Archeologists have unearthed a sarcophagus with remains of Maria Shestova - the grandmother of the tsar Mikhail I Romanov, the first of the Romanovs dynasty.

      The excavations were started a month ago in the area of the Nikolsky Cathedral that was destroyed back in 1936. The archeological works were launched there by request of the administration of Cheboksary.

      It is interesting to note that in the year 1913 marking the 300th anniversary of the Romanovs Family the remains of Maria Shestova were already found, and then reburied in the same place.

      The walls, floor and the vault of the sepulcher are brick laid; it is coated with cement and topped with a cross.

      Maria Shestova was the maternal grandmother of Mikhail Fedorovich, the first tsar from the Romanovs dynasty. In 1601she was banished to Nikolsky Convent in Cheboksary, where she died and was buried.