Paleoenvironment and peculiarities of stone industry development on Barun-Alan-1 site (Western Transbaikal)

Abstract

Paleolithic material culture and environments were studied at the multi-layered archeological locality Barun-Alan-1. The entire sequence of deposits includes archeological materials spanning the time interval from the Early Zyryanka glacial time (early Würmian, according to the European system of continental glaciations) to the late Holocene. Palynological and paleofaunistic data provided basis for reconstruction of paleoclimatic conditions of the sediment accumulation and the ancient technology development. The Early Zyryanka period was noted for cold and dry conditions in the entire region with open landscapes prevalent, while the site itself was rather wet. The lowest layers of the Barun-Alan-1 are dated to this period. The archeological materials extracted from those layers display the appearance of the Upper Paleolithic tools and stone knapping technology, while the Middle Paleolithic technologies were still in use. The coexistence of prismatic and Levallois knapping technologies in the lower horizons and an appearance of developed micro-industry towards the end of the Early Zyryanka time make the stone industry of the lower horizons essentially different from the materials of other sites in Western Transbaikalia dated to the same period. The subsequent development of the archeological culture identified in the lower layers of Barun-Alan-1 proceeded in the Early Karginsky period (layer 7) under conditions of a milder climate as compared with the previous stage, though still cool enough.A dramatic change in the archeological culture occurred at the Barun-Alan-1 between 40 and 30 ka. The Khengerekte culture represents the most ancient (in Western Transbaikalia) variant of archeological culture with a well pronounced bifacial technique of stone implement modeling. Chronologically, it may be dated to the final Karginsky (30–25 ka) and to the first half of the Sartan cold epoch (25–20 ka). The paleoclimates of the Sartan period are described as cold and dry.Comparison with data obtained from other localities in Western Transbaikalia makes it possible to conclude on the multicultural development of the region in the Paleolithic epoch. At least two variants of the Upper Paleolithic industries may be distinguished, both practicing blade production and developing in similar natural environments.