During archaeological excavations in 1963, a 12th-century temple was discovered in the settlement, similar in architecture to the cathedrals of Kiev and Vladimir, and which was destroyed presumably in 1230. According to some scientists, the temple could be the second spiritual center of Kievan Rus – in its size, splendor and significance it surpassed the religious buildings of ancient Polotsk. It was a three-nave three-apse temple measuring 28.5 × 17.3 m with supports on six main and two additional internal pillars.
