon

from local rocks - poplar, marl and silicon, as well as igneous and metamorphic rocks. At the

top of the geological section, alluvial formations are covered by eluvial-deluvial silty loams

of soft-plastic consistency 0.5-5.5 m thick, light dust loosely tilled clays lying 1.3 to 4.5 m

deep from the surface. The thickness of these deposits varies between 0.2-3.7 m; they are

underlaid 5-11.5 m deep by sands with capacity 0.7 to 5.4 m.

2.3. The groundwater

In the upper part of the basin of the Tavla River is the aquatic Paleo-gene-Upper Cretaceous

complex, composed predominantly of siliceous-carbonate and carbonate rocks - flocks,

marls, with inclusions of diatomite and trepel lenses, glauconite-quartz sands. Its water

content depends on the nature of the constituent rocks, their fracturing and the regime of

precipitation. The feeding area coincides with the area of distribution of the complex. The

waters are predominantly hydrocarbonate, calcium-magnesium, slightly mineralized (from

0.07 to 0.3 g / l). Their stiffness ranges are from 0.58 to 1.7 meq / liter. Unloading of

groundwater in deep beams and slopes has a large number of descending and ascending

sources, with a production rate of up to 3-4 liters per second. They form small rivers,

including the Tavla. Springs contain excel-lent taste of water.



The aquiferous modern alluvial horizon is confined to the floodplain deposits of the river

Tavla. The water-bearing rocks are represented by sands. The thickness of the water-bearing

strata does not exceed 3.0 m. The rate of production of coal is 0.1-0.2 l / s. The supply of

groundwater is mainly due to the discharge of interstitial water and the infiltration of

atmospheric precipitation. The groundwater discharge of the alluvial horizon occurs in

surface watercourses in the form of descending sources. The dynamics of the groundwater

table is determined by seasonal and weather conditions. The beginning of its greatest rise

occurs in April - the first half of May, the period of intense snowmelt.

For centralized water supply, the Upper Carboniferous aquifer is operated in the Tavla

River Basin. In most of the territory, waters with salinity 1.0 to 1.5 g / dm3 are common.

According to the chemical composition the waters are hydrocarbonate-sulfate-chloride.

2.4. Climate

The territory of the Tavla river basin is characterized by the temperate continental

climate, the characteristic feature of which is a pronounced change in the seasons of the year,

comparatively cold winters, moderately hot summers and unstable moisture. The territory is

influenced by air masses of temperate latitudes. The prevailing winds are the western and

south-western winds. The average annual air temperature for long-term data varies from 3.6 °

C to 4.0 ° C. The temperature of the coldest month of January is -12.1 ° C; the warmest July

is 19.2 ° C. In some years, the minimum temperature reaches -47 ° C, and the maximum

temperature reaches 38 ° C. In the transition seasons, there is a return of cold and frost. The

greatest amount of precipitation falls for July-August, the smallest - for January-March.

Summer precipitation often falls in the form of showers, causing activation of erosion

processes. The average amount of precipitation per year is 500-525 mm, during the growing

season of plants - 300-350 mm. This amount of precipitation is sufficient to provide plants

with moisture in the years of uniform distribution by months.

Hydrographic network and hydrological regime. The upper rivers the Bolshaya Ksha, the

Bolshaya Piksaur, the Nerleika, the Pichelatko, the Sinyash (left tributaries of the Sura), the

Tavla, the Atamarka, the Uda (the basin of the Insar river) flow radially from the deep-water

dividing massifs at the base of the Podlesnaya Tavla. The Tavla is a small river 33 km long.

Its origin takes north-east from the village Podlesnaya Tavla and flows into the river Insar in

the city of Saransk. The main tributaries of the Tavla River: the Atemarka, the Mazyiley

(right tributaries), the Pishleyka, the Dry Oak. The width of the watercourse in the area of the

village Podlevnaya Tavla is 1.5-2.0 m, 0.1-0.2 m deep, respectively. In the area of Podlesna

Tavlya, the river receives water from numerous small streams – the Medvezhiy, Chengeley,

Trokspando and others. The names of the rivers indicate the oldest settlement of the

Mordovian landscape. The Tavla River has a mixed source of food, according to the nature of

the internal annual distribution of the flow, it belongs to the Eastern European type; a

distinctly high tide in the period of spring snowmelt with the highest annual levels and a

stable low water at the end of winter.

The springs feeding the Tavla River and its tributaries are maintained in a well-

maintained condition, many of them are equipped with chapels or pagan sculptures. Many of

them have the glory of healers.

2.5. Soils

In the Tavla river basin, gray forest, black soils and floodplain soils predominate in the

structure of the soil cover. Gray forest soils are common in the enclosed spaces, descending

to the Tavla valley along steep slopes. The type of gray forest soils is subdivided into three



subtypes: light gray, gray and dark gray forest soils. With a shallow deposition of the flasks,

the gray forest soils are gravelly to varying degrees. The humus content is 3.0-7%. Gray

forest soils are comparatively little fertile, and plowing activates planar and linear erosion.

The inhabitants of Podlesnaya Tavla conducted their selective agricultural development;

preferring the preservation of oak forests performing important ecological functions - they

provided high rates of springs, served as board witches and forest lands gathering nuts,

mushrooms and berries.

A strip of chernozems spreads along a wide strip along the left bank of the Tavla;

podzolized, leached, meadow and carbonate black soils occur. These soils are characterized

by looseness, high moisture capacity, good water permeability, high humus content (5-9%).

Landscapes with black soils are distinguished by high agricultural cultivation.

Alluvial soils are distributed in river floodplains, which are divided into three types:

alluvial sod, alluvial meadow and alluvial marsh.

2.6. Vegetation

The natural vegetation of the Tavla River basin was represented historically by oak forests

and meadow steppes. The main forest-forming species are English oak, tillet, Norway maple,

common ash, elm (wychelm) and European white elm. In the shrubbery, ordinary haze

prevails; common hazel, wartybark euonymus, honeysuckle forest, Persian berry, cinnamon

rose and others are common. In the forests, there is a well-developed grass cover of ash weed,

sedge pilose and other plants - so-called broad-leaved grasses. The outcrops, especially of the

southern exposition, are heavily settled.

Upland oak forests, their glades and fringes, dry meadows along steep slopes and sides of

beams are rich in medicinal plants that have been used by the local population since ancient

times to treat humans and animals, as well as for preventive purposes. In the forests, are

collected the flowers of tillet, leaves and buds of birch warty, cinnamon rose, grass (leaves,

stems and inflores-cences) lily of the valley, common St. John's wort, marjoram,

inflorescence of yellow everlasting, leaves of white nettle; in meadow-steppe communities:

grass of thyme, yarrow, inflorescence of common tansy, creeping thyme, leaves of coltsfoot,

fruits of field caraway; weed plants: leaves of greater plantain, roots of dandelion and many

others.

In ecologically clean Tavlin forests in early spring, birch sap is collected, which includes

organic acids, enzymes and substances with high antimicrobial activity (phytoncides), sugars

(fructose, glucose, sucrose) and many mineral elements. Birch sap strengthens immunity,

normalizes the work of the heart, has an anti-inflammatory effect, it is useful for brain

function. As a whole, birch sap revitalizes the human body and strengthens the immune

system.

The meadow steppes occupied the lower (inland) parts of the slopes for the time being.

The northern steppe was characterized by plant communities with cereals, forming large or

small turf. Large turf species include some species of feather grass: pinnate, narrow-leaved,

feather grass or feather grass, and small turf species - fescue, prairie June grass or June grass,

etc. Among the herbs, it is necessary to note dropwort, fleawort, steppe sage. From the

legumes in the structure of complex phytocenoses, the mountain clovers participate:

mountain and alpine, bramble vetch, peavine. High-altitude structure of landscapes and

traditions of regional nature management. Features of the development of landscape-forming

factors in the upper Tavla river basin accounted for a pronounced slope change in

geosystems.



1. Butte-watershed massifs, with absolute elevations 240-320 m, composed of siliceous-

carbonate rocks of the Paleogene (opokas, marls with inclusions of glauconite-quartz sand

and sandstones), overlapped by thin eluvial-deluvial loams in with light gray and gray forest

gravely soils under broad-leaved forests. Landscapes have the selective agricultural and

forestry development; traditional types of nature management are developed - picking berries,

mush-rooms, nuts, medicinal plants; recreational activities are developed.

2. Wavy surfaces of middle sections of slopes (210-240 m), composed of carbonate rocks

of Upper Cretaceous (writing chalk, sand, sandstones), overlapped by thin deluvial loams

with dark gray forest soils and black soils under broad-leaved forests. Landscapes have the

selective economic development. With the agricultural development of steep slopes, erosion

processes are activated [4]. Traditional types of nature management are developed - picking

berries, mushrooms, nuts, medicinal plants; recreational activities are developed.

3. Lower near-valley slopes (up to 210 m), composed of deluvium of carbonate rocks of

Upper Cretaceous with leached, meadow and residual carbonate vlack soils under meadow

steppes. Agricultural development is significant, agro-industrial and recreational infra-

structure, residential activities are developed.

The slope change of the terrain is oriented in the direction from the watershed massifs to

the valley of the Tavla River and its tributaries. The pronounced high-altitude change of the

geo-complex creates picturesque views of the cultural landscapes of Podlesnaya and

Napolnaya Tavla from the edge of the oak woods on the undisturbed watersheds.

2.7. Landscape-cultural analysis of the heritage (archaeological and historical

monuments, landscape images, mythological layer, cultural traditions,

toponymy)

The basin of the Tavla River belongs to the regions of ancient economic development. In

the meadow-steppe landscapes there are numerous ancient mounds of ethnocultural

associations of the Late Bronze Age (XVIII-XII century BC, according to other estimates -

XVI-XII century BC). The first documentary evidence of ancient settlements in the upper

Tavla refers to the XVII century. During this period, along the right bank of the Tavla, there

is a marked line - a system of natural and artificial obstacles, which are combinations of hard-

to-reach forest, supplemented by moats and ramparts, stains and fortresses and palisades at

the intersection of meadow-steppe landscapes. They were built to protect Moscow state from

the Tatar raids. The creation of these fortification complexes had the great impact on the

process of economic development of the territory of Mordovia and the formation of a

settlement system [6]. The wooden fortresses of Saransk and Atamar appeared on the marked

line. The marked line approached to the Podlesnaya Tavla from the north, near the place

where the Memorial cross is now installed on the national memory, a species platform and a

chapel spring are built in honor of the ancestors - builders and defenders of the Fatherland.

Further to the south, the defensive line went to the upper reaches of the Medvezhy stream,

where many springs begin to carry water to the largest river of the Russian valley - the Volga.

According to historical documents of the XVII century in the upper reaches of the Tavla

River, there are two Erzya settlements - Podlesnaya Tavla and Napolnaya Tavla. Names are

of Turkic origin. They consist of two components: tau- (tav) “mountainous place” and -la

(Turkicly) as a topoform with the meaning of collectivity, the presence of something (for

example, near-by several mountains, elevations). The ancient settlement of Tavla was first

mentioned as the village of Tavla in 1692. Located below the flow of the Tavla River, the

village of Napolnaya Tavla (Paksya Tavla) was founded by settlers from the village



Podlesnaya Tavla at the end of the XVII century. The first mention - 1704 as the village of

Tavlinsky Vyselky, consisting of 52 yards [1].

In the process of development, the Podlesnaya and the Napolnaya Tavla formed a single

residential development, of several parallel streets stretching along the Tavla River at 5900

m. Saman huts and cottages of modern materials alternate on the streets of the villages.

Saman is one of the oldest building materials in the history of the development of human

civilization. It was used by the ancient Egyptians as far back as the 5th-4th millennium BC.

The main ad-vantages of the adobe are eco-friendliness, fire resistance, great thermal inertia

(in winter it is warm and in summer it is cool) and soundproofing, a stable microclimate,

availability of the original components for production and low cost. The architecture of adobe

houses reveals the centuries - old history of the life of the Erzya people - there are small two -

chamber dwellings (huts) and three - chamber houses (cottages - cage, upper room -

cottages). Saman houses had a narrow or thatched roof, in later versions - iron or slate.

Indigenous people were careful about the forest as a source of building material.

Tavlin pagans took Orthodoxy in the years 1743-44 [14]. Christianity adapts to folk

traditions and pagan rites (carnival on the change of winter and spring, Trinity in the

beginning of summer, Cover in autumn, etc.). The nature of the relationship between the

population and the landscape through the religious beliefs of the Mordvins is filled with

profound meaning. N.F. Mokshin [6, 7] notes that the Mordva considered Virava (vir-forest,

ava-woman, mother), Moda-ava or Mastor-ava (moda, mastor - motherland), Norov-ava or

Paksya-ava (Paksya-field), Vedava (ved - water), Varma-ava (Varma-wind), Tol-ava (tol -

fire), Chi-paz or Shi-paz (chi, shek - sun, paz - god), Purgine-paz (purgine - thunder). Ancient

Mordva worshiped trees, springs, rivers, tracts and other natural objects and phenomena. By

adopting Orthodoxy, the Mordva sought to preserve the system of holy places in which it

limited the transforming nature management. The system of such natural reserves was often

hidden, and so by now information about them has been lost largely. The restoration of these

elements in the cultural landscape represents one of the problems of ethnographic and

historical-landscape studies.

The inhabitants of the Tavla keep sacred traditions, wedding ritual songs, folk laments

and lamentations. In traditions, recipes for the manufacture of national dishes and drinks are

pre-served, a special place among which is the national drink braga.

3. AESTHETICS OF THE SEASONAL DYNAMICS OF THE

CULTURAL LANDSCAPE

The attractiveness of Tavla landscapes is determined not only by their diversity, but also by

the impressive change of nature paintings throughout the year. Waking from the winter sleep,

nature passes successively these phases as the spring of light that comes in early or mid-

February with its sunny weather, an extended day, thawed patches on the slopes, long icicles

and drops, radiation spring receiving heat directly from the heating of the earth by the sun's

rays, and advective spring receiving heat from the transfer of warm and moist air with

cyclones. These phases are in the aggregate white spring, which is associated with solar

Mordva embroidery on snow-white canvases. As a result of the snow cover, the white spring

is replaced by yellow, or bare, spring, lasting until the appearance of leaves, and then green,

or dressed, in the spring.

The coming summer is remarkable for the diversity of the colors of floodplain meadows,

the cool shade of oak forests. Visitors to the Tavla are attracted by the murmur of transparent

springs, many of which have healing properties and consecrated. Chapels and pavilions tower



over them. The terrain around the springs is an example of the reverent attitude to nature and

is an integral part of the Tavla landscape.

Picturesque Tavlin landscapes in autumn with the successive change of Indian summer,

consisting of clear, warm days, golden autumn, when dense greenery combines with yellow

and crimson paints of deciduous forests, and pre-winter, attracting park visitors even sharper

contrasts.

Winter in the Tavla basin is remarkable for its clear, deep snow, the transformed shape of

deciduous forests, the unpredictable alternation of sunny frosty days and heavy snowfalls.

Seasonal dynamics of landscapes is in harmony with a leisurely series of folk festivals,

which by origin can be divided into several groups:

Ecclesiastical, among which a number of especially important “twelve” are distinguished

(Easter, Trinity, Christmas, etc.); many of them, especially summer ones, were celebrated

either completely or partially in nature - the feast of Baptism, involving ablution in rivers and

springs; Maslenitsa, which is transformed into the seeing-off of the Russian winter, with the

custom of burning stuffed winters, holding sports competitions and various competitions, and

with the remaining snow cover - and skiing from the mountains; Easter, Trinity, Elijah's Day;

One of the most significant holidays is the Victory Day; in the center of the village

Podlesnaya Tavla there is a monument to the victims of the Great Patriotic War, where the

names of 311 heroes are all the family names of the Tavla;

The Day of Youth stands apart - in a sense it has become a modern duplicate of the day of

Ivan Kupala.

Mass holidays for many centuries stimulated the Tavlins psychological qualities such as

collectivism, the need for communication, extremely valuable in the community way of life

in the countryside. Now, in connection with the entrenched individualism, family closeness,

the weakening of intra-social ties, mass festivities, even in the countryside, begin to give way

to individual and family forms of rest.

4. CULTURAL HERITAGE AND INNOVATIVE ELEMENTS

In the last decade an innovative tourist and recreational infrastructure has been formed on the

territory of the emerging ethno-cultural park (Figure 1):



Figure 1 1 - Architectural complex: the monument to those who perished in the Great Patriotic War,

Podlasnotavlinskaya experimental children's art school, the exhibition of wooden sculptures in the

open air; 2 - Nativity of Christ; 3 - the house-museum “Etno-Kudo” named after V.I. Romashkin; 4 -

recreation center “Prostokvashino”; 5 - Open Company Agro-firm “Tavla”; 6 - skiing complex; 7 -

chapel over the sacred spring; 8 - glade of the Great Sacred Birch; 9 - the natural boundary of seven

springs; 10 - Great spring; 11 - Species

The agricultural enterprise - Tavla Agrofirma Ltd., which produces ecological food

products, develops actively in the village. The Tavla is a unique enterprise engaged in the

cultivation of goats and the processing of goat's milk, from which various cheeses, yoghurt,

yogurt, sour cream, used in dietary food are made; actively developing and traditional dairy

sector;

The ancient Mordovian wood carving industry was revived in the Podlesno-Tovlin

experimental children's art school; the “Tavlinsky” style of artistic processing of wood is

marked by the creation of voluminous compositions and moving toys; the central place is

occupied by the image of a human in various life situations, fairy-tale characters; the Tavlin

toy can be recognized by the most popular horse carved out of lime, with a long mane from

the bast; the Tavlin wooden horse was among the seven wonders of the Finno-Ugric world;

The Podlesnaya Tavla is one of the centers of annual national holidays and festivals: the

Vastoma National Culture Festival, the regional festival of land-sculpture competition for the

epics of Finno-Ugric peoples “Rasken Oime” (“The Soul of the People”), the inter-regional



symposium of carvers on the tree “Podlesnaya Tavla - ethno-art territory”, the festival of the

ancient Erzyan song “Call of the Toram”, the International Festival of Ugric Woodcarvers

“United Roots” (“Weisen Undock”), etc.

The revival of the spiritual heritage of Mordovia is symbolized in the created house

museum “Etno-Kudo” named after V.I. Romashkin, a major figure of the Mordvinian people,

folklorist, musician, the founder of the folk group “Torama”; where the annual folklore

festival of the ancient Erzyan and Moksha songs “Toramasterdy” and the humor festival

“Kuldor-Kaldor” are held annually; in the house and in the backyard the life of the Erzya

peasant family was recreated;

The high year-round tourist and recreational service represents the recreation center

“Prostokvashino”, it has become in recent years an ideal prestigious place for holding various

solemn events.

The village Podlesnaya Tavla is one of the regional centers for the development of ethnic

and cultural-cognitive tourism. Podlasno-Tavlin experimental children's art school and the

house-museum “Ethno-Kudo” named after V.I. Romashkin are included in the list of objects

of the excursion routes “Weekend in Saransk” and “Mordovia Ethnic”, as well as the brand

tourist route “Call of Toram”.

The cultural landscape of the ancient Tavla incorporates carefully protected oak forests,

which regulate the high productivity of mycelium, berry, medicinal herbs, abundant springs;

established settlement systems and land use types adapted to the surrounding landscape;

ethno-graphic originality of the area with the ancient Mordovian calorite, located in a

functional and spatial connection with the landscape environment.

In the Tavla basin, there are two main areas of recreational activities: winter - skiing and

snowmobiles, recreational recreation - measured contemplative walks with stops and rest. In

the 1980s in the vicinity of the village, there is a ski resort equipped with two drag lifts.

Summer - recreational recreation, promoted by rich in mushrooms and berries forests;

excellent species sites on the forest edges of the residual watersheds; springs with crystal

clear waters; picturesque ponds with good fishing. The warm season begins with the

collection of life-giving birch sap. Such conditions are observed annually from the end of

April to the middle of October.

5. CONCLUSION

Features of natural differentiation and economic development of the Tavla River Basin

have formed the polarized cultural landscape, on the basis of which one pole is formed by

meadow-steppe geocomplexes with fertile black soils along the river, and the second - forest

butte-waterparting massifs. The centuries-old adaptation of economic activity to the

surrounding landscape has led to the formation of the multi-layered system of natural and

historical heritage: 1 -components of the enclosing natural landscape, providing the stable

environment and resource-producing functions of groundwater and surface water, fertile

soils, significant biological diversity; 2 - traditions of regional nature management, ensuring

minimization of the manifestation of destructive geo-ecological processes; 3 - saturation of

objects of material and spiritual culture of the indigenous population - Mordovians; 4 –

landscape and mythological images, in folk tales and fine sculptures, a reflection of the

peculiarities of interaction between landscapes and society; 5 - cultural traditions that are

built into the natural calendar of the seasons; 6 - toponymy, systematizing spatial objects in

the mind of a person. The most important feature of the Tavlin cultural landscape is the

harmonious interaction of traditions and innovative elements, which ensures continuity in the

development of a culture of life support.



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