The Site of the Maykop Culture in the Mountains of the Northwestern Caucasus

Abstract

The Meshoko rock shelter was first explored in the 1960s. Along with some other settlements in the vicinity, its materials were interpreted as evidence of the synchronism of the early Maykop and late Eneolithic cultures. Modern excavations have shown that Maykop and Eneolithic finds are concentrated in different layers, with natural deposits between them. The stratigraphic sequence of the Meshoko rock shelter consisted of six main layers. Maykop artifacts were in the third layer from above. The most interesting object discovered there is the hearth, the base and walls of which were formed by limestones. No evidence of a dwelling was found, which probably indicates the temporary nature of the settlement. The few Eneolithic materials cannot be confidently synchronized with the Maykop culture. It is more likely that they were introduced into the third layer through pits which were dug down from the Maykop level. The bulk of the collection of the third layer is associated with the Maykop culture, most likely with the middle stage of its development (Inozemtsevo-Kostromskaia). This conclusion corresponds to the radiocarbon dates of the settlement, which were about 3600–3000 BC. The Meshoko rock shelter is located at the bottom of the mountain gorge. This is unusual for Maykop sites, which, as a rule, occupy the steppe and flat areas of the foothills. Also, there are no close analogies in the paleoethnobotany and archaeozoology assemblages. The study of these ecofacts indicate that the Maykop population probably lived in a forest zone and was well adapted to the conditions of the local environment.