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Relationship between the prehistoric human and the surrounding fauna has always been of a complex nature and consisted of material and non-material elements. Sculptural images of animals and birds made of various materials (bone, antler, flint, or wood) are a typical feature of the surviving evidence of the spiritual culture of Mesolithic and Neolithic population in Eastern Europe and the Urals. Realistic and stylized animal images were used to decorate ceremonial and everyday objects including weapons and knives, skis and paddles, axes and wooden utensils. This paper aims to evaluate some patterns in decorative activities and priorities in depicting certain zoomorphic images on an example of small series of Late Mesolithic artefacts from well-known site Zamostje 2, which is located in the Volga-Oka region. Unique preservation conditions in this wetland settlement contributed to accumulation of rich and diverse materials including a large set of decorated objects. This paper focuses on zoomorphic knife handle ends and stylized animal figurines made of bone and wood, which are brought together and considered in this perspective for the first time ever. All knives and pins were involved in production or domestic activities, while some figures carried a non-utilitarian magic function. The site area, obviously, served both for everyday life and for performance of some rites. For the first time for scope of Late Mesolithic settlements, a conclusion is drawn about a possible connection between the image of a duck and a snake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Materials of the multilayer wetland site Zamostje 2 are key to study the human cultural history of the Volga-Oka interfluve in Central Russia due to the diversity and completeness of the material culture, on the one hand, and encompass large information potential of fragile organic remains preserved in the waterlogged conditions, on the other hand. The existence of the lake settlement in the broad framework of ca. 7000–4300 cal BC includes the period of distribution of the first ceramics and development of ceramic production among hunter-fisher-gatherers. The purpose of this paper to synthesize the data obtained by natural scientific methods on the reconstruction of the paleolandscape and animal and plant resources, as well as compare them with archaeological evidence of hunting and, in particular, fishing practices. New data from the fishing zone and geological structure of the microregion have been brought. This analysis creates a context for adaptation of various multidisciplinary studies and fuels discussions of paleoecological and cultural events characteristic for the Upper Volga region in the period under consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Only 21 human remains have been identified at Zamostje 2, despite extraordinarily good conditions for organic preservation, and the recovery of thousands of animal bones from layers dating from the Late Mesolithic to the Middle Neolithic (c.6500–4000 cal BC). Almost all the human remains are fragments of the cranium, maxilla, mandible, which are potentially reworked from earlier depositions, uphill or upstream of Zamostje 2, or isolated teeth. Disregarding naturally shed deciduous teeth, these remains have been attributed to between 5 and 14 individuals, ranging in age from 6 to 7 years to mature adult. We report AMS radiocarbon (14C) dating and dietary stable isotopes, δ13C and δ15N, for all the human bones, and δ13C and δ15N values from 63 prehistoric animal bones from Zamostje 2, including 18 fish and 7 dogs. Using the faunal isotope data, we construct isotope signatures for different food groups, which we use to interpret the human δ13C and δ15N values. Based on 14C ages and dietary stable isotopes, we propose that the human bones represent 10–12 individuals, most of whom date to the Late Mesolithic occupation at Zamostje 2; one is somewhat earlier in the Mesolithic, one (probably from the nearby site, Zamostje 1) may date to the Middle Neolithic, and two (one from Zamostje 1, one unprovenanced) date to the Late Neolithic or Eneolithic. The earliest and latest individuals may have obtained most of their dietary protein intake from fish, but Late Mesolithic individuals probably had more mixed diets. Palaeodiet reconstruction is complicated by unusual δ13C and δ15N values for local fish in the Late Mesolithic, which are reflected in δ13C and δ15N values from dogs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Résumé Cet article présente les résultats de l’analyse technologique des produits laminaires provenant de trois structures osseuses d’habitat du site épigravettien de Mezhyrich (Ukraine). Plus de 2500 lames, lamelles brutes et outils sur lames ont été examinés. Nous avons mis en évidence une similitude étroite entre les trois ensembles dans la préparation de la zone de débitage (la réduction et le traitement par abrasion de la corniche, le dégagement de la surface de débitage), ainsi que dans l’organisation des négatifs de la surface dorsale des lames. La comparaison avec le matériel du site de Kostenki 1, couche supérieure (datée de 22 000–24 000 ans BP), a montré certaines différences par rapport à nos observations réalisées sur les lames de Mezhyrich, bien que les mêmes procédés techniques aient été utilisés. Cela pourrait s’expliquer par les traditions culturelles différentes, par l’écart chronologique ou par les particularités de la matière première. L’industrie lithique de Mezhyrich parait suivre la tradition technologique de Kostenki 1 (couche 1) mais avec ses propres particularités. This article presents the results of technological analyses of the laminar products from three bone dwelling structures from the Mezhyrich site (dated to Upper Palaeolithic; 15,000–14,500 years BP). More than 2500 blades and bladelets were studied from technological point of view. We find close similarity between the three dwellings, which reflects similar ways of preparation of core fracture zone (overhang reduction, butt abrading, and flaking surface isolation), as well as in the organization of the negative of the dorsal surfaces of the blades. The comparison with materials from the Kostenki 1 layer 1 site (upper layer, 22,000–24,000 years BP) shows some differences with the artefacts from Mezhyrich site, despite same technological methods. This could be explained by differences in cultural tradition and large time gap between these two sites. The complexes from Mezhyrich to follow the Kostenki 1/1 tradition but with their own particularities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The multilayer waterlogged site Zamostje 2 in Central Russia represents a unique opportunity to study the interplay of human cultural history and its environmental context over the late Mesolithic – Middle Neolithic, ca. 7900–5500 BP (7000–4300 BC). Compared to previous paleogeographical reconstructions made more than 15 years ago and pollen diagrams for a number of profiles from Zamostje 2, along with materials from other sites from the region, in this paper we present new data about the use of wood by ancient inhabitants of lake settlements, and the discovery of fishery constructions. These data are used to reconstruct local changes in paleo-landscape and its exploitation by ancient hunters–fishermen during a period of two thousand years. It was possible to correlate the types of fishing constructions with the water-depth of the ancient lake. The fishery economic zone of the paleo-lake always been a structural part of the settlement. New data allowed us to revise or update previous schemes of local paleo-landscape changes at the site, and the regional scheme of the Holocene vegetation development in the Volga-Oka region. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Neolithization of Northern Eurasia is marked by the emergence of pottery among hunter-gatherer societies. The driving forces behind the adoption of ceramic cooking vessels among non-agricultural societies remain unclear, although previous research, mainly in North East Asia (e.g. Japan, Korea and the Russian Far East), suggests that it was adopted as a specialist technology for processing aquatic resources, linked to the intensification of fishing activities and a move to sedentism. The stratified site of Zamostje 2 in the forest zone of the Volga-Oka region includes both aceramic Mesolithic and two early ceramic horizons dating to Early Neolithic (EN) and Middle Neolithic (MN). This provides a unique opportunity to look at the impacts of the adoption of pottery on the wider economy and determine whether pottery function changes over time. This was achieved through the analysis of lipids from 166 potsherds dating from the earliest phases (mid-6th millennium cal BC) to the MN (5th millennium cal BC). Contrary to our expectations, the pottery from the EN phase was used to process a broad range of foodstuffs including terrestrial resources, such as forest fruits, in addition to freshwater fish. In contrast, pottery from the MN phase was used exclusively for processing aquatic resources. The results show that in this case, pottery was adopted as a more general-purpose cooking container, at least in the earliest phases of use, and that a specialist function only emerged later. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]