The middle Paleolithic industries from Rubas valley (on materials of layer 3 from Rubas-1 site, Dagestan)

Purpose: The Rubas-1 is situated on the right bank of the Rubas River (Seaside Dagestan). Archaeological works here has begun in 2006. A thin sand-and-pebble layer (No. 3) bearing some flint artifacts was discovered at the depth of 2 to 5 m. In the course of field works, the excavation area reached approximately 100 m 2. In 2006-2012, a set of artifacts (N = 481 pcs.) was found in the layer 3, which appears to have formed as river alluvium during the initial stage of Late Pleistocene. All the artifacts found at the site were made of flint and siliceous limestone. In general, the reduction systems of the Middle Paleolithic technocomplex of Rubas 1 site are characterized by Levallois cores (for flakes and pointes) as well as radial cores and single-platform cores. All typologically distinct cores were intended for the detachment of elongated blanks. 14 items represent the parallel flaking pattern; 8 items represent the radial flaking pattern; 4 core illustrates the Levallois unidirectional flaking technique. All these cores have one flaking surface; one nucleus displays flake removal on the narrow face. One of the cores shows signs of modification and change in the direction of flaking from the additional striking platform. Two artifacts represent refits. Tools are characterized by side-scrapers and double side-scrapers, Levallois and Mousterian pointes, great quantity of denticulates and notched forms and a few bifacially retouched tools. Results: Given a preliminary age estimate of the sediments together with specific features of major categories of typologically distinct artifacts it makes possible to attribute the collection of layer 3 of Rubas-1 to the industry of late stage of the Middle Paleolithic Caucasus. Based on available data for Palaeolithic sites from Nord-West Caucasus and Transcaucasia that stage could be dated in the time range from 35 to 60 kyr BP. Conclusion: The archaeological materials from Rubas-1 (layer 3) illustrate the development of the lithic industry over more than 20 thousand years. They reflect successive changes in Levallois technology, which was practiced over a considerable period. It can be suggested, then, that cultural evolution in Middle Paleolithic in Dagestan was a long and gradual process based on a developed local Levallois-Mousterian industry. Regrettably, neither stratified sites clearly illustrating transitions from the classical Middle Paleolithic to its terminal stage, nor sites with distinct Upper Paleolithic assemblages have been discovered so far in the region.