Kayukovo culture sites during investigations of archaeological objects located in peat deposits of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug–Yugra

The Kayukovo culture sites are located in the central part of the Demyan-Vasyugan swamp system, on the watershed of the Bolshoy Salym and Bolshoy Yugan rivers, near the Bolshoye Kayukovo Lake. Swamping of this territory began in the early Holocene (about 11.7 thousand years ago) and has significantly changed the landscape of the area by now. During this time, the swamp ecosystem has hidden the original historical relief, which prevented the study and complete investigation by researchers of the initial period of human resettlement and adaptation in Yugra, as well as the dynamics of these processes in the context of changing landscape conditions. The Kayukovo culture settlements appeared there about 8 thousand years ago, before the territory was swamped, and they were confined to ancient reservoirs that later became part of the swamps. Excavations at the Kayukovo 1 and Kayukovo 2 sites, as well as initial studies of two new sites, Kayukovo 3 and Kayukovo 4, have shown that they are partially covered with a swamp layer. The new joint project of archaeologists, paleoclimatologists, and paleogeographers aims to identify the archaeological heritage sites that are currently hidden under the peat deposits of the Demyan-Vasyugan swamp system. New information about the historical landscape and economic activities of the population will allow us to reconstruct the specific features of the ancient economy, adaptation, and development of archaic societies in the north of Western Siberia and Eurasia in general. In addition, archaeological research conducted under this project will allow us to develop a methodology to search for and conduct the archaeological excavations in the swampy areas of Yugra.