Ekaterina Kashina | State Historical Museum (original) (raw)

Papers by Ekaterina Kashina

I. Radic Rossi, K. Batur, T. Fabijanic, D. Romanovic (eds.) Sailing Through History. Reading through Past - Imagining the Future. Proceedings of the 16th International Symposium on Boat and Ship Archaeology. Zadar: University of Zadar, 2024., 2024

In this paper we briefly discuss the direct and indirect evidences of the diverse watercraft exis... more In this paper we briefly discuss the direct and indirect evidences of the diverse watercraft existence in the East European and the Trans-Ural forest zone since the Mesolithic and until the Bronze Age. Two Bronze Age logboats have been investigated in Lithuania and Russia. The presence of skin and bark boats is hypothetically based on the unique find of a ceramic canoe sculpture from the Central Russia dated the 3rd millennium BC. The group of lightweight, short wooden paddles and of the rare two-blade paddles gives us the indirect evidence of frame/bark boat extensive use since the Mesolithic Age.

Археология Севера: памятники, проблемы, гипотезы, 2024

Небольшая серия кремневой антропоморфной скульптуры без рук известна на территории лесной зоны Во... more Небольшая серия кремневой антропоморфной скульптуры без рук известна на территории лесной зоны Восточно-Европейской равнины в контекстах поселений. На данный момент их датировка считается широкой: как минимум в рамках 3300–2800 cal BC, возможно, почти до конца III тыс. до н.э. Морфология и размеры предметов различны. В функциональном плане рассматриваемые скульптуры могут трактоваться как нашивные предметы или предметы, носившиеся с собой и принадлежавшие конкретным людям, которые могли намеренно прятать их или оставлять на поселениях.

Delivering the Deep. Maritime Archaeology for the 21st century: selected papers from IKUWA 7. BAR 3170., 2024

In this article, we discuss Stone Age rock art as a source for reconstructing early means of wate... more In this article, we discuss Stone Age rock art as a source for reconstructing early means of water transport used in the forest zone of northeastern Europe. Concentrations of Stone Age petroglyphs are known in northwestern Russia, Sweden and Norway, all of which contain boat images. However, identifying specific boat types used in reality on the basis of a morphological analysis of rock art figures remains problematic. Sporadic images provide clues for interpretation, and these suggest the use of frame boats. Stone and Bronze Age archaeological finds from the forest zone of northeastern Europe also point to the use of frame boats. These include a series of wooden paddles and a unique ceramic model of an alleged birch-bark canoe. The widespread tradition of representing boat figures in rock art with elk-headed stem posts also has parallels in the archaeological record of northeastern Europe. Presumably, sculpted elk-head boat stem posts were used for festive activities. Although finds of logboats are very scarce and remains of frame boats are completely absent, we conclude that highly diversified means of water transport were used in northeastern Europe from the Mesolithic period onwards.

Open Archaeology, volume 9, 2023

The remarkable group of tools was detected among the hunter-gatherer-fishers' archaeological mate... more The remarkable group of tools was detected among the hunter-gatherer-fishers' archaeological materials of the East European Plain central part dated around 3500-2700 BC. The so-called "crooked items" were initially interpreted as ritual phallic depictions, but now after conducting a more detailed analysis of their morphology, technology, and use-wear, it became clear that we deal with pressure flakers used to process flint tools. The most astonishing fact is that the straight parallel to these tools exists, coming from the opposite side of the globe, namely, the Bering Strait region-Kamchatka, Chukotka, and Alaska, where the same tools are known quite well both in archaeological and ethnographical collections. In this study, we discuss the results of use-wear analysis of both handles and removable tips from the Central Russian settlements of Moscow, Ivanovo, and Yaroslavl regions dated the second half of the fourth to the beginning of the third millennium BC.

Mesolithic Art - Abstraction, Decoration, Messages. Tagungen des Landesmuseums fur Forgeschichte Halle, band 26, 2023

In this paper, the group of ceramic anthropomorphic sculptures, is represented, belonging to semi... more In this paper, the group of ceramic anthropomorphic sculptures, is represented, belonging to semi-sedentary hunter-gatherer-fisher communities which had already learned highly developed and diverse ceramic vessel production technologies. The anthropomorphic sculpture morphology, archaeological contexts, territorial distribution and chronology will be discussed. The meaning of the sculptures lies in the field of ancestor worship, change of generations, hearth, home and family protection.

Bear and Human Facets of a Multi-Layered Relationship from Past to Recent Times, with Emphasis on Northern Europe, 2023

The bear was the constant neighbour of prehistoric hunter-gatherer-fishers of the East European P... more The bear was the constant neighbour of prehistoric hunter-gatherer-fishers of the East European Plain forest zone (10th-3rd millennium BC) and also a part of their hunting prey. Nevertheless, scholars usually emphasise its special spiritual role, as it was quite different from the roles of other species of the boreal forest animal realm for both ethnographically-known Siberian indigenes and Holocene hunters. Here, we have made an attempt to put together and analyse all groups of the material culture sources which can give us some hints about the status, significance and symbolic meaning of the brown bear in the Holocene East European Plain forest zone - portable art, rock art, and osseous bear remains in settlement and burial contexts. These data show the significant presence of bear bones in kitchen waste and among bone tools, the sporadic presence of bear images in petroglyphs and cemetery materials, and the complete absence of them in Mesolithic/Neolithic portable art up until the start of the Final Stone/Bronze Age, around 3000 cal BC, when its presence increases.

Pyretus, nr. VII, 2022

CEA MAI VECHE AMBARCAȚIUNE DE LEMN DIN REPUBLICA MOLDOVA (MONOXILA DE LA MĂCĂREȘTI) Monoxila de ... more CEA MAI VECHE AMBARCAȚIUNE DE LEMN DIN REPUBLICA MOLDOVA (MONOXILA DE LA MĂCĂREȘTI)

Monoxila de la Măcărești (s. Măcărești, r-nul Ungheni) a fost descoperită în toamna anului 2012 în albia r. Prut. Actualmente piesa este expusă la Muzeul de Istorie și Etnografie din or. Ungheni. Conform studiilor interdisciplinare monoxila a fost confecționată dintr-un trunchi de ulm și datează de la sfârșitul sec. IX – începutul sec. X d. Hr. (1160±25 BP (IGAN-9503). Actualmente monoxila de la Măcărești este cea mai veche ambarcațiune cunoscută pe teritoriul Republicii Moldova și este deocamdată unica confecționată din această specie de arbori din Europa de Est. În această ordine de idei se impun de urgență lucrări de conservare și restaurare a piesei ea fiind de o valoare excepțională pentru patrimoniul istoric al Republicii Moldova.

ДРЕВНЕЙШАЯ ЛОДКА-ДОЛБЛЁНКА НА ТЕРРИТОРИИ РЕСПУБЛИКИ МОЛДОВА (МОНОКСИЛ ИЗ МЭКЭРЕШТЬ)

Лодка-долблёнка из Мэкэрешть (с. Мэкэрешть, Унгенский район) была найдена осенью 2012 года в русле р. Прут. Она экспонируется в Музее Истории и Этнографии из к. Унгень. Проведенными исследованиями было установлено, что лодка была изготовлена из вяза. На данный момент это единственная археологическая лодка в Восточной Европе, сделанная из этой породы дерева. Полученная дата (1160±25 BP (IGAN-9503) в калиброванном значении указывает на её календарный возраст – конец IX- начало X вв. н.э. Данная находка имеет уникальную историческую и культурную ценность для Республики Молдова и нуждается в немедленной консервации и реставрации.

Краткие сообщения института археологии, 2022

In this paper the morphology of the Great Shigir Idol’s head and face carving is analyzed in comp... more In this paper the morphology of the Great Shigir Idol’s head and face carving is analyzed in comparison with the row of carved anthropomorphic sculptures made of wood and other raw materials, found at the territory of Europe and Trans-Urals and dated from the Mesolithic to the Bronze Age, inclusive. Moreover, some suggestions are given for the reasons of such ancient AMS-dates obtained by the wooden samples of the Big Shigir Idol. As a result, the conclusion is made about the contradiction between the results of the sculpture’s stylistic analysis and the bunch of its radiocarbon dating results, and that the date of a wooden log cannot correlate with the carving date, if we presume that the sub-fossil larch log was used. Nevertheless, further investigations should be performed in future to confirm or to deny the given hypothesis.

MASF 10 Oodeja Mikalle | Odes to Mika | Оды Мике, Helsinki, 2022

More than 50 animal-headed stone weapons have been found in the forest zone of northeastern Europ... more More than 50 animal-headed stone weapons have been found in the forest zone of northeastern Europe. These diverse items consist of maces and axes and they represent a variety of animal species, of which brown bear and Eurasian elk are the most common. In this article, we present an up-to-date overview of these finds and discuss their dating and cultural background. We argue that the animal-headed stone weapons were prestige items that were introduced to the northern forest zone by cattle herding groups in the 3rd millennium BC. We interpret the items as manifestations of a new set of pastoralist beliefs, in which masculinity and the bear probably played a central part.

Stratum Plus, 2021

Since 1956, the logboat was exhibited at the State Historical Museum at the Red Square in Moscow.... more Since 1956, the logboat was exhibited at the State Historical Museum at the Red Square in Moscow. It had been discovered two years before at the floodplain of the right bank of the River Don near the village of Schuchye, Voronezh Region, Russia. It was hypothetically attributed to the end of the Neolithic — the beginning of the Bronze Age. The paper presents an integrated study, the purpose and result of which were to establish the chronology, the cultural identity and the possible functions of the Schuchye logboat. Radiocarbon dates from the wood samples are published for the first time and show the logboat age within the range of 1800—1700 BC. It was the period of the Timber Grave (Srubnaya) culture of the Late Bronze Age. The obtained 14C dates are discussed within the historical and geographical background. The archaeological sites in the area of the logboat find were re-analyzed basing on old and recent data, and the paleo-ecological context was reconstructed. The probable ways of the Schuchye logboat use were proposed basing on its dimensions, design, displacement calculation, carrying capacity, and considering the nomadic pastoralism of the Srubnaya culture people in the forest-steppe zone. As a result, the authors came to the conclusion that the Schuchye logboat could serve for the local inter-tribal communication and the wide application range, including the transportation of heavy loads, people and livestock. Now it is the most ancient logboat found in the Southern part of East Europe and the only one that can be reasonably associated with the Bronze Age nomads.

Traditional Shipbuilding as a Part of Cultural Heritage of the Russian Peoples (ed. A.V. Okorokov)), 2021

История развития древнего водного транспорта насчитывает многие тысячелетия, но, к сожалению, арх... more История развития древнего водного транспорта насчитывает многие тысячелетия, но, к сожалению, археологические находки древних лодок очень редки. К тому же, не всегда удается сохранить находку для музейного хранения и экспонирования, должным образом законсервировать и отреставрировать ее. Отдельной проблемой является установление возраста найденных лодок, так как типологические характеристики часто не позволяют его определить. Особенно это касается наиболее архаичных по конструкции судов – лодок-долбленок. Наиболее результативным методом определения возраста этих находок является метод радиоуглеродного датирования. В этой работе мы всесторонне рассматриваем 50 археологических находок долбленых лодок, найденных в интервале начиная от конца XIX в. и до 2020 г.

Foraging Assemblages Volume 2 Edited by Dušan Borić, Dragana Antonović, and Bojana Mihailović. Vol 2. Belgrade-New York, 2021

The paper focuses on small sculptural pendants representing different bird species of the Late St... more The paper focuses on small sculptural pendants representing different bird species of the Late Stone Age forest hunter-gatherers of the Russian Plain (c. 3500–2700 cal BC). They are supposed to have been frequently worn in everyday life, and their symbolic meaning might have been mostly connected mostly with totemism. A second type of finds, that of unmodified bird bones of large waterfowl wing parts were investigated at the Shagara burial ground (some 150 km away from Moscow). These bones originated from burials dated to c.2700–2000 cal BC, though sculpted pendants are also known from the same burial ground and the materials of neighboring settlements. The main point of the discussion here is the probable connection of both find types with the same worldview and ideological background.

Министерство культуры Республики Карелия БУ «Национальный музей Республики Карелия» К 150-летию Национального музея ВЕСТНИК Национального музея Республики Карелия, Выпуск 8, 2021

In the collections of NMRK, there are five animal-headed sculptures in the form of shaftholed sto... more In the collections of NMRK, there are five animal-headed sculptures in the form of shaftholed stone items. These clubs and axes are characteristic manifestations of the animal art in Finland and Karelia in the 3rd millennium BC. The study of these artefacts can reveal important information about the interaction between northerm hunter-gatherer groups and new populations that practiced animal husbandry and agriculture and introduced a new set of beliefs in the forest zone in the transition period between the Stone Age and the Early Bronze Age.

Quaternary International, 2020

Burial practices in the large area of the north-eastern European and especially the western Russi... more Burial practices in the large area of the north-eastern European and especially the western Russian forest zone are not as well-known as contemporary sites in, for example, western or southern Europe. To fill this gap in our knowledge of north-western Russian Stone Age hunter-gatherer burial traditions and to better understand the similarities and differences in burial traditions between these areas, a new Russian-Finnish collaboration was launched in late 2016. The main aim of this collaboration is to systematically investigate previously excavated mortuary materials from north-western Russia and study them in the broader context of hunter-gatherer funerary practices in north-eastern Europe. As a first case study, we revisited the burial finds from the Stone Age site of Kubenino, a multi-period site with at least six inhumation burials. Burials have been excavated here since the 1930s, but only three have been published so far. Here we describe all the Kubenino burials and present the results of new analyses, namely the osteological study of bone artefacts, the traceological study of flint artefacts, and new radiocarbon determinations. According to the novel radiocarbon data, the Kubenino burials date to the emergence of the Neolithic, which in this region is marked by the appearance of the first pottery-using hunter-gatherers. As our new analyses show, this transition towards the Neolithic is not only present in the everyday life of these hunter-gatherer groups but also resulted in subtle changes in the funerary realm. These changes include, for example, the intentional breakage of grave goods and the introduction of new artefact forms for animal raw materials that were present already in pre-pottery burials.

BEAUTY AND THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER Personal adornments across the millennia. Cetacea di Scaun: Targoviste. , 2020

Wild boars were among the most desired hunting prey for the Mesolithic and Neolithic hunters in t... more Wild boars were among the most desired hunting prey for the Mesolithic and Neolithic hunters in the East European forest zone. Their bones constantly occur among the faunal remains, as well as ready-made tools and ornaments at settlement and in burial contexts. Because of their morphological and aesthetical properties, wild boar canines have been the preferred material for making adornments and tools. This article discusses wild boar tusk artefacts from the Neolithic hunter-gatherer sites in Central Russia. For the first time an overview of all wild boar tusk items from the collections curated at the State Historical Museum in Moscow is given. The article presents the geographical and chronological background of the research area along with six radiocarbon dates from the Velikodvorye I site, which are published for the first time. Tusks were treated in different ways to obtain the needed form and the most attention is paid to the forms, raw material characteristics, morphology and technological aspects. The osteological analysis suggests the preference of considerably large canines from specimens aged at least five years old as the raw material for making adornments and tools. A small part of the investigated materials are raw wild boar canines. The majority of tools are represented by awls. The largest part of tusk items consists of pendants of different geometrical forms and the so-called torque-shaped adornments. The latter were constructed of perforated tusks, sometimes found in pairs. The find contexts (settlement deposits and an adult male burial) of the torque shaped adornments suggest a special symbolic meaning assigned for these artefacts.

Raptor on the fist - falconry, its imagery and similar motifs throughout the millennia on a global scale, 2/1, 2020

In this paper, bone bird pendants made by Late Stone Age hunter-gatherer- fishers of the East Eur... more In this paper, bone bird pendants made by Late Stone Age hunter-gatherer- fishers of the East European Plain forest zone (mid-4th to mid-3rd millennium BC) are discussed. These materials were previously almost unknown in the west, so the aim of this study is to present as much data on central Russian Neolithic bird pendants as possible. The study reveals the pendants’ morphology, the technology used to make them, analogues in the adjacent regions, dating, functional use and symbolic meaning. The imagery of different bird species represented in these sculptures is discussed in comparison with the data obtained by studies made on osteological avifaunal collections, raising the question of hunting and spiritual preferences of those prehistoric communities. It is postulated that the capercaillie image prevails absolutely among pendant images. By contrast, duck bones constitute the majority in avifaunal collections. The symbolic meaning of pendants could have been based on totemic beliefs; probably kins/tribes worshipped particular bird species as ancestors, and the capercaillie was seemingly the totem most frequently venerated by communities in the Volga-Oka Rivers interfluve.

Oxford Journal of Archaeology, 2020

Around 30 axe‐shaped staffs sculpted as elk heads at the upper end have been found from burials a... more Around 30 axe‐shaped staffs sculpted as elk heads at the upper end have been found from burials and settlement layers across a widespread area, extending from the Baltic region to the Urals. These enigmatic items made of antler were in use for a considerably long period from the Late Mesolithic to the Early Metal Period, and depictions of elk‐head staffs are also known from Stone Age rock art sites. Using two previously misidentified elk‐head staff fragments from the Stone Age settlements of Zvidze in Latvia and Veretye in Russia as examples, the authors examine the role and function of elk‐head staffs. Special emphasis is put on the fragmentation of the artefacts: the authors point out that elk‐head staffs found in burials have been intact, whereas those found in settlement layers have mostly been deliberately broken and discarded. The authors thus interpret the elk‐head staffs as private items that were closely associated with the undertakings of their owners.

Археология в музейных коллекциях. Материалы всероссийской научно-практической конференции с международным участием., 2019

We discuss the Northern Russian archaeological collection materials, containing the very early po... more We discuss the Northern Russian archaeological collection materials, containing the very early pottery types, such as the Sperrings type, the Kargopol type and a row of others. Focusing on the technological and morphological investigations of the Kargopol ceramic type we propose its initial role in the development of local pottery production and pay attention to its outstanding distribution patterns. The absolute chronology of the earliest Northern ceramic types is still under question.

Verkhnedonskoy Archeologicheskiy Sbornik, 2019

In this paper some historiographical details connected with dugout discoveries and studies at the... more In this paper some historiographical details connected with dugout discoveries and studies at the Voronezh and Bryansk regions are discussed. The current study is based mainly on archive documents kept at the Department of Written Sources of the State Historical Museum (personal archives of M.Y. Foss and A.Y. Brussov), on the field report of V.A. Afonyushkin, and on the data from the personal archive of V.F. Kulinchenko.

Archaeology and Analogy. Papers from the Eighth Theoretical Seminar of the Baltic Archaeologists (BASE) Held at the University of Helsinki and Tvärminne Zoological Station, Hanko, Finland, November 30th–December 2nd, 2017. Interarchaeologia 6, 2020

This paper concerns Stone Age hunter-gatherer mortuary practices from the perspective of prone bu... more This paper concerns Stone Age hunter-gatherer mortuary practices from the perspective of prone burials, i.e., the rare tradition of burying the deceased on their stomach. By using prone burials from the Neolithic hunter-gatherer site of Kubenino (northwestern Russia) as an example, the paper aims to understand whether the burials differ from the normative burial rituals of the respective period and region, by exploring how common the practice of prone burial was
among the Mesolithic and Neolithic hunter-gatherer populations of the northern European boreal zone. Furthermore, by comparing the Stone Age prone burials to inhumations in other body positions, the paper will explore whether this practice can be defined as a deviant mortuary practice. As an additional tool of interpretation, we will also use ethnographic analogues from historical hunter-gatherer and pastoralist populations of northern Eurasia.

Археология Севера: памятники, проблемы, гипотезы, 2024

Delivering the Deep. Maritime Archaeology for the 21st century: selected papers from IKUWA 7. BAR 3170., 2024

Open Archaeology, volume 9, 2023

Mesolithic Art - Abstraction, Decoration, Messages. Tagungen des Landesmuseums fur Forgeschichte Halle, band 26, 2023

Bear and Human Facets of a Multi-Layered Relationship from Past to Recent Times, with Emphasis on Northern Europe, 2023

Pyretus, nr. VII, 2022

CEA MAI VECHE AMBARCAȚIUNE DE LEMN DIN REPUBLICA MOLDOVA (MONOXILA DE LA MĂCĂREȘTI) Monoxila de ... more CEA MAI VECHE AMBARCAȚIUNE DE LEMN DIN REPUBLICA MOLDOVA (MONOXILA DE LA MĂCĂREȘTI)

ДРЕВНЕЙШАЯ ЛОДКА-ДОЛБЛЁНКА НА ТЕРРИТОРИИ РЕСПУБЛИКИ МОЛДОВА (МОНОКСИЛ ИЗ МЭКЭРЕШТЬ)

Краткие сообщения института археологии, 2022

MASF 10 Oodeja Mikalle | Odes to Mika | Оды Мике, Helsinki, 2022

Stratum Plus, 2021

Traditional Shipbuilding as a Part of Cultural Heritage of the Russian Peoples (ed. A.V. Okorokov)), 2021

Foraging Assemblages Volume 2 Edited by Dušan Borić, Dragana Antonović, and Bojana Mihailović. Vol 2. Belgrade-New York, 2021

Quaternary International, 2020

BEAUTY AND THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER Personal adornments across the millennia. Cetacea di Scaun: Targoviste. , 2020

Raptor on the fist - falconry, its imagery and similar motifs throughout the millennia on a global scale, 2/1, 2020

Oxford Journal of Archaeology, 2020

Verkhnedonskoy Archeologicheskiy Sbornik, 2019

The start of the Late Neolithic Volosovo studies has happened in 1877, when the local enthusiast ... more The start of the Late Neolithic Volosovo studies has happened in 1877, when the local enthusiast Pavel Koudriavtseff, a court employee from the town of Murom visited the Volosovo settlement and collected flint and bone tools, ceramics and pieces of art there. He critisyzed the chapters about Volosovo in the volume 'Archaeology of Russia. Stone Period' (1881) authored by Cout Alexey Ouvaroff, without feeling fear or uncertainty in the face of a nobleman and a guru of early Russian archaeology. The oral presentation was made at the Tver Archaeological Seminar, March 2024.

IKUWA 7 Helsinki International Congress for underwater archaeology, 2022

In this talk we aim to discuss the benefit of the Stone Age petroglyphs as a source for the reco... more In this talk we aim to discuss the benefit of the Stone Age petroglyphs as a source for the reconstruction of the forest hunter-gatherers’ water transport.

Stone and Bone Artifacts in Neolithic Cultures (Изделия из камня и кости в культурах неолита). Тезисы конференции. ИИМК РАН-СГСПУ. P. 58-59. , 2022

Доклад посвящен роговому изделию ассиметричной формы, найденному в погр. 3 на стоянке Кубенино (А... more Доклад посвящен роговому изделию ассиметричной формы, найденному в погр. 3 на стоянке Кубенино (Архангельская обл., Каргопольский р-н, раскопки М.Е. Фосс, 1938 г., коллекция ГИМ) (Рис. 1). Погребение датировано эпохой раннего неолита по фрагменту изделия из кости крупного млекопитающего около 5000 cal BC (6147±55 (Hela-3998)). Мужской костяк длиной около 190 см располагался в могильной яме вытянуто на животе, погребение сопровождалось охрой, богатым инвентарем, состоящим из предметов вооружения и быта, а также украшений (Kashina, Ahola, Mannermaa 2021). Под тазовыми костями по центру была найдена слегка изогнутая рукоятка орудия из рога. Отверстие в ней (глубиной 2 см) подходит по форме для вставки правильной призматической пластинки шириной 7 мм. Противоположный конец рукоятки и значительная часть поверхности сильно заполированы. Как и многие другие намеренно поврежденные артефакты из этого погребения, рукоять расщеплена пополам вдоль, кремневая вставка отсутствовала. Обратившись к материалам этнографии североамериканских индейцев таежной зоны, мы обнаружили орудие, которое могло быть идентичным этому: это так называемый нож-«мокотуган», предназначенный для различных работ по дереву и древесной коре. Нами был предпринят трасологический анализ немногочисленных пластинок со стоянки Кубенино, подходящих по своим размерам к этой рукояти, с целью обнаружения характерных следов износа и подтверждения гипотезы о том, что данный роговой артефакт действительно мог являться рукояткой специализированного орудия по обработке дерева у ранненеолитических охотников на территории таежной зоны Восточно-Европейской равнины.

International Symposium on Boat and Ship Arhaeology 16, 2021

So far, the only Prehistoric logboat recorded at the territory of the European part of Russia, is... more So far, the only Prehistoric logboat recorded at the territory of the European part of Russia, is dated to the Bronze Age by 14C (1800-1700 cal BC) in the course of our study, funded by the Russian Foundation of Basic Research (project no. 19-09-00301). Other logboat finds in Russia date in the range from the Late Medieval Period to the 19th c. AD. Based on the ethnographical data of Siberian indigenous peoples and written sources of the Early Modern period from the area of Russian North, the presence of birch bark canoes and skin boats in the past can be hypothetically recognized.
The unique find of the ceramic birch bark canoe model comes from a collective burial of the Bronze Age forest hunter-gatherer-fishers in Central Russia and dates around 2200-2000 cal BC. By construction the canoe reminds that of North American Indians and according to proportions could represent a boat for two persons, about 6 m long.
Mesolithic, Neolithic and Early Bronze Age paddle finds come both from the East European Plain and the Middle Trans-Urals. Some of them were definitely used for canoes or skin boats, as they have light weight and moderate length. This contribution discusses their dimensions and decoration patterns, and concentrates also on the unique group of the Trans-Uralic items shaped to assemble either the one-blade, ore the double-blade paddle. Some Trans-Uralic peatbog wooden items which presumably could have been the canoe or the skin boat frame details, are discussed too.
As a result, much more comprehensive picture of the forest zone Prehistoric water transport has emerged after re-analyzing old and recent archaeological finds and establishing their relevance with the ethnographical data.

EAA Kiel Virtual 2021 Book of Abstracts, p. 919, 2021

The water transport was inherent to all Prehistoric societies, not depending on the climate condi... more The water transport was inherent to all Prehistoric societies, not depending on the climate conditions and the mode of life. The archaeological finds of the forest belt of East European Plain and Trans-Urals contain the indirect evidences of carcass boats, most probably the birch bark canoes, since the Mesolithic. The most ancient logboat in Eastern Europe, dated the Final Stone Age, comes from Lithuania.
The most ancient logboat in Russia found in 1954 near the Schuchye village, Voronezh region, was believed to be the Neolithic, according to some paleopedological observations. Nevertheless, after the AMS-radiocarbon dating recently made in two different laboratories, it was firmly established that the Schuchye 1 logboat belongs to the Late Bronze Age, 18-17 cc. cal BC. According to the morphological characteristics it was a cargo vessel 7,5 m long, available for minimum 1000 kg load. Being made of oak, it was slightly unfinished and left at the shore or was accidentally rafted down the river, stuck and then drowned and deeply buried under the alluvial sediments.
The lifestyle of the Srubnaya (Timber-Grave) archaeological culture communities was based on the mobile cattle herding. The existence of a rich cluster of the Srubnaya settlements and burial mounds at the area of Shuchye, generally contemporaneous to the logboat, allows to reconstruct the active interconnections between both banks of the Don River, the constant ties between relatives, and the effective use of multiple local pastures. The logboat was supposed to be a multifunctional vessel, fitted to transport equally the cargo, the people and the cattle.
The use of boats for the livestock transportation between pastures is confirmed by the ethnographical sources describing the Kalmuck people of South Russian steppes. Thus, logboats were essential for the Prehistoric mobile pastoralists, no less than for the hunting or farming societies.

Symposium Neolithic Dwellings, 2021

Large and multi-chamber stationary semi-subterranean dwellings are iconic for the Volosovo settle... more Large and multi-chamber stationary semi-subterranean dwellings are iconic for the Volosovo settlements of the Volga-Oka interfluve and the Middle Volga area. The settlement Velikodvorye I was excavated in 2000-2008 by the Neolithic Expedition of the State Historical Museum (Moscow). The remains of 5 dwellings were revealed, measured as 12x8 m, or 24х8 m, or even more. Unfortunately, none of them was fully excavated.
The case study shows the high fluctuation of flint and bone finds of different size and weight (up to 70 cm vertically), which was probably caused by both natural (sandy sediments, spring flooding of lower layers, rodent/insect/worm activity) and anthropogenic reasons (stomping of the lost pieces, digging the new pit and filling the old one, littering in it, recent centuries’ ploughing).

MESO International Conference, 2020

The remarkable group of tools was detected among the hunter-gatherer-fishers’ archaeological mate... more The remarkable group of tools was detected among the hunter-gatherer-fishers’ archaeological materials of the Russian Plain central part dated 3500–2700 BC. The so-called ‘crooked items’ were initially interpreted as ritual phallic depictions, but now after conducting the more detailed analysis of their morphology, technology and use-wear, there is no doubt that we deal with retouchers, used to perform the pressure flaking of flint. The most astonishing fact is that the straight parallel to these retouchers exists, coming from the opposite side of the globe, namely the Bering Sea region – Kamchatka, Chukotka and Alaska, where the same tools are known quite well both in archaeological and ethnographical collections.

International Open Workshop Socio-environmental dynamics over the last 15000 years: the creation of landscapes VI, Kiel, March 11-16 , 2019

Bone bird figurines used as personal adornments are very characteristic of the period around 3500... more Bone bird figurines used as personal adornments are very characteristic of the period around 3500–2700 cal BC in the territory of Central Russia – in the Moscow region and surroundings at the interfluve of the Volga and Oka Rivers. This material culture is known among researchers as the Volosovo culture and features a wide range of high-quality flint, bone, stone and even sometimes wooden artifacts and porous ceramics with an abundant organic admixture (mostly freshwater shells). Many excavated settlements give indications of a year-round habitation by Volosovo groups due to the numerous, large, semi-subterranean dwellings (usually measuring more than 100 square meters) that have been investigated. These dwellings are situated at shorelines or on small islands, where rivers flow into or run off the lake (or at river arms between lakes), as these are obviously the most abundant in fish. The evidence of intensive fishing is supplemented with that of intensive hunting, according to the collections of rich faunal remains that have been found. The investigation of these communities’ spiritual life became possible due to quite numerous finds of mobile art pieces, mostly small sculptured pendants, depicting humans and animals of different species and made of bone, flint and, extremely rarely, amber. One of the most numerous groups is that of bone pendants depicting bird images, which today consists of 89 pieces. Eighty-two of these are from settlement layers, five pieces are from burials and two pieces are loose finds. Several aspects of the bone bird pendants can be studied, such as: their regional variations in morphology, the interpretation of archaeological contexts and the ‘totem’ hypothesis concerning their symbolic meaning.

YOO Seminar, St. Petersburg, Kunstkamera Museum, October, 2018

One of the most thought-provoking archaeological find categories in Prehistoric Northern Europe i... more One of the most thought-provoking archaeological find categories in Prehistoric Northern Europe is a group that is usually labelled as elk-head ‘staffs’ or ‘rods’ (Zhulnikov & Kashina 2010; Kashina & Zhulnikov 2011). These zoomorphic pieces of portable art are basically axe-formed sculptures, usually made of antler, and the upper part of which has been sculpted into the shape of an elk’s (Alces alces) head. Such artefacts have been found in numerous burials and settlements in the northern boreal forest zone and date back to the Stone Age and the Early Metal Period. Depictions of elk-head staffs are also discernible in the rock art of Fennoscandia.

24th Neolithic Seminar Neolithisation Processes in Eurasia: Retrospect and Prospect, Ljubljana, October 26-27, 2018 , 2018

The small group of early ceramics was detected in 1930s to 1990s at a number of multi-layer sites... more The small group of early ceramics was detected in 1930s to 1990s at a number of multi-layer sites of Russian northern regions (Arkhangel’sk, Vologda, Karelia, Komi), but underestimated as a source, directly pointing to ceramic production origins in the boreal forest zone c. 5500-5000 BC. The so-called ‘Kargopol type’ ceramics demonstrate archaic technological traits – straight rim, round holes under it, and clay paste with added sand temper. The mapping shows a wide distribution of these vessels (around 1000 km by longitude), almost without changes at least in volumes and decoration pattern, probably reflecting birch bark vessel features. There were no similarities with the neighbouring early ceramic types of the East European Plain central part, dated the 6th millennium BC, but obvious parallels existed with younger types of Pit-Comb Ware and Pitted Ware of the 5th millennium BC. We recognise this phenomena as a key to further understanding of how the process of ceramics production emergence ‘acted’ in the zone of the Russian boreal forest.

EAA Abstract Book, 2018

EAA 2018 Abstract Book, Vol. 1, page 547.

MESO 2015, Beograd. (oral presentation) The data concerning bird bone finds in Mesolithic burial... more MESO 2015, Beograd. (oral presentation)
The data concerning bird bone finds in Mesolithic burials and bone bird sculpture finds in burials and dwellings/settlements are discussed. According to paleozoologists` idea, bird bones (mostly wing and leg ones) were placed in burials to demonstrate a certain symbolic connection between a buried person and a concrete bird species, but surely not as after-death food supplement. Numerous finds of bird sculptural pendants permit to assume a totemic origin of this connection. The analysis of sculpture context and a number of represented bird species allowed to indicate various directions of relative/marital ties and to recognize the definite mobility and, at the same time, locality of totem clans. Taking into consideration the economic (hunting) importance of birds, the sedentary/migratory lifestyle and behavior features of different bird species, common for the forest zone, the same features of the totem clan lifestyle could be traced. The steady symbol of a bird pair (male and female?) is also confirmed by osteological and archaeological data. The totemic bird worship is well known according to Urals and Siberian ethnographic data and could be traced in the Eastern European forest zone from the Late Mesolithic period.

Three Mesolithic-Neolithic burials were excavated in 1930 at the Kubenino site, Arkhangelsk distr... more Three Mesolithic-Neolithic burials were excavated in 1930 at the Kubenino site, Arkhangelsk district, the European Russian north region. They are exhibited permanently in State Historical Museum, Moscow. During Russian-Finnish collaboration we explore them again to obtain new results on their inventory, dating and perform the archaeozoological survey of bone artifacts.

В предлагаемом исследовании впервые представлены результаты анализа предметов искусства малых фор... more В предлагаемом исследовании впервые представлены результаты анализа предметов искусства малых форм эпохи неолита-энеолита, найденных на территории Республики Беларусь, с точки зрения их функционально-смыслового значения и сопоставления их с комплексом предметов искусства малых форм соседних регионов. Материал происходит в основном с поселений Кривинского торфяника, так как здесь сохраняются органические материалы, однако на территориях Витебского, Гомельского и Могилевского районов также известны предметы искусства малых форм этой эпохи. Основные выводы работы сводятся к тому, что коллекция этих предметов характеризуется как сходными, так и самобытными чертами в сравнении с сериями искусства малых форм сосудних территорий, таких как страны Восточной Балтии, Псковская, Брянская и центральные области России. Изображения антропоморфных предков и змей из кости и рога несомненно принадлежат кругу циркумбалтийских скульптур 4 - начала 3 тыс. до н.э., резные подвески в виде птиц - более самобытны и маркируют небольшой район родственных связей. Изображения птиц (и человека) на керамике имеют несколько разную культурно-хронологическую принадлежность и позволяют ставить вопрос о протяженном во времени и пространстве существовании данного сюжета в качестве орнамента сосудов особого назначения. Главной проблемой по-прежнему остается утчонение датировок предметов искусства малых форм, поскольку в условиях многослойности поселений пожалуй лишь прямая датировка образца AMS-методом позволяет разрешить ее окончательно. Однако данные артефакты слишком ценны, немногочисленны, имеют малые размеры и огромную музейную ценность.

I was a graduate student and we had the obligatory teaching practice at school, so I made a lesso... more I was a graduate student and we had the obligatory teaching practice at school, so I made a lesson on the theme of Stone Age.

by Alexander Bessudnov, Ekaterina Kashina, Ksenia Stepanova, Ivan Fedyunin, Arthur Chubur, Надежда И Платонова, Natalya Prilepskaya, Aleksei Sorokin, Александр Волокитин, Evgenia Tkach, Victor Karmanov, Andrei Skorobogatov, and Kerkko Nordqvist

Настоящее издание посвящено 60-летнему юбилею известного археолога, основателя и лидера липецкого... more Настоящее издание посвящено 60-летнему юбилею известного археолога, основателя и лидера липецкого археологического сообщества, кандидата исторических наук, доцента кафедры отечественной и всеобщей истории ЛГПУ имени П. П. Семенова-Тян-Шанского Александра Николаевича Бессуднова. В первом разделе сборника объединены публикации как мемуарного, так и научного характера, отражающие различные стороны жизни юбиляра. Проблематика других разделов охватывает круг основных научных интересов юбиляра: эпоха камня, история науки. Включение в издание отдельных статей иной тематической направленности обусловлено желанием их авторов таким образом поздравить юбиляра. Издание предназначено археологам, историкам, учителям истории. Оно может быть полезно и широкому кругу читателей, интересующихся археологией.

by Sergey Zozulia, Ekaterina Kashina, Elmira Ibragimova, Elena Novikova, Veronika Murasheva, Svetlana Ruzanova, Наталья Ениосова, Sergei Kainov, Anna Kadiewa, Natalia Petrova, and Sergey Stefutin

Сборник посвящен заслуженному сотруднику Исторического музея, ведущему специалисту по искусству м... more Сборник посвящен заслуженному сотруднику Исторического музея, ведущему специалисту по искусству малых форм Сибири эпохи неолита и бронзы - С.В. Студзицкой. Представленные в сборнике статьи посвящены изучению древнего искусства от предметов мелкой пластики до декоративно-прикладного искусства, начиная с эпохи неолита-энеолита до раннего средневековья. В научный оборот впервые вводятся новые находки археологических экспедиций ГИМ, а также предметы их фондов музея. Интерпретация их на современном уровне позволяет поставить ряд проблем межкультурного взаимодействия разных племен и народов, развития идеологических представлений в древности, социальной и культурной атрибуции отдельных комплексов.

Радиоуглерод в археологии и палеоэкологии: прошлое, настоящее, будущее. Материалы Международной конференции, посвященной 80-летию старшего научного сотрудника ИИМК РАН, кандидата химических наук Ганны ивановны Зайцевой, 2020

In this talk the new radiocarbon dates of the archaeological logboats made using the AMS-method a... more In this talk the new radiocarbon dates of the archaeological logboats made using the AMS-method are discussed. The logboat Schuchye 1 found in 1954 near the village Schuchye (Liski district, Voronezh region) is now affirmatively the most ancient vessel in Russia.