Materials of the final Upper Paleolithic of the Tailep-2 site (rescue fieldworks in 2020)

The paper provides the preliminary data of the study of the archaeological materials of the cultural horizon 3 at the Taylep-2 site (Novokuznetsk district, Kemerovo region) obtained after the rescue archaeological work in 2020. The lithic collection of cultural horizon 3, consisting of10,141 artifacts, demonstrates full cycle of lithic production from the selection of raw materials to the tool form depletion and their reshaping. The prismatic cores prevail in lithic production, and flat-and edge-faceted cores (in a subordinate position) for elongated blanks also present. In addition to core reduction, we can see the presence of the bipolar technique used by ancient masters in the cultural horizon 3 industry. The toolkit is rather numerous (651 pieces); various end-scrapers and piece esquillees prevail, while such categories of tools as side-scrapers, knives, retouched blades and bladelets are poorly represented. The general appearance of the industry includes prismatic primary reduction, the presence of various end-scrapers, piece esquillees, side-scrapers and knife-like tools in the toolkit make it possible to attribute these materials to the Final Upper Paleolithic (14-10 ka). The closest industries are probably the complexes of the Bedarevo culture. In the fieldwork cycle, osteological samples for AMS and ZooMS analyses and sedimentation samples from the cross-section for palynological and lithogeochemical analyzes were taken for absolute dating, determining the species composition of the faunistic association existed during the functioning of the site, clarifying the paleoecological background and solving the question of the place of industry on the chronological scale of the Stone Age of the Kuznetsk Depression - Gornaya Shoriya.