Planigraphic Analysis of the “Central Area” at the Afontova Gora V (Radishcheva) Late Paleolithic Site

This article analyzes a local section of the Afontova Gora V (Radishcheva) site, where 9 220 stone artifacts were accumulated on a gentle slope in the area of about 270 m2. A hearth with concentric placement of stones was located in its northwestern part. After studying the planigraphic distribution of the artifacts belonging to different groups of raw materials it was suggested that the site was used two times. At the fi rst stage work on skins and/or wood was done around the hearth using tools which were primarily brought from other places. After the hearth ceased to function and was ritually “closed,” the site was abandoned. At the second stage only primary stone processing was performed, and the discarded cores concentrated at the bottom of the gentle slope. It is suggested that the site was an isolated “point,” existing within a larger settlement whose main part must have been located to the north, higher up the slope, and is now destroyed by urban development. The question of whether a simple structure with the hearth in the entrance area (?) existed during the fi rst stage of site’s use remains a matter of debate due to signifi cant anthropogenic disturbance in the stratum. Laminar system of reduction and distinctive tools make it possible to attribute the cultural layer to the Kokorevo archaeological culture.

hearths · human disturbance · Late Palaeolithic · lithic artifacts · raw material procurement · settlement structure · Siberian prehistory · site abandonment · Archaeological and Geological Studies · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology