Searching for Kyiv’s lost 11th century library

Kyiv traces its history to a state that existed long before Russia, and one of its legacies is the book collection of Yaroslav the Wise. But no one knows where it is—so we set out to find it.

Editor’s Note: The Counteroffensive is eager to uncover Ukraine’s longest-running mysteries, even if it leads us on a wild goose chase all the way back to the Medieval era!

This month, we are trying to bring attention to our work by going dark until the end of September. All of our articles about Ukraine will be paywalled. Don’t wait to unlock our stories by upgrading your subscription!

My first visit to the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra as a child comes back in vivid flashbacks:

…the smell of incense drifting up the long spiral staircase.
…the wax from a candle melting and burning my hand.

…then there was the stern scolding from a stranger who barked at me: “Behave, this is a sacred space.”

And, of course, the mummified remains.

I still remember my shock at stumbling upon a human hand, so dry it looked wooden, just one of many preserved bodies of monks that dot these dark caves.

One of the cells in Lavra’s caves. Photo from ‘Vechirniy Kyiv.’

Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra (‘Kyiv’s Cave Monastery’), is a male monastery in the caves of Kyiv’s hills.

Lavra is key to Kyiv’s ancient history — and also one of the potential hiding places of the lost library of Yaroslav the Wise.

The library doesn’t just have great historical significance for Ukraine; it’s also a weapon against the revisionist history that the Kremlin has repeatedly used to justify its war.

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After the paywall:
- What secrets do Kyiv’s caves hide?

-Why is it dangerous to look for the library underground?

-Where did it go and where do we look for it?

- Did Sofia manage to find the lost library?