SA Osiliana

Sihtasutus Osiliana loodi 2020. aastal ning seda finantseerib suuremas ulatuses ettevõtja Kristjan Rahu. Osiliana on uurimiskeskus, mis tegeleb Saaremaa varasema ajalooga, eriti arheoloogiaga. Konkreetsemalt on viimaste aastate uurimistöö keskendunud perioodile alates viikingiajast kuni 14. sajandini. Sihtasutus on lepinguliselt seotud Tallinna ülikooliga ning osa rahastusest tuleb hetkel läbi riiklike projektide. SA Osiliana on ka projekti ESTERRA lepingupartner.

SA Osilianas või sellega seotud projektides töötab hetkel viis inimest, enamus osalise koormusega. Alates 2020. aastast on viidud läbi rohkesti välitöid, sealhulgas suuremahulised kaevamised Valjala ja Pöide maalinnadel. Tehakse tihedat koostööd TLÜ ja TÜ geoloogide ja geneetikutega. 

Osiliana haldab Saaremaa vanema ajaloo infokeskust www.osiliana.eu ning arendab Saaremaa arheoloogiliste leidude andmebaasi AAS (Archaeological Artefacts of Saaremaa; https://osiliana.eu/andmebaas/?_sfm_artefacts_additional_fields_dating_century_from=0+14) . Koostöös MTÜ Videoõps’iga valmisid 2024. aastal seitse minidokumentaali Saaremaa varasemast ajaloost, tegemisel on mitmete muististe audiogiidid ja uued infotahvlid.

The Foundation Osiliana was established in 2020 and is predominantly funded by entrepreneur Kristjan Rahu. Osiliana is a research centre dealing with Saaremaa’s early history, especially archaeology. The recent focus of research is on the period from the Viking Age to the 14th century. The Foundation is contractually linked to Tallinn University and part of its funding currently comes through state-financed projects. Foundation Osiliana is also a contract partner of the ESTERRA project.

There are currently five people working in Foundation Osiliana or related projects, most of them part-time. Since 2020, a significant amount of fieldwork has been carried out, including large-scale excavations at the hill-forts of Valjala and Pöide. Close cooperation is established with geologists and geneticists from Tallinn and Tartu universities.Osiliana has created the Information Centre of Saaremaa’s Early History (www.osiliana.eu ) and currently develops the electronic free-access database AAS (Archaeological Artefacts of Saaremaa; https://osiliana.eu/en/database/?_sfm_artefacts_additional_fields_dating_century_from=0+14). In 2024, seven mini-documentaries on Saaremaa’s earlier history were produced in cooperation with MTÜ Videoõps. The construction of audio guides and new information boards for several archaeological monuments is in progress.