19th-century Russian soldier found inside unearthed coffin Turkey’s Arhadan identified

ARDAHAN

The identity of a 19th-century Russian military officer who was found inside an unearthed coffin in the eastern province of Ardahan last month has been revealed, daily Habertürk reported on May 21.

The soldier was identified as Lt. Col. Karl Karlovich Rjepetsky, who was a member of the 78th Navaginsky regiment of the 20th infantry division of the 1st Caucasian Army Corps.

Rjepetsky reportedly died after suffering from a disease in 1894, the daily said.

Turkish experts conducted discussions with Russian officials and subsequently identified Rjepetsky from information gathered from his uniform.

Meanwhile, the location where the soldier was found was identified as the Ardahan Military Cemetery, according to Russian archives.

The coffin, which was initially believed to have belonged to Russian general Vasiliy Geyman, was unearthed on April 26 during excavations to lay the foundation of a construction project in Ardahan. 

Rjepetsky’s remains were subsequently put under protection at the Kars Museum.

Previously, Necmettin Alp, the general director of the museum, had stated that the skeleton of the officer was believed to have been killed during the Ottoman-Russian War in 1877-1878.