Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia 49 (1) 2021   doi:10.17746/1563-0110.2021.49.1.003-008

Annotation:  Evolution of the Lithic Industry in Central Dagestan During the Early Pleistocene: The Rising Occurr New Evidence of the Late Neopleistocene Peopling of the Lower Ob Valley Cruciform Signs Decorating Paleolithic Bone Artifacts from Cherno-Ozerye II, the Middle Irtysh Area From Ore to Metal: Exploitation of the Novotemirsky Mine, Southern Trans-Urals, in the Second Millen On a Distinctive Feature of the Andronovo (Fedorovka) Funerary Rites in the Baraba Forest-Steppe A Method for Attributing Non-Refi tting Fragments to a Single Artifact: The Case of Bronze Age Flat Three Silver Dishes from Yugra On Early Medieval Contacts of the Urals and Western Siberia with Central Asia: The Evidence of Ceram Composite Belt Ornaments with Bear Claw Pieces in Medieval Men’s Costume of the Perm Region, Western Unfortifi ed Settlements of the Cheptsa Culture (9th–13th Centuries): Ambiguity of Interpretation an Sections of the Early 18th Century Ditch at Fort Umrevinsky The Use of Natural Scientifi c Methods in the Study of Leather Items from Archaeological Excavations Cattle in Buryat Mythology and Ritual Evenki Reindeer Riding Saddle: Certain Principles of Mobility in the Taiga The Consecration of Altars in 17th–21st Century Siberian Orthodox Churches: The Neurosymbolic Aspect The Peopling of the Baraba Forest-Steppe in the Neolithic: Cranial Evidence Morphofunctional Characteristics of Mongolian Children and Adolescents Living in Different Ecologica   

Evolution of the Lithic Industry
in Central Dagestan During the Early Pleistocene:
The Rising Occurrence of Flake Blanks

H.A. Amirkhanov

Institute of Archaeology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Dm. Ulyanova 19, Moscow, 117292, Russia

Archaeological data from stratified Early Pleistocene sites in Central Dagestan are arranged in a direct stratigraphic sequence, making it possible to reconstruct the changes in lithic industry over a span of 1.2 mln years, from ~2.0 to 0.8 Ma BP, and to separate the principal stages in the Early Paleolithic culture of the Caucasus. This study examines blanks found at sites of the Ainikab-Mukhkay group, such as Ainikab-1, and Mukhkay-1, -2, and -2a. Occurrences of large flake blanks (>10 cm) at the Oldowan and the Oldowan to Acheulean transitional stage are provided. Such blanks appear at the beginning of the Jaramillo paleomagnetic episode (~1.07 Ma BP). By the end of the Early Pleistocene, their share attains 25.77 % of the total number of blanks for morphologically distinct tools. They are absent in Oldowan deposits (~2 Ma BP). The totality of statistical data justifies the separation of the transitional Oldowan to Acheulean stage in the region, dating to 1.0-0.8 Ma BP.

Keywords: Northeastern Caucasus, Early Pleistocene, lithic industry, evolution, flake blanks, statistics