2014 Vol. 5 №1

This article emphasises that, in the history of the early Balts (the Aesti and Prussians), amber was a principal means of trade that was exchanged for necessary goods from Europe. In these conditions, amber played a dual role: on the one hand, it stimulated trade connections between the Balts and other peoples, on the other hand, it decelerated their own cultural and technological development. The author’s assumptions are corroborated by archaeological data.

This article develops the concept of historical process being determnined by cultural phenomena. The cultural aspect examined by the author is religious beliefs. It is shown that Prussia constituted a region of intersection between ancient Prussian paganism rooted in the proto-Indo-European era and Roman Catholic Church and Orthodoxy. The interaction of these forms of ideology is used to explain the history of Prussia.

This article analyses the condition of settlements, manors (Landschlösser), castles, churches of East Prussia on the territory of today’s Kaliningrad region. It is shown that almost all historical sites of this type are either ruined or close to this condition. The author stresses the need to take urgent measures to preserves such sites or organise professional reconstruction.