The history of the church archeology in pre-Soviet times is one of the important problems of the modern history of science. Theoretical archaeological sphere of church activities in the late 19th early 20th centuries was to study the monuments of religious culture. In the 21st century, this issue has become particularly relevant. In my study, using archeographic and bibliographical methods, I examine founding circumstances and program documents of the Church Historical and Archaeological Society of the Taurida Diocese. These documents make it clear personal structure of Society and the main directions of its activity: (i) to promulgate and describe archives of churches, monasteries and other diocesan institutions, as well as all kinds of church monuments of antiquity; (ii) to study local religious customs, traditions, religious rites; (iii) to observe the safety of old churches and other church buildings, cemeteries, tombstones and other monuments, ancient church plate, written documents, etc. and to take measures against their damage and destruction; (iv) to collect and store in a museum all material and written monuments relating to the church and religious life in the diocese; (v) take care of the distribution in Society, especially among the clergy, church-historical and archaeological evidence, and on attracting attention and interest to them; (Vi) to organize the church and archaeological exhibitions and public readings of church-historical character; to print materials and research on church history and archeology of the region; to prepare historical and statistical description of the Diocese. It was planned to cooperate with other historical and archaeological institutions, both capital and provincial and diocesan, to share publications with them. Society was going to send delegates to the Archaeological congresses. In my article, I examine in detail the special role of Bishop Benjamin (Fedchenkov) in an initiative to establish a church-archeological institution in Crimea I conclude that the church and archaeological societies and museums of antiquities at them were opened on the initiative of a few enthusiasts, so, as soon as they depart from the cases, the work was stopped. Followers of affairs do not appear immediately, collected antiquities were plundered. In this respect, the situation with the work of Taurida Church and Archaeological Society is not unique, it is quite typical for the time.

В статье рассмотрены обстоятельства возникновения Церковного историко-археологического общества Таврической епархии и программные документы организации. Названы персональный состав общества и основные направления деятельности. Отмечена особая роль епископа Вениамина (Федченкова) в инициативе по созданию в Крыму церковно-археологического учреждения.