New Early Paleolithic assemblage from the Lahuti IV site: research of pedocomplexes 3 and 4 in 2023

Archaeological excavations of2023 at Lakhuti IVsite were aimed at studying deposits of pedocomplexes 3 and 4. PC 3 contained several bone fragments, but no archaeological evidence was found. Excavation pit of PC 4 covered the area of 13.5 sq. m, exposing a section 3 m thick with nine lithological layers. Artifacts which were discovered in layers 7 and 8 concentrated at four distinctive levels. The total collection amounted to 405 stone artifacts and six unidentifiable bone fragments. Their occurrences as well as technical and typological features of stone tools made it possible to consider this collection a single industry. Collection from PC 4 of Lakhuti IV contained many pebbles and core-like items with predominantly parallel single-platform and radial cores. There were lobed and irregular cores, and a core on a massive spall. The major part of debitage was production waste with many "slices” and decortication spalls. The toolkit was dominated by single-edged side-scrapers. Indivudual unifaces, denticulate items, and atypical end-scrapers were also found. According to data of natural sciences, PC 4 correlates with MIS 11 and can be dated to ca. 420370 ka BP. Currently, two more sites of this time Obi-Mazar IV and Khonako III (PC 4) are known in the region. In 2023, the occurrence of artifacts in clearly defined habitation horizons was recorded for the first time for PC 4. Taking into consideration the evidence from other PCs, this makes it possible to view this phenomenon not as accidental case, but as a manifestation of a general pattern inherent in all "Loess Paleolithic” sites of the region.