Hearth structures of the Late Paleolithic site Afontova Gora V (Radishcheva)

The article provides a 2024 field study of two hearts with a concentric stone filling which were found during excavations of the Afontova Gora V (Radishcheva) site in Krasnoyarsk. The hearts were located at a distance of 32 m from each other along the SW-NE line on the surface of a terrace, 60 m over the modern edge of the Yenisei River. In both cases, large fragments of rolled sandstone tiles and large boulders were used as a filling, usually placed vertically or at a high angle along the sides of the pits. All stones intended for the hearths were brought from the bank of Yenisei. Fragments of reindeer bones were laid along the bottom of hearth 1, then later covered with a large flat boulder fragment, which may indicate the "conservation ” of the extinguished hearth. A core found in the western part of the fence suggests its subsequent use as a "storage”. In hearth 2, an accumulation of reindeer bones was also found on the surface of the hearth filling, covered by boulder fragments. The construction of hearths with the concentric filling (in this case, of the "rosette” type) is a sign of the Kokorevo archaeological culture of the Middle Yenisei region, which is confirmed by the nature of the lithic inventory from both parts of the site. Today, there is no data on the age of the hearths and, thus, on the chronological gap between them, but they likely belong to the same community united by both specifics of the stone industry and techniques for creation and operation of the hearths, as well as certain ritual activities associated therewith.