Diring Yuriakh: A Lower Paleolithic Site in Central Siberia

Abstract

Lower Paleolithic artifacts have been recovered from a single occupation surface within stratified deposits at Diring Yuriakh, an archaeological site in central Siberia. Thermoluminescence age estimates from eolian sediments indicate that the cultural horizon is greater than 260,000 years old. Diring Yuriakh is an order of magnitude older than documented Paleolithic sites in Siberia and is important for understanding the timing of human expansion into the far north, early adaptations to cold climates, and the peopling of the Americas.