The early Paleolithic industry of darvagchay-bay-1 site (south-east Dagestan)

Purpose. Earliest stages of peopling of the Old World belong to one of the main research directions in modern Paleolithic archaeology. Since the discovery of ancient human remains (1.8 million years old) and stone tools at Dmanisi site (the Republic of Georgia), the Caucasus has been considered a transit region through which ancient human groups moved to Eurasia. Many of the Caucasus archaeological sites of the Early Paleolithic are located in the Southern Caucasus and along the Black Sea coast. As to northeastern Caucasus, few surface lithic assemblages were reported in Dagestan. They showed technical and typological characteristics typical of the Early Paleolithic complexes. Recently, over 10 Paleolithic sites have been discovered in the basin of the Darvagchai river, including some deeply stratified archaeological sites. The article represents the results obtained during the field research of the early Paleolithic cultural-chronological complex site of DarvagchayBay-1. The goal of the article is a description and analysis of the stratigraphy and collections of stone artifacts. First of all, the early Paleolithic complex of the site Darvagchay-Bay-1 is characterized by low typological severity and instability of cores and tool forms. The group is morphologically expressed by a few cores, crushing was widely used for the production of blanks also. Generally, this industry is characterized by the presence of parallel and radial cores; spinous and combined tools; single-edge scrapers and atypical scrapers; as well as not numerous, but diverse group pebble (choppers) and bifacial processed (handaxe) tools. The most complete information about industries of the late stages of the early Paleolithic, in the seaside Dagestan give the materials of stratified sites Darvagchay-1 and Darvagchay-Bay-4. As well as stone tools obtained in the course of lifting the fees on the locations Dubecky, Darvagchay-Bay-2, Darvagchay-quarry. Results. Given the previous estimates of the age of the deposits along with features the main categories in typologically different artifacts can be attributed to early Darvagchay Bay-1 collection of Paleolithic industry in the late phase of the early Paleolithic of the Caucasus. Based on available data, the natural Sciences, this stage could be dated in the time range from 400 and 300 kyr BP. Conclusion. Bifacially decorated guns on the sites in the seaside Dagestan represent a wide range of individual forms. In this context, the late early Paleolithic complexes of South-Eastern Dagestan, apparently, should be considered as the local version of the stone production in the Caucasian area of distribution and development of the Acheulean industries.The materials of the Final Early Pleistocene sites in Dagestan are considered an independent cultural component which bundles separate elements of the Early Paleolithic small tool production and Acheulean industries of the Western part of Eurasia.