Research of pedocomplex 5 at the Lakhuti IV site (Southern Tajikistan) in 2023

This article describes the work of the joint Russian-Tajik geoarchaeological expedition in the middle reaches of the Obi-Mazar River (Republic of Tajikistan) in 2023. The works focused on pedocomplex 5 in excavation pit 1 at the Early Paleolithic Lahuti IV site. The excavation area was 6 sq. m, reaching the depth of 3.0 m. Seven lithological layers were identified. Archaeological evidence (420 items) was found at several levels in layers 5-9. As opposed to excavation pit of2021, excavation in 2023 revealed a lower density of artifacts (~70 per sq. m). Clear concentration of artifacts along the horizons of occurrence was observed again. The excavation discovered all eight previously identified horizons as well as two new ones. Primary reduction revealed several laminar techniques, such as radial unilateral reduction as well as segmental and parallel reduction in their simplest forms. The percentage of decortication flakes among technical spalls was ~90%. A significant part of debitage consisted ofproduction waste (~50%). The percentage of segments of different sizes among the flakes was significant (~20%). The toolkit was small. It included a scraper and two spiked tools. Generally, the technical complex obtained from PC 5 in 2023 in its main features corresponds to collection of previous years. The lithic industry of the Lahuti-IV site remained unchanged throughout its existence within the formation period of PC 5, which correlates with MIS 13 (480-530 ka).