SIBERIAN BRANCH OF THE RUSSIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND ETHNOGRAPHY ARCHAEOLOGY, ETHNOLOGY & ANTHROPOLOGY OF EURASIA Number 4 (28) 2006 Published in Russian and English CONTENTS PALEOENVIRONMENT. THE STONE AGE 2 International Symposium “Early Human Habitation of Central, Northern, and Eastern Asia: Archaeological and Paleoecological Aspects” 8 A. Yaroshevich. Techno-morphological Aspects of Microlithic Projectile Implements: Examples from the Levantine Geometric Kebaran and the East European Epigravettian 18 J.A. Svoboda. Prehistory of the Southern Bahariya Oasis, Western Desert, Egypt. An Outline 31 G.K. Lee. Lithic Technology and the Transition from the Middle to Upper Paleolithic in Korea 38 A. Ono. Flaked Bone Tools and the Middle to Upper Paleolithic Transition: A Brief Perspective 48 H. Winter. Middle and Upper Paleolithic Sites in the Lower Jordan Valley 58 A. Sekiya. Ground-Stone Axes in the Upper Paleolithic of Japan 63 N. Alperson-Afi l and N. Goren-Inbar. Out of Africa and into Eurasia with Controlled Use of Fire: Evidence from Gesher Benot Ya‘aqov, Israel THE METAL AGES AND MEDIEVAL PERIOD 79 V.V. Gorbunov and A.A. Tishkin. Weapons of the Gorny Altai Nomads in the Hunnu Age 86 O.V. Diakova. Prehistoric and Medieval Fortifi cations in the Zerkalnaya (Tadushi) River Basin 96 O.Yu. Zimina and L.N. Mylnikova. Pottery from the Eastern Variation of the Itkul Culture (Based on Finds from the Yurtoborovsky Archaeological Microregion in the Lower Pritobolie) 115 V.I. Molodin. The Necropolis of Chicha-1 and the Burial Rite of Late Bronze to Early Iron Age Peoples of the Baraba Forest-Steppe Zone 122 M.J. Kim, S.S. Park, G.D. Bok, Y.H. Choi, I.S. Lee, K.J. Shin, G.R. Han, M. Youn, S.H. Han, I.W. Kang, B.S. Chang, Y.J. Cho, Y.H. Chung, and D.H. Shin. Medieval Mummy from Yangju 130 V.O. Myglan, I.Y. Sljusarenko, O.Ch. Oidupaa, and Y.N. Garkusha. The Royal Tomb of Arjan-2, Tuva: A Dendrochronological Study ETHNOLOGY 139 L.N. Zhukova. Adaptive Changes in the Clothing of Ancient Immigrants in the North: The Case of Pullover Clothing among Siberian Natives PHOTOETHNOGRAPHY THE NORTHWESTERN ALTAI: FOUR SEASONS 144 Autumn. Weddings in Yakonur. The Clan Movement among the Altai Natives: The Past and Present 158 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 159 PAPERS PUBLISHED IN ARCHAEOLOGY, ETHNOLOGY & ANTHROPOLOGY OF EURASIA IN 2006 2 PALEOENVIRONMENT. THE STONE AGE DOI: 10.1134/S1563011006040013 INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM “EARLY HUMAN HABITATION OF CENTRAL, NORTHERN, AND EASTERN ASIA: ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND PALEOECOLOGICAL ASPECTS” The latest available archaeological, anthropological horizons ranging in age from the Lower to the terminal and genetic evidence suggests that Africa is the Upper Paleolithic, have been investigated in this region. motherland of humankind. The most ancient human For instance, the Karama stratifi ed site has yielded the sites with stone tools of the Oldowan type dating from earliest pre-Acheulian pebble tools in Northern Asia. 2.6 to 2.0 Ma are located mostly in the area of the These archaic tools have been recovered from red East African Rift. Around 2 Ma ago, early hominids Lower Pleistocene sediments dated to 600 – 800 ka BP crossed the boundaries of Africa and colonized a on the basis of geomorphological, litho-stratigraphic, considerable portion of Eurasia. The earliest human paleobotanical, and other data. populations of the fi rst migration wave seem to have The early Middle Paleolithic layers at Denisova Cave moved along two major routes: via the Near East to yielded remains of early Homo sapiens in association Southern Europe, including the Mediterranean Sea with numerous stone tools. The culture-bearing horizon and the Caucasus Mountains, and via Western Asia of the initial Upper Paleolithic, dating to about 50 ka toward the east. The eastern route is likely to have had BP, has yielded a collection of personal adornments two main branches: along the southern slopes of the made of animal bones and teeth, ivory, ostrich egg shell, Himalayas and Tibet across the Indian Subcontinent and stones. This collection comprises pendants, beads, to Eastern and Southeastern Asia, and via the Middle ornamented cylinder beads, a chloritolite bracelet with Eastern plateaus to central and northern regions of traces of polishing and drilling, and miniature eyed Asia and the Far East. needles and bone borers that are considered among Paleolithic studies in the areas situated in the the most ancient personal ornaments in the world. border zones of large geographical regions are Archaeological materials have been recovered in clear especially important for reconstructing migration stratigraphic context and are correlated with lithological routes of early hominids. The Altai Mountains are and paleontological data and dated through physical and situated along the presumed northern migration radiometric methods. route in the area bordering Central and Northern One of the largest stationary camps in Russia Asia. Archaeological teams of the Institute of has been built close to the unique Denisova Cave Archaeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch site and provides logistical support for large-scale of the Russian Academy of Sciences, have been archaeological investigations. The Denisova camp carrying out research on all archaeological periods is a well-equipped station with comfortable cabins, from the Lower Paleolithic to medieval times in the a conference hall, a dining hall, and premises for Altai for several decades already. One of the main analytical and laboratory work. Paleolithic studies of foci of research is the initial peopling of the Altai the Altai sites are carried out in close collaboration with and adjoining regions. During the last two decades, experts in various sciences. Multidisciplinary research a large number of stratified cave and open-air proceeds along three principal trajectories: cultural, sites have been discovered in the Altai, providing chronological, and geographic. The laboratory provides researchers with new data on relevant topics. researchers with modern equipment for complex The most interesting results have been achieved analyses of archaeological and natural materials, over the course of archaeological research in the upper stratigraphic sequences of Pleistocene deposits and reaches of the Anui River in the Northwestern Altai. their relative and absolute geochronology. The complex Several stratifi ed sites, which contain human habitation approach to studies of stratifi ed Paleolithic sites in the 2 3 Altai meets the requirements of modern archaeology Participants of the Symposium visited the most in the best way. The integration of archaeological and important stratifi ed Paleolithic sites in the Altai, where environmental data will hopefully reveal ecological they examined the lithology and bio-stratigraphy of regularities in the evolution of Pleistocene human the Pleistocene deposits and studied the main artifact populations, reconstruct the impact of environmental collections, including both the stone tools and the changes on human migrations, and assess the role of personal adornments. biological and cultural factors in the early peopling of Materials presented at the symposium have shown new territories. that the Altai Paleolithic is the best-studied part of To familiarize scholars with the recent results the Quaternary history of Northern and Central Asia. of multidisciplinary studies of the Altai Paleolithic, Archaeological research in the Altai has yielded the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of stratifi ed sites allowing for the construction of the Siberian Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, chronological sequences covering the Lower, Middle, sponsors regular international meetings. In August and Upper Pleistocene. This time span encompasses 2005, an international symposium focusing on the development of human culture and environment archaeological and paleoenvironmental aspects of from the Lower to the terminal Upper Paleolithic. the initial peopling of Central, Northern, and Eastern Archaeological materials from the Altai sites suggest Asia was held at the Denisova research camp. About a continuous development of prehistoric cultural 60 scholars from Europe, Asia, and North America traditions throughout all the major stages of the participated in this forum. Paleolithic. Several important topics of Quaternary history of In this issue, we begin the publication of papers from continental Asia were discussed at the Symposium. this Symposium. Papers presented there addressed the following issues: Paleolithic geology and geochronology, the formation and evolution of Pleistocene faunal and fl oral complexes, the reconstruction of environmental conditions, correlations between regional climatic fl uctuations and changes in the environment, the periodization and A.P. Derevianko and M.V. Shunkov chronology of the Paleolithic record, the formation, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Siberian Branch, dispersal and regional features of Paleolithic cultural Russian Academy of Sciences, traditions, and the physical anthropology of the Akademika Lavrentieva 17, Novosibirsk, 630090, Russia Paleolithic inhabitants. E-mail: [email protected] 4 The red bed at Karama contains the earliest stone tools in Northern Asia. Excursion to Denisova Cave. 5 Professors G.F. Baryshnikov, V.P. Liubin, M.V. Anikovich, E.V. Beliaeva, and H.A. Amirkhanov (Russian Academy of Sciences) examine Paleolithic artifacts. Professors H.A. Amirkhanov and A.P. Derevianko (Russia) show recently discovered