Nikolaevka 2 settlement in the conceptual system about the Stone Age of the lower reaches of the Kondoma river according to the study in 2020

Important discoveries and unexpected finds been accumulated over a half-century history of studying the Stone Age in the Kuznetsk Depression. Recent years of archaeological studies in its southern part have been marked by qualitative and quantitative increase in the set of available sources. Along with discovery of new sites ofthe Stone Age, previously known objects were subjected to large-scale research. In this situation, previous concepts about the Stone Age in this territory have been proven inconsistent. For obtaining the dating evidence and establishing the proper context for the sources, the Nikolaevka 2 settlement located in the Kondoma River valley was excavated in 2020 over the area of 25 sq. m., revealing faunal and anthropological remains. The context of the discovered evidence has shown connection of these remains to a prismatic core previously discovered at that settlement. The materials obtained made it possible to date the context studied during the excavation. The analysis of the evidence has revealed that technique of prismatic lithic reduction utilizing prismatic and single-platform cores was known in that part of the Kondoma River valley at the turn of the 10th and 9th millennia BC. The most representative collection of similar artifacts was obtained from excavations at the Tailep-2 settlement, done in the same year. The absolute dating offaunal remains makes it possible to follow the evidence-based approach in reconstructing paleoclimate in future research.