Russian Hermitage Museum cancels expeditions in occupied Crimea due to "escalation of situation"

Daria Lobanok - 29 June, 16:20

Illegal excavations at the Kil-Dere burial site in occupied Crimea. Photo: The Russian occupation administration of Sevastopol

All archaeological expeditions conducted by Russia's Hermitage Museum in Crimea have been cancelled.

Source: Alexander Butyagin, a Russian archaeologist who was detained in Poland and later released as part of an exchange to Russia, in a comment to the Russian media

Details: A few days ago, a message appeared in the Myrmekion expedition group, which takes place in the vicinity of Kerch and which Butyagin has been expecting since 1999, stating that the work has been moved to another region "due to the escalation of the situation".

Instead of Crimea, volunteers are being urged to carry out excavations in Kuban. In total, nine expeditions had been planned on the peninsula this summer.

Butyagin is an employee of Russia's Hermitage Museum and for about 12 years headed an archaeological expedition organised by Russia in occupied Crimea.

On 4 December 2025, Poland's Internal Security Agency detained Alexander Butyagin in Warsaw, where he had arrived to give a lecture on Pompeii. He was detained at Ukraine's request: back in October 2024, investigators had served him with a notice of suspicion in absentia for the deliberate unlawful destruction of a cultural heritage site in occupied Crimea. This concerns excavations in ancient Myrmekion, which, according to experts, led to the partial destruction of the cultural layer and damages exceeding UAH 200 million (US$4.5 million).

According to Ukrainian investigators, he was involved in illegal excavations that led to the destruction of the cultural layer of the "Ancient City of Myrmekion" site. The damage is estimated at over UAH 200 million (US$4.5 million).

Background:

On 18 December 2025, a court in Warsaw upheld Ukraine's request for the extradition of Russian archaeologist Alexander Butyagin.
On 28 April 2026, Russia and Belarus carried out an exchange of detained citizens with Poland and Moldova under a "five-for-five" formula. As a result of the exchange, Butyagin was brought back to Russia.

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