Radiocarbon dates of the Tartas-1 Neolithic complex (early Neolithic in Baraba)

Purpose. The Neolithic sites of the Baraba forest-steppe have always been in the focus of the archaeological scientific community. In the current millennium, the study of the Neolithic settlements and cemeteries significantly enriched the science with new, sometimes completely unexpected discoveries, such as a version that some artifacts found in the area belong to the Artynskaya culture, singled out by L. L Kosinskaya, or a discovery of a series of burial complexes of developed Neolithic with original funeral practice at Vengerovo-2A and Avtodrom-1 sites, etc. The concept of historical and cultural development in the region started to develop at a new level. In this respect, we reviewed the descriptions of the sites with flat-bottomed Neolithic ceramics, which their discoverers had identified as complexes of the Boborykinskaya culture. Our goal was to prove that the identification was misleading. Results. We can summarise that the Neolithic complex at the time-based and multicultural site Tartas-1 was opened as a result of using solid excavations with the orientation toward magnetic surveying. The complex includes two structures and a set of deep and large in diameter pits used probably for sifting fish stocks and waterfowl. In construction number 6, a thermo-technical structure used as a smokehouse was fixed. Fragments of ceramics and three vessels with flat-bottomed morphology of their form and ornamentation, similar to dishes from Avtodrom-2/2, were found in residential structures and pits. In order to date and describe the artifacts in more details, we used radiocarbon analysis. Eight measurements were taken. The dates were obtained by analyzing the bones of animals. All samples were taken from the stratigraphically flawless cultural horizons of both buildings and pits. The earliest were three indicators referring to the system of pits number 991. According to Sigma 1, the first is determined within 7063-6838 years BC, the second - 7025-6710 years BC, and the third - 6658-6596 years BC. If we focus on Sigma 2, all three dates have a common ground. Four more dates show very close indicators, and according to sigma 2 they are correlated. For structure 7, the first horizon in Sigma 1 shows the exponents of 6470-6446 years BC, the second - 6477-6260 years BC, and the third horizon dates back to 6375-6260 years BC. For pit number 1220, dates of 6240-6108 BC were obtained. A bone sample taken from the filling of dwelling number 6 gave a date of 5977-5888 years BC, according to Sigma 1. Thus, in terms of dates, all 8 samples taken from the complex under investigation fit within the limits of the 7th millennium BC, touching the boundaries of the 6th and 8th millennium BC. At Vengerovo-2, a sample of the animal bone from the Neolithic pit was dated by Sigma 1 as 6426-6385 years BC, and according to Sigma 2 - 6440-6266 years BC. This series of radiocarbon dates proved to be incomparable with the dating of similar ceramics from the Avtodrom-2/2 settlement obtained by direct dating: the latter shows an age of 5460 ± 100; 5967 ± 100; 5884 ± 100 BP. Their calibrated values range between the last quarter of the 6th and the middle of the 5th millennium BC. Conclusion. The complex with flat-bottomed dishes of the Tartas-1 site belongs to the earliest stage of the Neolithic period and can be qualified as the early Neolithic of the Baraba forest-steppe. This conclusion coincides with the chronological evaluation of the Neolithic monuments in West Siberian North. Calibrated radiocarbon dates place our group of early Neolithic sites within the range between the end of the 7th and the first half of the 6th millennium BC. In general, Neolithic of Western Siberia (taiga and forest-steppe zone) with flat-bottomed ceramics should be assessed as a phenomenon of a general historical and stadial nature. Its origin is considered autochthonous.