History of geological study of the Botogol graphite deposit

The Botogol graphite deposit, located in the Eastern Sayan Mountains, is of interest not only because of its rich ores, but also because of the rich history of its study. Since the discovery of graphite manifestations on the Botogol mountain in the first half of the 19th century, the study of its structure and genesis has been underway. It took more than a century of prospecting and exploration and exploitation works to get an idea of the geology of this deposit. The history of the study of this unique deposit is considered in the article.