RAW MATERIALS AS AN ECOLOGICAL FACTOR IN THE ALTAI PALEOLITHIC

  • N.A. Kulik Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS Email: kulik@archaeology.nsc.ru
  • M.B. Kozlikin Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS Email: kmb777@yandex.ru
  • M.V. Shunkov Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS Email: shunkov77@gmail.com
DOI_disc_logo https://doi.org/10.14258/tpai(2023)35(2).-10
Keywords: Altai Mountains, Paleolithic, lithic artifacts, raw materials, petroarchaeology

Abstract

The article summarizes the results of many years geological and petrographic studies of lithic artifacts and raw materials sources for its production in the main Paleolithic complexes in the Altai Mountains. The work is based on the representative archaeological collections of the multi-layer sites of Karama, Ust-Karakol, Kara-Bom and caves Denisova, Kaminnaya, Okladnikova, Chagyrskaya, Strashnaya, as well as other Paleolithic sites. The geological characteristics of the study area are given, the factors that influenced the quality of raw materials are considered. Particular attention is paid to the criteria that could guide the ancient human in the selection of raw materials from pebble sources. The problem of the relationship between the petrophysical properties of one or another type of raw material and the technical and typological appearance of lithic industries is discussed. We concluded that the ancient population of Altai, starting from the Early Paleolithic, manufactured the tools using good knowledge of the raw materials specifc features and the skills of its selection.

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Author Biographies

N.A. Kulik, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS

Candidate of Geological and Mineralogical Sciences, Senior Researcher, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

M.B. Kozlikin, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS

Candidate of Historical Sciences, Senior Researcher, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

M.V. Shunkov, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS

Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Chief Researcher, Head of a Department of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences

References

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Published
2023-07-11
How to Cite
Kulik N., Kozlikin M., Shunkov M. RAW MATERIALS AS AN ECOLOGICAL FACTOR IN THE ALTAI PALEOLITHIC // THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH, 2023. Vol. 35, № 2. P. 166-176 DOI: 10.14258/tpai(2023)35(2).-10. URL: http://journal.asu.ru/tpai/article/view/13346.
Issue
Vol 35 No 2 (2023)
Section
SCIENTIFIC METHODS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Copyright (c) 2023 Н.А. Кулик, М.Б. Козликин, М.В. Шуньков

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