Svetlana Pletnyova

Svetlana Alexandrovna Pletneva (also spelled Pletnyeva and Pletnyova; Russian: Светлана Александровна Плетнёва, Russian pronunciation: [svʲɪtˈɫanə ɐlʲɪkˈsandrəvnə plʲɪtʲˈnʲɵvə]; 1 April 1926, Vyatka – 20 November 2008, Moscow) was a Russian archaeologist and historian. Like Lev Gumilev, she was a student of Mikhail Artamonov, although she discarded many of the former's theories as mere speculations. Pletneva was the world's leading authority on the Khazars and authored numerous books about early medieval inhabitants of the Pontic–Caspian steppe. She won the USSR State Prize in 1986.

In this name that follows East Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Alexandrovna and the family name is Pletneva.

Pletneva participated in Artamonov's excavation of Sarkel (1949–1951). She led a series of expeditions which excavated the key sites of the Saltovo-Mayaki culture. For instance, a Soviet-Bulgarian-Hungarian expedition under Pletneva's leadership explored the Mayatskoye settlement (1975, 1977–1982). She also excavated Pliska, the first capital of Bulgaria, and directed excavations of the Tmutarakan fortress. In 1990, she published a monograph about the Polovtsy (Cumans).

In 1988, she succeeded Boris Rybakov as the editor-in-chief of the journal Soviet Archaeology.

Honours and awards

• State Prize of the USSR
• Order of the Badge of Honour
• Medal "For Labour Valour"
• Medal "For Distinguished Labour"

External links

• Pletneva's page on the Institute for Archeology website (in Russian)

Preceded by Rybakov, Boris Alexandrovich

Head Editor of the journal Russian Archaeology 1988—1994

Succeeded by Gulyaev, Valeriy Ivanovich