For all, who are interested in the Orient

• The magazine presents the works by Russian scholars who have studied historical heritage of the Khazar Kaganate. Research in the history and culture of the peoples that inhabited this Medieval state formation is conducted as a part of the Khazar Project, a new non-governmental research project, launched in 2000.
• Evgeniy Satanovskiy: "The Essence of Our History Is to Be a Crossroads, an Intersection of Civilisations". The Khazar Project comprises archaeological research in Southern Russia and Ukraine, a collection of artefacts, a library, publication of new books, and a documentary film. The initiator of the project tells us about its various aspects.
• Vladimir Petrukhin. "To Avenge on Unwise Khazars..." The article tells about the origin of Khazar state, its fortifications, neighbouring peoples, and about the choice of the "true faith" by Khazar ruler.
• The author concludes: "The foundations of political, ethical and confessional development laid by the Khazars, have survived up to the present time in Eastern Europe."
• Tatyana Kalinina. The Country of Khazaria as It Appears in Arab and Persian Sources. Most of the information about the Khazars has been preserved in the books by Arab and Persian authors. The author has summarised this data in thematic sections on geography, economy, description of towns, political system of the country, etc.
• Emma Zilivinskaya, Dmitriy Vasilyev. Ancient Settlement in the Volga Delta. One of the riddles in the history of the Khazars is the location of Itil, the capital of the Kaganate. The excavations in the Volga delta, led by one of the authors of this article, look very promising. In 9-10th century, there was a large town here, which could be a domain of the rulers of Khazaria.
• Sergey Kashaev, Natalya Kashovskaya. Stones and Insriptions of the Bophorus. The authors describe archaeological discoveries in the Northern Black Sea hinterland, the evidence of the ties between local population and Khazaria.
• Valeriy Flyorov. Khazar Fortresses on the River Don: Olden Times and Present. The chain of Khazar fortresses embraced the North-western frontier of the Khazar Kaganate. Many of them are real masterpieces of the art of fortification.
• Viktor Aksyonov. The Outpost of Verkhniy Saltov. The author sums up the results of many years’ excavations of an ancient settlement near the village of Verkhniy Saltov in Kharkov region, Ukraine. The discovered town was apparently the administrative centre of the Northern part of the Khazar Kaganate.
• Artyom Fedorchuk. Findings and Puzzles of Avraham Firkovich. The study of the epigraphic material from the Chufut-Kale cemeteries in Crimea made is possible to solve many puzzles and to reveal many forgeries made by Avraham Firkovich, a well-known collector of Karaite antiquities and an adventurist.
• Publications about Khazaria in Russian. A bibliography of books on Khazaria published since 1870-es.

• Olga Bibikova. Sweeter than a Kiss, Tastier than a Biscuit in Wine... It is impossible, of course, to tell everything about coffee. Yet this article contains quite a lot of information about the origin of this beverage, its recipes, and the traditions of coffee-drinking in Arabic, Turkish, and European cultures.
• Nikita Sokolov. Multicoloured Ice at the Sources of Ganges. This essay, full of vivid impressions and observations, is a result of the author’s journey to the sources of the great river of India. This witty story once again testifies to the fact that a journey is a true friend’s touchstone...
• Kermen Batyreva. Red Colour of the Sun. The traditional costume of the Kalmyks, which reflects the nomadic lifestyle of these people, is a handmade monument of their history and traditional culture.
• Vladimir Kubarev. Offerings to Stone Ancestors. The peoples of the Sayan and Altai mountains have practiced the ancient rite of remembering the dead since times immemorial. But this rite did not sink completely in the past. In modern Altai one can meet the traces of ritual offerings near stone figures.
• Nikolay Listopadov. Lions on Guard. The state symbols of Myanmar.

• Vera Belozyorova. When Soul and Mind Emit Radiance. Chinese calligraphy is a unique phenomenon in the history of mankind, both for its scale and the level of artistic achievement and aesthetic features. The article tells a reader about the origin and development of the art of calligraphy in China, the main styles and technique of writing.
• Dmitriy Voskresenskiy. The Land of Confucius and Pu Songling, the Word Magician. The author continues the series of articles about the old and modern culture of China, which have been written after his travels in this country.