Paleoenvironment, the stone age. Рубрика в журнале - Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia
Materials from dwelling 2 on Suchu island, the Lower Amur (1977 season, excavation III)
Статья
This article presents the fi nal results of excavations at one of the largest Neolithic sites in northeastern Asia— a settlement on Suchu Island on the Amur. Most of the rich collection (3967 spec.), owned by IAET SB RAS (stone tools, ceramics, ornaments, and artistic and ritual artifacts), has not been described before. This publication focuses on the analysis of artifacts from dwelling 2 (excavation III, 1977). We describe the construction of this semi-underground dwelling, circular in plan view. The typological analysis of the lithics indicates a complex economy. Many of them (arrowheads, projectile points, inserts, knives, plummets) relate to hunting and fi shing, and to processing carcasses (end-scrapers, scrapers, burins, combination tools), others are chopping tools. The distinctive feature of the lithics is that some are bifacial. The analysis of the ceramics suggests that they belong to the Late Neolithic Voznesenovskoye culture. The use of binocular microscopy allowed us to assess the technological and constructive properties of the ceramics, as well as their morphological, decorative, and functional features. Non-ut ilitarian artifacts shed light on the worldview of the Suchu people. The collection dates to the mid-second millennium BC.
Бесплатно
Methodological issues in pollen analysis of Pleistocene deposits in Denisova Cave
Статья научная
Denisova Cave, in the northwestern Altai, is a key Paleolithic complex in North Asia. Pleistocene deposits in the cave contain lithic industries and human fossils documenting the evolution of the cultural traditions of Denisovans in the second half of the Middle and in the Upper Pleistocene. This study addresses methodological issues in paleogeographic interpretation of pollen records relating to Quaternary deposits of cave sites. We present the results of the analysis of recent and subrecent spectra of cave sediments and soil samples taken at sites of characteristic plant communities in natural zones of the Anui River valley near Denisova Cave. Findin gs from taphonomic study of pollen microremains from loose sediments in the East Chamber of the cave make it possible to obtain a correct climato-stratigraphic and climato-phytocenotic interpretation of pollen spectra from Pleistocene deposits in Denisova Cave.
Бесплатно
Microblade Production in the Sukhotino-4 Industry, Eastern Transbaikalia
Статья научная
We have analyzed microblade production at Sukhotino-4, a stratified site in the southern part of Chita, Eastern Transbaikalia, excavated in the 1970s and 1980s. Its lithic industry specialized in bifacial tools and, to a large extent, in microblades and tools made on them. The sample includes over 300 cores and their preforms intended for manufacturing microblades and found in eleven layers. On the basis of morphological and typological analyses, we reveal an absolute predominance of narrow-faced microcores, including wedge-shaped ones. Most microcores from all layers of Sukhotino-4 were made according to a standard scheme, which concerned all stages, from the choice of blanks to the use of the core. The analysis of metric parameters suggests that most microcores have a frontal height of 25–30 mm and a width of 9–11 mm. The predominance of a single standard in the preparation of blanks and in the utilization of cores allowed us to describe the Sukhotino type of narrow-faced microcores. Other types are represented by just a few specimens. Morphological and typological homogeneity of most microcores and bifacial tools from all layers, correlating with the Sartan glacial cooling, suggests that the Upper Paleolithic industry of Sukhotino-4 existed for a long time.
Бесплатно
Middle Neolithic burials in Baikal-Yenisey Siberia: problems of cultural identity and genesis
Статья научная
The study focuses on the analysis of Middle Neolithic burial complexes of the Baikal-Yenisey Siberia. Based on a series of reliable radiocarbon dates, their age lies within the range of 6190–5900 cal BP. It partly corresponds to the end of the hiatus in the mortuary traditions of Cis-Baikal. Features of the burial rite and funerary offerings are analyzed and compared with those of neighboring territories. One of the most frequent images in the art of the Middle Neolithic Baikal-Yenisey Siberia is that of the waterfowl, rendered as fi gurines. The common grave goods are leaf-shaped stone arrowheads, shell beads, and pendants made of animal bones and teeth. The funerary rite included the use of fi re and reddish mineral pigment, as well as disrupting the anatomical integrity of the skeletons, possibly due to partial burial (the data are tentative). Most burials of the late stage of the hiatus are evidently those of hunter-gatherers manufacturing the Ust-Belaya ceramics, which were found in certain burials. A bone arrowhead with a biconical point and fi gurines representing waterfowl suggest cultural ties with the Urals and Western Siberia; but their nature has yet to be clarifi ed, which requires large-scale AMS-dating and paleogenetic analysis.
Бесплатно
Middle paleolithic bone retouchers: size or proportions
Статья
Bone retouchers are the most common tools for processing lithic raw material in the Middle Paleolithic of Eurasia. Typically, they are perceived by Paleolithic researchers as informal, unmodifi ed tools made from bone blanks accidentally obtained during the extraction of marrow. In this article, we introduce new data on a large collection of bone retouchers from Chagyrskaya Cave (in the Altai Mountains). Their dimensions demonstrate a high standardization of blanks, indicating the intentional selectivity of Neanderthals. Selection also concerned animal species and the anatomical positions of bones. We found that morphological characteristics such as the number of active areas and the degree of their modifi cation did not affect the size of the retouchers and attest only to the reorientation of tools during lithic processing. In the course of retouching, cross-sections of diagnostic traces in the active areas underwent signifi cant changes: whereas at the early stages they reveal “furrows” with V-shaped cross-sections, multiple blows against the processed lithic resulted in the deformation of the original form, which eventually resembled an upturned trapeze. The comparison of bone retouchers from several multicultural Middle Paleolithic complexes in Eurasia (Chagyrskaya and Denisova caves in the Altai, Kabazi V site in the Crimea, and Barakayevskaya Cave in the Caucasus) evidences similar proportions but considerable variation in size. Proportions, then, are an inherent functional characteristic of bone retouchers, which does not depend on either the cultural context or the raw material base.
Бесплатно
Multidisciplinary study of burnt deposits at Surungur, Fergana valley, Southern Kyrgyzstan
Статья
Бесплатно
Статья научная
We describe new findings relating to Neolithic burials at two cemeteries in the Northern Angara area, excavated in 2012 by the Boguchany archaeological expedition. The sites are located at the outlet of the Zelinda—the right tributary of the Angara. Two burials were revealed at Ust-Zelinda-1, and five at Ust-Zelinda-2. We describe preserved remains and the funerary rite, and analyze radiocarbon dates generated from the human bones. On the basis of archaeological parallels, we attribute certain burials to the Isakovo culture. Burial practices include the use of “ocher” and the supine position of the buried along the Angara, heads to the south, upstream of the site. Calibrated radiocarbon dates, details of the funerary rite, grave goods and their typological characteristics, as well as the placement of graves within the cemeteries, suggest that three chronological groups existed within the 7499–5583 cal BP (5550–3634 cal BC) interval. The 14C date of the third group (5718–5583 cal BP, or 3769–3634 cal BC), details of the funerary rite, and grave goods are indicative of the Late Neolithic (Isakovo culture of the Southern Angara). Burials of the second group, which is the best represented (7157–6555 cal BP, or 5208–4606 cal BC), resemble those of the classic Isakovo tradition. The burial (without grave goods) attributed to the fi rst chronological group dates to 7499–7317 cal BP, or 5550– 5368 cal BC. It is hypothesized that “proto-Isakovo” traditions originated on the Northern Angara, having later spread to the Southern Angara.
Бесплатно
New data on the chronology of the initial Neolithic Gromatukha culture, Western Amur region
Статья обзорная
Бесплатно
New dental finds associated with the Paleolithic Selenga culture, Western Trans-Baikal region
Статья
Бесплатно
Статья
Бесплатно
Статья
Бесплатно
Статья научная
We describe a new complex of remains in cultural horizon 3/2 of the Kovrizhka IV site on the Vitim River in the Baikal-Patom Highlands. This feature is a cluster of archaeological remains near the hearth, enclosed by an oval pavement 4.7 m by 3.2 m, consisting of eight slabs. The feature is interpreted as the remains of a dwelling. The spatial arrangement of finds is described. Rather than taking a central position, the hearth is shifted to the probable entrance in the northeastern part. Under one of the slabs of the pavement, an ocher spot was found. Qualitative and typological characteristics of the artifact assemblage are provided. The feature yielded about 2400 lithic artifacts. On the basis of the use-wear study of selected artifacts, four retouched and unretouched flakes are identified as knives. Other tools include a biface-wedge-shaped core, a bifacial scraper-knife, two fragments of unifacial scraper-like tools, a cutting tool, and retouched flakes (altogether 12 spec.). There are also three wedge-shaped narrow-faced microcores, one of which was knapped from a bifacial preform, and two from flakes. The comparison with two dwellings and a hearth complex previously discovered at Kovrizhka IV, the results of AMS-dating (the age of the complex is estimated at ca 18.9–18.6 ka BP), and the analysis of lithics have shown that the site belongs to the early stage of the Late Upper Paleolithic of the Lower Vitim. Anthracological data indicate a tundra-steppe landscape with islets of shrubs (dwarf or shrubby willow). We conclude that the dwelling evidences a short-term occupation episode. Along with the previously excavated features of Kovrizhka IV, the complex in cultural horizon 3/2 gives an idea of the culture and subsistence strategies of the Late Upper Paleolithic people at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum.
Бесплатно
Novopetrovka III-an early neolithic site in the Western Amur basin and its chronology
Статья
This article discusses the chronology of Novopetrovka III—a Neolithic settlement in the Western Amur basin, evaluated by the radiocarbon analysis of charred remains on pottery. The Novopetrovka culture as a whole, represented by Novopetrovka I–III and Konstantinovka sites, which had been excavated in the early 1960s, was dated to the 5th (possibly 6th) to early 4th millennia BC on the basis of the typology of the blade industry. The overview of data on prismatic blades manufactured by the pressure technique demonstrated that blade industries appeared in a vast territory of Eurasia in the Final Pleistocene to Early Holocene and, in certain regions, survived until the Chalcolithic. Therefore, they are only a rough guide to the relative chronology of the sites. In the 1990s, after the appearance of radiocarbon dates generated from samples of organic remains in temper and charred remains on pottery from Novopetrovka II, the culture was redated to 15.5–10.8 cal BP. A comparative analysis of new radiocarbon dates based on charred remains on pottery suggests that the age of Novopetrovka III is 9.0–9.5 thousand years. Because no changes were traced in the Novopetrovka sites over a long period of time, the chronological assessment of the Novopetrovka culture in toto and of its separate sites is problematic.
Бесплатно
Статья обзорная
Бесплатно
Oldowan or pebble-flake industry? Levantine Mousterian or Levantine middle Paleolithic?
Статья научная
The emergence of Levallois technique and the origin of the Levantine Middle Paleolithic, addressed in my previous publication, are revisited. In the fi nal Acheulean of the Levant, the Acheulo-Yabrudian industry emerged and the blade technology was invented. On that base, the Levantine Middle Paleolithic originated. The terms “Oldowan industry” and “Levantine Mousterian” should be abandoned. The Oldowan industry was associated with Homo habilis, who had never migrated outside Africa. Because early Middle Paleolithic industries originated from the Acheulo-Yabrudian industry of the Levant, they should be referred to as Middle Paleolithic rather than Mousterian. The Mousterian was associated with H. neanderthalensis, whereas the industries of territories where Neanderthals had not migrated should be referred to as Middle Paleolithic. Neanderthal migrations resulted in the emergence of Mousteroid industries in Eastern Europe, Caucasus, Crimea, southern Siberia, etc. In Africa, a new taxon Homo heidelbergensis (H. rhodesiensis) originated ca 800 ka BP. Eventually, those humans migrated to the Near East, as evidenced by the Gesher Benot Ya'aqov site. Throughout the Middle Pleistocene, Near Eastern, primarily Levantine populations were involved in the sapienization process. By the early Upper Pleistocene, two sister taxa had apparently originated there: anatomically modern humans (Skhul, Qafzeh) and Palestinian Neanderthals (Tabun, Amud, Kebara). There was no radical change in Acheulean or Middle Paleolithic industries in the Levant that might suggest immigration from Africa or the adjacent territories of Eurasia. Anatomically modern humans associated with the Nubian Levallois industry migrated from Africa to Arabia ca 110 ka ago. They may have had short-term contacts with Levantine Middle Paleolithic populations, but archaeological evidence of acculturation is lacking.
Бесплатно
On the Cultural Geography of the Eastern Caucasus and Southern Caspian in the Mesolithic
Статья научная
This study focuses on the geography of the Mesolithic cultures of the eastern Caucasus and the current approaches to this topic. In the 1970s, the Caucasian Mesolithic was considered an amalgam of several archaeological cultures evolving in parallel. In the eastern part of that region, two archaeological cultures were described: Chokh and Trialeti. While no one questioned their marked specifi city vis-à-vis the cultures of western Caucasus, the similarities and differences between them have not been specifi cally addressed. In the 1990s, S.K. Kozłowski proposed merging Chokh and Trialeti with other Mesolithic cultures of the northern Zagros, Anatolia, the western Caucasus, the Crimea, the southern and eastern Caspian, and possibly the Central Iranian Plateau, into a single industry, which he termed “Trialetien”. This idea was based on approaches different from those used in establishing archaeological cultures. Therefore, the notion of the Trialetien was likewise novel. I believe that the former typological criteria underlying the typology of the southern part of the circum-Caspian area (Chokh, Trialeti, Balakhan) are still valid. Likewise plausible is the idea that in addition to the cultures mentioned above, the Southern Caspian archaeological culture must be established. All those local units, including Trialeti (in the traditional sense), are a group of related cultures, which I previously included in the “Southern Caspian Mesolithic area”.
Бесплатно
On the date of the Great Shigir idol
Статья научная
The Great Shigir Idol is the largest anthropomorphic wooden sculpture in the world, a unique work of Stone Age art, and a valuable source for reconstructing the material culture and worldview of the ancient population of Northern Eurasia. Although study of it began more than 100 years ago, a number of issues, such as the place of discovery, context, date, methods of exhibition, etc., remain controversial. This article analyses archival documents relevant to the location and time of discovery of the Great Shigir Idol, and on the accompanying finds. The results of a recent comprehensive study conducted by Russian and German archaeologists and scientists in 2014 are outlined. The focus is on the analysis of AMS radiocarbon dates, spanning a period from the Late Pleistocene (~10,500 cal BC) to the Late Mesolithic/Early Neolithic (~6000 cal BC). These dates show a considerable range of variation, and they disagree with those derived from the conventional radiocarbon dating in 1997. Paleogeographic and archaeological data from the Trans-Urals do not support the early (9600–9000 cal BC) estimates of the time of the idol’s creation, but rather correspond to later ones, derived from the AMS 14C analysis conducted in 2014. Therefore, it is necessary to continue the study of Mesolithic sites and paleoclimate of the Urals, determine the nature of primary peat formation at the Ural peatlands, and assess their age and that of the microremains of peat in early cracks in the idol, etc.
Бесплатно
