Gate-shaped sanctuaries of the Sokil Ridge IІ
The cult rock monuments of Sokilskyi are accompanied by a rich local folklore-legendary tradition associated with ancient sanctuaries, images of Bilobog and Chernobog, the burial of King Hutsul, the activities of O. Dovbush, caves, numerous treasures, etc. The very first day of surveying the Sokilsky peaks on June 22, 2006, exceeded expectations. The Tatariv sanctuary, sacrificial stone, petroglyphs were discovered. Later, the Harbuziv and Lesiv (Maryshev) sanctuaries supplemented this list.
The placement of sanctuaries and altars on mountaintops was not accidental. In the cult tradition of the ancient peoples who lived in or near the mountains, there was an idea of the peaks as something sacred, close to the sky and the gods. Researchers note that the cult of the mountains arose in the Mesolithic-Neolithic era and was associated with significant changes in social consciousness, economic activity, in particular, the appearance of the first agricultural communities that arose in the Carpathians in the 6th millennium BC. The cult of sacred peaks was associated with the awareness of the dependence of earthly processes on heavenly ones and the affirmation in this connection of the main male deity of the sky, the Sun.
