At the archaeological site of Papinniemi in Uukuniemi, eastern Finland, a Greek Orthodox church, a cemetery and a village have been situated in the 15th-17th centuries. The settlement was completely deserted probably during a war between Sweden and Russia in the middle of the 17th century.
Papinniemi is one of the numerous Greek Orthodox settlements that existed in Karelia in historical times. These sites and their desertion are a proof of the competition of the Byzantine and Roman Christian churches. In certain areas of Finland this competition has continued until the 17th century and even after.
Papinniemi is an archaeological site protected by the Finnish law. Archaeological excavations at the site have begun in 1995 and are going to continue for many years. In charge of the archaeology excavations is the Archaeology Department of the University of Turku in cooperation with the National Board of Antiquities.
The exceptionally rich finds of Papinniemi make the site unique in eastern Finland, where the Orthodox culture or the historical period in general have not been archaeologically researched in any extent until recently.
Source From Great Site : http://users.utu.fi/vilaakso/Uuengl.htm
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