Najafov Sh.N. (Baku, Azerbaijan Republic)
Archaeological studies have proved the great proximity of the location of the settlements of the medieval period of the basin in the middle reaches of the Kura and that this region in the late XVII - early XIX centuries was one of the most densely populated regions of the South Caucasus. An example of such settlements is the group of monuments of Ganja, Gazakh, Gadabay and Mingachevir. The extension of the area of settlements to mountainous and foothill zones was associated with demographic growth. So, population density and lack of food forced people to search for new pastures and, in part, plots suitable for agriculture. Reconstruction of the historical topography of the late medieval village was carried out for the first time on the basis of three types of sources-written, cartographic, and archaeological. All the basic elements of the village’s historical topography as well as the plan of quarterly residential development and a network of streets are reconstructed. The Poylu III settlement is located on the south side of the Kura River, close to the village of Poylu, Agstafa District, Republic of Azerbaijan. Excavations of this type of settlements, which are rarely studied in Azerbaijan, on the example of the village of Late Middle Age, play a major role of source in creating a socio-economic landscape of the period in question, studying the economic activities of the population, areas of handicrafts and trade.