The cause of death of Dmitry Donskoy cannot be established precisely, said the RAS academician

Brief retelling from RIA II

Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Nikolai Makarov said that the exact cause of death of Prince Dmitry Donskoy is impossible to establish.

Anthropologists did not find any traces of lethal injuries on the remains, and many diseases of the Middle Ages did not leave marks on the bones.

The scientist noted that the life of Dmitry Donskoy was tense, and his illness is known from the “Tale of the Life and Death of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsar of Russia.”

MOSCOW, September 13 - RIA Novosti. From the point of view of modern science, it is impossible to establish the exact cause of the death of Prince Dmitry Donskoy, one can only make assumptions, Nikolai Makarov, Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, acting director of the Institute of Archeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said in an interview with RIA Novosti.

“We won’t be able to say anything about this (the cause of death of Dmitry Donskoy - ed.). These conclusions are beyond the capabilities of modern science, both archaeological and, as I understand it, anthropological. So we can only make assumptions,” Makarov said

According to the scientist, anthropologists did not find traces of any lethal injuries on the remains; a significant part of the diseases from which people died in the Middle Ages and Modern times do not leave marks on the bones.

"And even if we are dealing with dried soft tissues, we are unlikely to be able to add anything to what we know from the chronicle. The prince was sick - we know from the Word ("The Word about the life and death of Grand Duke Dmitry Ivanovich, Tsar of Russia" - ed.), which was written about his life in the 15th century, that he was sick for several days there was an improvement, he felt better, and yet he died,” Makarov noted.

The scientist emphasized that one can only make assumptions, and the life of Dmitry Donskoy was tense - military campaigns, difficult political decisions, the prince had something to “burn out” from.

In July, restorers opened the sarcophagus of St. Prince Dmitry Donskoy in the Archangel Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin. Research has confirmed that the remains belong to him. On August 18, Patriarch Kirill performed a prayer service at the relics of the holy prince; on August 20, Russian President Vladimir Putin prayed in the Archangel Cathedral.