Archaeological complexes from Ust-Tushama-1 site (Northern Trans-Angara basin)

Purpose : The archaeological site Ust-Tushama 1 is located in the Ust-Ilimsk district of the Irkutsk region on the right coast of the River Tushama (the left inflow of the Angara River). The total area of the site investigated in 2012 is 7054 sq. m. The site houses three horizons of archaeological materials associated with Layers 1.1, 1.2 and 2.1. The maximum depth of the finds is limited to 2 m. The total number of the archaeological material obtained in 2012 makes 50804 pieces, including: fragments of ceramic vessels - 19707 pcs, stone products - 26796 pcs, osteological finds - 3511 pcs, bone objects - 20 pcs, fragments of metallurgical slag - 86 pcs, metal artifacts - 33 pcs. The round-bottomed tape ceramics is connected with all the eras presented at the site: Neolithic, Bronze Age, early Iron Age and the Middle Ages. The flat-bottomed ceramics is represented by household ware of the Russian period. Most stone products are tools (1837 pcs or 6,8% of all collection of the stone artifacts), while the specific weight of lithic cores is much lower (299 pcs or 1,1% of all collection of the stone artifacts). Such a ratio of artifacts categories testifies to the fact of using the territory of the site as a place where intensive and various work was carried out (as the percent of broken, worn out and renewed tools is extremely high). Splitting of the lithic cores brought from outside played a subordinate role. The main part of the set of the stone artifacts discovered is connected with deposits in the lower part of Layer 1.2 (the cultural horizon 2). There is a pair burial recorded here (of a teenager and a child) without the accompanying stock. The fauna of the site belongs to the forest type with some impregnations of forest-steppe types. It was quite unexpected to find some bones of Megaloceros giganteus. The number of domestic animals remains is few and generally comes from the top layer of excavation. Results : The analysis of the archaeological materials discovered at the site shows that the ceramic complex of the site can be divided into two parts reflecting various ceramic traditions. The tradition of producing round-bottomed vessels is connected with the existing cultures of taiga hunters and fishermen (due to the way of the vessels’ tape relief). Production of flat-bottomed vessels is obviously connected with the emergence of Russian settlements. The stone industry is generally of one technological tradition, both according to the characteristics of primary splitting and the tool kit sets where the main types are adzes, bifacial knives, tips and scrapers. The metal ware found is inexpressive. On the basis of the analysis of the archaeological materials, the chronological framework of the site can be defined as a range from Neolithic through Russian colonization settlements at the end of XVIII century. Conclusion : During archaeological works of 2012 the most informative part of the site Ust-Tushama 1 was studied in-depth. Man-site complexes of a wide time span are found, from the Neolithic (5-7 thousand years ago) to the Middle Ages, which gives a possibility to reconstruct the sequence of culture development within this chronological range at the given site of the Angara River valley.