Sites of the Stone Age in Luhyn District of Zhytomyr Region
Abstract
The paper is dedicated to the Stone Age sites of one of the northern Districts of Zhytomyr Region (Oblast) – Lugynsk District. The work presents a brief description of each archaeological site, including topographic conditions, analysis of artifacts, preservation status, and their cultural and chronological interpretation. As a result, problems and prospects of scientific studies on the territory of the District are named.
The District is one of the smallest in the Region and for a long period of time, it is ignored by archaeologists. The first sites are studied by Yu.V. Kukharchuk only in the mid-1980s.
Although the study of the area by various researchers and expeditions has lasted for over thirty years, the true interest of archaeologists in the Lugynsk District begins with the discovery of archaeological complex Velykyi Dyvlyn in the mid-00s of the 21st century. It is discovered by local lore specialist M.O. Khoptynets.
Since the beginning of the studies, 36 Stone Age archaeological sites have been discovered in the District. The earliest of them are Chervona Voloka-11 and Litysh-3, dated to the Middle Paleolithic. However, the evidence is insufficient and lustrated. A few other sites, including the majority of Velykyi Dyvlyn archaeological sites, are dated to the Late Paleolithic. The problem of most of them is the destruction of the cultural layers by natural (glacier, water processes, etc.) and anthropogenic factors (construction of hydroelectric power stations, agricultural activities, etc.). It is worth noting that instrumental reconnaissances and stationary excavations are conducted only at Velykyi Dyvlyn complex. In fact, the rest of the artifacts (accumulation A), and a fully preserved cultural layer (accumulation E) are found at two of its accumulations.
Another problem for interpretation is that most of the sites are the workshops that lack cultural-defining artifacts, and even the cores, due to the poor quality of the raw material, often make it impossible to refer them to specific cultures.
Nevertheless, despite all the above mentions problems, the area of the District is interesting and promising for further studying. A large number of sites with only surface findings require additional studying (especially dated to the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods) for clarifying the cultural identity. The presence of sites here with a preserved cultural layer gives hope for the discovering of similar sites in the future. In addition, much of the territory has never been surveyed by professional archaeologists or local lore specialists.
All this shows the expediency of future archaeological studies of the prehistoric past of Luhyn District of Zhytomyr Region.
References
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