The earliest dwellings of the stone age in Smolensk and Pskov regions of Russia

Abstract

The following paper analyzes the ancient building traditions of the upper Dvina basin. The paper deals with the earliest dwellings in the region, found on the base layer of seasonal Stone Age settlements of the Smolensk and Pskov regions: Serteya 3-3 Serteya X, Serteya XIV, Rudnya Serteyskaya and settlement Uzmen. During the excavation, these materials were isolated in a single layer of Early Neolithic Serteyskaja culture. As a result of spatial analysis of the dwellings remains on the settlements Serteya X, Serteya XIV, and studying findings correlated with these structures, the existence of Mesolithic buildings were allocate and justified within this layer. An analysis of the plans and remains of structures revealed the features of the Mesolithic - Early Neolithic transition, manifested in dwellings form changing: the transition from round to oval and subrectangular in plan that also noted by the Stone Age archaeologists, not only for the territories of the forest zone. Such changes are unlikely to be random, and probably can be considered as Neolitization element, but these assumptions still require further research and evidence.