A Palaeolithic diadem from Denisova cave

In 2018, layer 11 in South Chamber of Denisova Cave yielded a diadem made of ivory. The main stages of this ornament manufacture have been identified as follows: preparation of a long blank by cutting it from a moistened tusk, blank shaping through planing, polishing, producing a through hole from the opposite sides, bending the moistened blank for making a round shape of the artifact, and a finishing polish. The technological analysis of the diadem provides an insight into ivory processing techniques used by populations of Southern Siberia in the early Upper Palaeolithic. Comparisons of this ornament with its counterparts from other sites in Northern Eurasia suggest the northward and eastward propagation of cultural and technological innovations from the Altai Mountains in early MIS 3.