The archaeological expedition headed by Alexander Kozhevin from Ulyanovsk State University concluded that the site has been continuously inhabited since the 4th century CE.[6] The oldest recovered objects date around 20,000 years old. Staraya Mayna existed as part of the Imenkovo culture. It was later taken by the Volga Bulgars, after that the Golden Horde and then the Kazan Khanate. In the 17th century, the first settlement under the Russian Empire was established. Gothic pendants of 3rd century, a Romantic coin of the emperor Caracalla dated 213 CE, 4th century belts were discovered in excavations. The consensus among historians is that the Imenkovo culture was formed by the Rus' people who later migrated to establish the Kievan Rus.[7] In 2007, The Times of India reported an idol of the Hindu deity Vishnu, dated to the 7th–10th century AD, was excavated from Staraya Mayna.[8] However, this claim has been shown to be false, as the original Russian article that reported the findings made no mention or indication of it.[6]
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