Archaeologists report that not long ago the villages situated along the Oka river were full analogs of Finno - Ugric patrimonial cemeteries . It is very amusing to explore the ancient site . The dead were buried not by the churches like in the rest of Russia , but in the places where the pagan ancestors lie . The villagers were buried only in the family cemeteries wherever the person had died . Graveyard near Ryazan . Old Ryazan is an ancient settlement near Oka river . It was the center of the old Ryazan princedom in the 12 - 13 th centuries . At present it is the largest ancient settlement in Europe not occupied by modern buildings . Costumes of the old culture that was spread in the territory of the modern Ryazan . Finno - Ugric artefacts of ancient Kiev . Bronze idol of ancient finno - Ugric culture . The Oka view from the Old Ryazan ancient settlement . Bow - down stone . The layout of the old Ryazan resembles such of ancient settlements . For example a cult stone with the traces of worship easily seen even today . Ancient Finno - Ugric people worshipped the stones as they saw might , support , receptacle of the souls of the ancestors . The stones bear the pagan philosophy and give energy to those who worship them . All the wide Finno - Ugric land is rich with such stones . Such perception of nature gave birth to the ancient philosophy of ancestors – there is life in stones . Anomalous zone “ Drunken forest ” . “ Drunken forest ” All the trees are bent to the North while the leaves grow fine . There are different possible reasons of it , one thing the researchers agree about is that some natural anomaly must take place here . There are also several Finno - Ugric burial grounds around these places . The other famous sacred place in the Ryazan region is the spring near the “ Drunken forest ” It follows the Finno - Ugric tradition of worshipping water . There are many cases when it is said to heal various diseases . According to the legend the icon was once found in the place of radiance in the forest .