The petrography of lithic artifacts from western gallery of Denisova cave

The longstanding multidisciplinary research focused on the studying of the Pleistocene deposits uncovered in the East Gallery of Denisova Cave has resulted in a representative collection of stone artifacts dating as the Middle and Upper Paleolithic. The publication provides an insight into a general petrographic characteristic of the lithic industry recognized in the East Gallery of the cave. The analysis of the lithic raw material showed that sedimentary rocks were preferably used for the primary flacking as well as for the manufacture of stone tools, and a significantly less number of artifacts was produced from volcanic and dike rocks. In all the instances, similarly to the lithic industries identified in the Main Chamber and at the entrance area of the cave, pebble stone from the riverbed of the Anui River was used as a local raw material.