PALEOENVIRONMENT. THE STONE AGE
Since its discovery in the early 1960s, the chronology of the Neolithic Gromatukha culture in the Western Amur Region has undergone radical changes. After the appearance of a series of carbon dates based on charcoal and organic remains in clay texture, its initial attribution to the Early and Middle Neolithic (second half of the 5th to 4th millennia BC) was replaced by a much earlier estimate (from 15–16 to 8 cal ka BP). As a result, Gromatukha became not only one of the most ancient Early Neolithic cultures in the Amur Region, but also one with the earliest pottery among forest and riverine hunter-gatherer cultures. To date, its absolute chronology is based on 34 dates including 9 derived from charcoal, 8 from organic remains in clay texture, and 17 from charred remains on pottery samples. The latter are analyzed in this article. The comparison of chronological limits of Gromatukha culture demonstrates that the widest of them concern dates based on organic remains in clay texture (16,260–8010 cal BP), narrower limits relate to estimates based on charred remains on pottery (15,010–9550 cal BP), and narrowest limits, to those based on charcoal (14,820–11,200 cal BP). New series of dates based on charred remains on pottery indicate a span of 5460 years, which is 2790 years less than that based on organic remains in clay texture, and 1840 years more than what the charcoal-derived estimates suggest.
This article offers new data on ancient fi shing in the Big Sea region of Lake Baikal. Materials for this research were recovered during fieldwork conducted at multilayered habitation sites Sagan-Zaba II and Buguldeika II by the joint Russian-Canadian expeditions (a project between Irkutsk State University (Russia) and University of Alberta (Canada)). The research presented here is based on the analysis of ichthyofaunal remains and artefacts associated with fishing activities (hooks, harpoons, net sinkers, and fish imagery). For the first time, we are able to reconstruct not only taxa and fishing techniques used but also to trace which species were consumed during different chronological periods. Chronological assessment of analyzed cultural layers at Sagan-Zaba II and Buguldeika II was done through over 90 AMS radiocarbon dates made on ungulate bones in Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit. Archaeological periodization of analyzed sites spans from the Mesolithic to the ethnographically contemporary period. Fish species composition at the two sites was compared with that from sites of the Little Sea area of Lake Baikal. These new data added a better understanding of the relative importance and subsistence uses of fish on Lake Baikal during the Holocene period. It has been demonstrated that fishing traditions of Early and Middle Holocene hunter-gatherers were continued by pastoralists, especially in regard to the consumption of deep-water species. It is concluded that ancient populations living on the shores of Lake Baikal exploited a wide range of natural resources, and fishing played a very important part in this.
This article presents results of a comprehensive analysis of stone tools from six Neolithic sites in the Upper and Middle Kama basin, three of which belong to the Kama culture and three to the Volga- Kama culture. Technological, typological, traceological, and spatial analyses were used. Differences between both lithic industries are minor in all parameters. Technologically, both are characterized by regular knapping aimed at the production of blades and blade-like flakes. Tools on flakes are more numerous than those on blades. Marginal retouch was widely used, and several tools are bifacial. The most common types are scrapers, knives, points, blades, and retouched flakes. In tools from the Kama sites, ventral retouch is more frequent. The traceological analysis revealed that the principal tools were end-scrapers for processing various materials, butchering knives, planes, burins, and perforators. In the Volga-Kama industry, bone-processing tools are more frequent. The spatial analysis demonstrated that zones of various subsistence activities often overlap or are vaguely delimited. Apparently, adaptation to one and the same environment leveled off cultural differences.
THE METAL AGES AND MEDIEVAL PERIOD
This study focuses on Verkhnegostagayevskoye—a fortress in the Krasnodar Territory, dating to the Late Classical and Early Byzantine era. It has a multilevel fortifi cation system constructed with the use of Classical Greek building materials according to the tradition of adobe-and-stone architecture. The fortress, situated far away from major seashores and inland transport arteries and studied by nondestructive topographic methods such as magnetic prospection, was a strategically important refuge. The scale of construction activities indicates signifi cant administrative resources of the rulers. The master-builders were qualifi ed specialists with a good knowledge of local materials, relief, and geological structure of the area. Construction materials differed with regard to position: pumpkin shell was used for outside-facing walls, whereas peripheral defensive structures were made of local sandstone and limestone. Judging by parts of columns including Doric capitals with very flat echini, dating to the Late Hellenistic or Roman period, dismantled remains of public buildings were used for fortifi cation. The production of building materials and the construction works may have been a long-term job for the Bosporans. The fortress was probably part of a political structure involved in the minting of the famous replicas of Roman denarii. These replicas marked one of the oldest routes connecting the Black Sea coast with Central Ciscaucasia via the Kuban drainage.
The Jōmon monumental structures on the islands of Kyushu, Honshu, and Hokkaido represent the earliest of the three such traditions, two others being associated with the cultures of Yayoi and Kofun. The beginnings of the tradition date back to the Early Jōmon (ca 8000 BP), while its peak coincides with the Late Jōmon (4000–3000 BP). Unlike people associated with two later traditions (agriculturalists and animal breeders), the Jōmon people were hunters, gatherers, and fishers. This is the first Russian study to address various types of Jōmon monumental structures (stone alignments, stone circles, earthen mounds, and “geometric” shell mounds), their distribution and chronology. The most interesting sites (Yubunezawa II, ōyu, Komakino, Sannai Maruyama, Kasori, etc.) are documented with drawings and photos. It is hypothesized that the tradition originated as early as the Final Paleolithic and the transition to the Jōmon Mikoshiba culture. We present parallels with sites in the adjacent territories of the Russian Far East (Primorye) such as Ustinovka-4, Suvorovo-4, and Bogopol- 4. Given the complexity of monumental structures (elaborate layout, traces of wooden structures, burials, numerous works of art, visual effects, astronomical marks, “sundials”), these sites can be viewed as multifunctional ritual centers. In terms of amount of material and labor required for construction, they are comparable with the Neolithic funerary structures of Western Europe.
We analyze the forms of clay vessels from the Malyshevo Middle Neolithic sites on the Lower Amur, and compare them with those relating to the contemporaneous Late Kondon culture of the same region and to the Boisman and Vetka cultures in Primorye, using V.F. Genning’s methodology. Based on the results, a reconstruction of cultural contacts in the Russian Far East during the Middle Neolithic is attempted. On the other hand, H.A. Nordström’s approach helps to reveal the “standard” forms of vessels. The closest parallels are those with the Boisman ceramics, whereas the Vetka vessels are the least similar.
This article deals with the absolute chronology of the Neolithic cultures of the eastern Ural, Middle Irtysh-Baraba, and the Upper Ob basin. Twenty-two new radiocarbon dates for the ceramic assemblages of Trans-Uralian Neolithic and thirteen for those of the western Siberian forest-steppe suggest that Kozlov Mys, Poludenka, and Boborykino sites in the forest-steppe coexisted with those of the Makhandzhar type in eastern Ural and Kazakhstan during the early Neolithic and in the beginning of the Late Neolithic. Late Neolithic Artyn settlements on the Middle Irtysh and in Baraba are contemporaneous with the Protoka and Vengerovo-2A burial grounds (middle and second half of the 5th millennium BC). Boborykino sites in the eastern Ural are contemporaneous with Avtodrom-2/2 representing the same culture (fi rst half and mid-5th millennium BC). The Izylino/Zavyalovo stage of the Middle Neolithic on the Upper Ob dates to late 6th to early 5th millennia BC. Late Neolithic Kiprino-Novokuskovo sites on the Upper Ob date to the mid-5th to early 4th millennia BC. The Bolshoy Mys sites date to the 4th millennium BC.
This paper addresses rare funerary artifacts— anthropomorphic bronze masks, unearthed in 1973 and 2014 from 5th–8th century AD mounds at Timiryazevo on the Lower Tom River, southwestern Siberia, by an expedition from the Tomsk State University. Their detailed description is provided and the archaeological context is described. Stylistically and technically, the masks represent a separate group, termed Timiryazevo and distributed in the Tomsk-Narym area of the Ob basin. In broader terms, they belong to medieval repoussé ritual masks from western Siberia. As we demonstrate, the Timiryazevo specimens were details of funerary dolls made of organic materials and resembling those manufactured by Siberian natives in the recent past. They were meant to provide a temporary abode for one of the deceased person’s souls. The archaeological context suggests that at Timiryazevo, dolls were buried separately, with their miniature belongings. We also suggest that other types of dolls were buried there, too. Those were made of purely organic materials that did not survive, as evidenced by numerous isolated clusters of miniature objects buried in shallow pits inside burial mounds or between them.
This article presents the results of a multidisciplinary study of Beloye Ozero-3—an early nomadic cemetery in the Turan-Uyuk intermountain trough in Tuva, southern Siberia. The radiocarbon analysis of wood from four of its mounds suggests that they were constructed 2565–2390 (calibrated, 1σ), or 2465–2380 (uncalibrated) years ago. In four mounds with a complex construction, burials in timber frames, spoil heap, and the peripheral ring were overlaid by stones. In the third mound, there were stone slabs and the mound was encircled by a ditch. The construction of the fourth mound proceeded in two stages. A total of 12,744 m2 of space between the mounds was excavated, and 38 pavements for funerary repasts were found. Fragments of gold figurines of various animals, ceramics, and arrowheads can be attributed to the Uyuk culture. Results of the palynological analysis suggest that during the construction of the first two mounds, the climate was slightly wetter than the present one. When, 95 years later, the third mound was constructed, the climate became more dry. Before the final stage in the construction of the necropolis, humidization began. Environmental changes are evidenced by fluctuations in the amount and composition of pollen of plants adapted to various ecological niches: xerophytes, mesophytes, hydrophytes, and ruderals. Dry- steppe communities prevailed over mesophytic ones. Hydrophytic vegetation and larch grew near the water bodies. The anthropogenic pressure on landscape increased during the early and final stages of the necropolis, corresponding to the Uyuk culture. Background and ancient soils are largely similar, indicating relative stability of climate during the construction of mounds and its proximity to the modern climate.
Ninety-fi ve arrowheads dating to AD 800–1300 and found in the cities of Kabala, Shamakhi, Baku, Shabran, Shamkir, Beylagan, and Sharur, in the castles of Gulistan and Gasimkan-qala, and in the villages of Shamdan, Burovdal, and Shakasheher are described. The study is based on the classifi cation of Siberian, Far Eastern, eastern and western Central Asian, and Eastern European arrowheads, suggested by Y.S. Hudiakov and A.I. Soloviev. All specimens are made of iron; some are stemmed and some socketed. Stemmed ones fall into eight groups in terms of cross-section. Those with sockets form a single group. In terms of function, three groups of arrowheads are described: (1) used against light armor; (2) used against chain mail; (3) used against plate armor. On the basis of casting molds, metal sheets with notches, and leather templates, manufacturing techniques are reconstructed. Arrowheads were forged from irregular metal blanks or rods, and cut from metal sheets using templates; additional forging was optional. The most representative group includes specimens with narrow faceted blades and triangular tips ensuring deep penetration. Flat arrowheads are the most common. A few specimens from Mongolian burials at Mingachevir, dating to late 13th century, are described.
This article describes fragments of lacquer from the early nomadic burials in mounds 21 and 31 at Chineta II, northwestern Altai. Their location in the graves, material, and distribution pattern suggest that these fragments belonged to wooden cups. The analysis, which included methods of analytical chemistry, infrared and Fourier spectrometry, revealed that the remains of paint resembled that on Chinese lacquerware coatings based on qi-lacquer 生漆. The analysis of paint layers showed that lacquer coatings were manufactured following the traditional technology used in ancient China. The red upper layers, similar to those known as zhu-qi 朱漆, were applied over the dark brown layers of qi-lacquer (漆). Parallels are found among the Chinese lacquers from Pazyryk, Noin-Ula, Bugry II, etc., owned by the State Hermitage Museum. The comparison of samples from Chineta II with those from highranking Scythian Age burials in the Altai suggests that lacquer items were imported by the nomads from a single manufacturing center in China during 600–400 BC. Because imported lacquerware was quite expensive, persons buried at Chilikta II mounds 21 and 31 must have belonged to the elite, although these burials were inferior to “royal” mounds at Tuekta, Pazyryk, Bashadar, Berel, Katanda, etc., in terms of status.
We describe a richly decorated iron helmet owned by the Moscow Kremlin Armoury. The specimen has never been analyzed in detail before. As we found out, it was one of the gifts sent by the Khotogoid Lama Erdene Dajan mergen Lanja to the Russian Tsar Mikhail Fyodorovich Romanov on 14 January, 1635. The helmet had been handed over to the State Treasury no later than 29 November, 1636, and later transferred to the Armoury. Apart from the helmet proper, the headgear in its initial condition includes a tripartite aventail made of narrow iron plates and decorated with colored velvet and silk, a cloth liner, and yellow satin ribbons, which were tied under the warrior’s chin. All the organic parts have been missing since the early 1700s. The dome of the helmet has a patterned applied strip and a visor with the Simhamukha Mantra written in Sanskrit and meant to protect the warrior from adverse charms and weapons. The technological analysis suggests that letters on the band were gilt, and those on the visor, silvered. Initially, the Armoury experts identifi ed the helmet as a “Manchu hat”. The typological analysis suggests that the headgear was made by Central Asian (Mongolian or Oirat) artisans in the late 16th or early 17th century. The specimen may be used as a standard for dating and attributing randomly found and unattributed battle and ceremonial headgears worn by late medieval and early modern Central Asian nomads.
This study focuses on the use dendrochronological methods in architectural and ethnographic surveys with special reference to early Russian towns in Siberia. The methods are used for the tentative dating of eight architectural constructions in the town of Tara. The standard dendrochronological technique includes the use of the calibrated tree-ring chronology relating to the study area, and the relative chronology modeled on the specific site. The method has numerous advantages, but also certain limitations, such as the difficulties with dating partially reconstructed buildings. These difficulties can be overcome by using a multidisciplinary approach. As a result, the time of construction and reconstruction of several buildings in Tara has been evaluated, and a 419-year-long treering chronological scale has been constructed, spanning the period from 1596 to 2015. This will facilitate the dating of 17th– 18th century wooden architectural constructions in western Siberia.
We present the results of a paleogenetic analysis of nine individuals from two Early Iron Age mounds in the Baraba forest -teppe, associated with the Sargat culture (fi ve from Pogorelka-2 mound 8, and four from Vengerovo-6 mound 1). Four systems of genetic markers were analyzed: mitochondrial DNA, the polymorphic part of the amelogenin gene, autosomal STR-loci, and those of the Y- chromosome. Complete or partial data, obtained for eight of the nine individuals, were subjected to kinship analysis. No direct relatives of the “parent-child” type were detected. However, the data indicate close paternal and maternal kinship among certain individuals. This was evidently one of the reasons why certain individuals were buried under a single mound. Paternal kinship appears to have been of greater importance. The diversity of mtDNA and Y-chromosome lineages among individuals from one and the same mound suggests that kinship was not the only motive behind burying the deceased people jointly. The presence of very similar, though not identical, variants of the Y chromosome in different burial grounds may indicate the existence of groups such as clans, consisting of paternally related males. Our conclusions need further confirmation and detailed elaboration.
This article outlines a technique for comparing cranial samples by studying their individual variation patterns against the background of worldwide variation using the principal component analysis (PCA). The training set consisted of 357 male crania from 27 populations of Europe, Asia, and North America. Our measurement protocol included 14 linear dimensions of the facial skeleton. As a test set, we used four recent rural Russian samples, while several series representing Finno-Ugric and Baltic populations and those of central and northern Europe were employed as reference data. The variation in the training set, assessed by PCA without any discriminant statistical methods, shows a clear pattern of between-group differences. The individual variation within the samples is very informative, revealing marked differences between the four Russian samples. While those from Nikolskoye and Staraya Ladoga are morphologically homogeneous, that from Kozino is extremely heterogeneous: its variation encompasses virtually the entire Caucasoid range. Compared to European samples including Karelians and Finns, Russian samples excluding Kozino are more similar to the Mordvinian series than are other European groups including the western Finns. This, however, refers only to intragroup variation because at the group level the Russian samples display no Mordvinian tendency. On the other hand, we found no particular similarity between the Russians and the Sami. In general, Russians are no more “Mongoloid” than most other Europeans, but the presence of several crania evidencing a Mongoloid trait combination should be noted.