The dig, on Magasini tänav in central Tartu, have also found preserved, rare murals, and a wealth of finds from the medieval and early modern periods.

Excavation leader Keiti Randoja told "Aktuaalne kaamera": "We have most likely discovered the Church of St. Nicholas of the Orthodox faith. Written sources indicate that this was built in this area in the 15th century, but up to now no one had managed to pinpoint its exact location. We have already found that the church's interior was covered in white plaster, but in some places there are still remnants of paintings — lines made in red and black stripes — which makes this a very rare find. Generally, nothing of the interior wall surfaces remains."

The site is the location of a new building to be operated by lenders Bigbank, but since it is within Tartu's heritage protection zone, a team of about 35 archaeologists was able to excavate there, ahead of the building work.

The cemeteries contained hundreds of sets of human remains dating to a time of famine and plague in the region.

"We have unearthed more than 200 skeletons here. The burials date from the second half of the 16th century and the early 17th century. These burials likely come from the time of famine and plague. This gives us a very good cross-section of that harsh period. We can see exactly how the young and old who perished from plague and hunger lived before that, find out their ages, and also identify any injuries and traumas," osteoarchaeologist Martin Malve said.

The second church found during the excavations was likely built on the same site, by the Jesuits, and soon after the Livonian War of 1558-1583.

A medieval courtyard area has also been preserved, and ten waste pits were found there which, based on current knowledge, could date back as far as the 14th century.

"There is manure in there, which preserves all kinds of organic material that would otherwise have decomposed in the soil. We have found fragments of wooden vessels, ceramic shards, animal bones, sieves, leather items, and shoes. Waste pits are an archaeologist's dream," Randoja noted.

he objects and finds discovered through the excavations will be taken to a laboratory, to date them more precisely, then they will be handed over to the Tartu City Museum.

"As for the church, heritage protection authorities will decide how and what must be done, but most likely all the walls will need to be conserved and preserved — that will become clear in the future," Randoja added.

Tartu Postimees reported excavating the 800-900 square meter site entailed documenting the demolishing the remains of the walls of a 19th century building, before the main dig got underway.

Among other interesting finds included a 16th-century halberd with a small shaft fragment still attached, fragments of leather shoes and various textiles, parts of wooden utensils, beads, ceramics, and even the an egg, with lab tests to ascertain if it was a hen's egg of that of another bird.

One of the highlights has been a 14th century comb, made of animal bone, which Randoja joked could, once washed, even be used by modern people to comb their hair.

Archaeologists had been searching for the exact location of the church for around half-a-century, Randoja noted, with no success until now.

Known then as Dorpat, Tartu became a commercial center of considerable importance during the later Middle Ages and the capital of the semi-independent Bishopric of Dorpat.

In 1558, Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible invaded and occupied the city, with argumentation which curiously echoes the justification, that the city was "founded" by ancient Rus', used in the present day in Russia's invasion and occupation of eastern Ukraine.

Later on in the 16th century, Tartu became part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and was passed between this political entity and the Swedish empire for the first 25 years of the seventeenth century, before being captured more permanently by Sweden. The city's famous university was founded during this time, in 1632.

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