Dog burials are known from Egypt from the Predynastic period from c. 3500 BC onward and continue into the Roman era. Different burials have been interpreted in a variety of ways: companion/pet/working animals, associated with divinities, and as guardians. This paper presents a unique interment of a single human and a group of dogs found in the cemetery of Deir el-Banat in the Fayum (Egypt), which can be interpreted as either a religio-magical protective deposit for the cemetery, or a religio-medical one, involving the sacrifice of several animals.

Археологические и палеоантропологические материалы средневековых могильников Русского Севера уже несколько десятилетий служат важнейшим источником для изучения славяно-финского взаимодействия и процессов интеграции в состав Древнерусского государства обширных территорий между волжско-северодвинским водоразделом и Белым морем. Геномный анализ образцов костной ткани из этих могильников до сих пор не производился. В качестве первых материалов для такого анализа были отобраны образцы из средневекового могильника Минино на Кубенском озере. Исследовано одно необычное погребение, где были совместно захоронены подросток предположительно мужского пола и лесной хорь (Mustela (Putorius) putorius L.). Проведен геномный анализ человека и животного. По его результатам определена принадлежность исследованного индивида мужскому полу. Филогеографический анализ полной последовательности митохондриальной ДНК (мтДНК) человека показал: данная митохондриальная линия характерна для восточнославянских популяций, что предполагает его славянские, а не финно-угорские, корни и согласуется с археологическими данными. Митохондриальная последовательность животного из погребения соответствует мтДНК современных лесных хорьков, отличных от современной группы одомашненных хорьков. Проведенное исследование предоставляет свидетельство присутствия индивидов славянского происхождения на территории Русского Севера во втор. пол. XII - нач. XIII в. и открывает неизвестные стороны повседневной жизни средневекового населения. Archaeological materials and paleoanthropological remains from medieval cemeteries in the Russian North have been a major source of information for studying Slavic-Finnic relationships and integration of vast areas between the Volga and North Dvina watershed and the White Sea into Medieval Russia for several decades. Genomic analysis of bone tissue samples from these cemeteries has not been conducted yet. Samples from Minino, which is a medieval cemetery at the Kubenskoe Lake, were the first to be selected for this analysis. The grave from this cemetery subjected to the analysis is unusual. An adolescent, presumably, a male, was buried together with a forest polecat (Mustela (Putorius) putorius L.). We performed a genomic analysis of the human and the animal and found that the individual was a male. The phylogeographic analysis of the full mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence shows that this mitochondrial lineage is characteristic of Eastern Slavic populations, thus suggesting Slavic rather than Finno-Ugric ancestry of the individual which is consistent with archaeological data. The mitochondrial sequence of the animal from the grave is consistent with mtDNA of modern forest polecats distinct from the modern group of domesticated polecats. This study provides evidence that individuals of Slavic ancestry lived in the Russian North in the second half of the 12th - early 13th centuries. It also reveals unknown facts about everyday life of the medieval people.

The short-tailed albatross (Phoebastria albatrus) is a rare bird species today, numbers of which declined significantly in the Holocene due to human hunting activities. Bones of albatrosses from archaeological sites of Chukotka, Kamchatka, and the Aleutian Islands, and from coastal sediments of the Commander Islands were used to analyze the content of stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in bone collagen. The analysis showed that the isotopic niches of Aleutian and Commander albatrosses diverged during the Holocene. Short-tailed albatrosses of the Aleutian Islands are closer to Holocene albatrosses of Vancouver Island (Canada) in the isotopic characteristics.

В статье представлены материалы новых раскопок на Соборной горе Смоленска. Стратиграфические разрезы шурфов по кромке верхней площадки горы свидетельствуют о том, что здесь существовал оборонительный вал, датированный по археологическим находкам и радиоуглеродным методом в пределах первой половины IX в. Под валом залегает культурный слой, древнейший горизонт которого с керамикой колочинской традиции датируется в интервале IV–VI (VII) вв., а основной комплекс находок относится к (VII) VIII–IX вв., включает керамику и вещи, типичные для смоленско-полоцких длинных курганов. Хозяйство населения опиралось на земледелие и скотоводство, что документируется анализом остеологической коллекции и находками зерен культурных злаков. Предложена интерпретация, согласно которой поселение на Соборной горе являлось летописным Смоленском – градом кривичей. The paper describes materials from recent excavations on Cathedral Hill in Smolensk. Stratigraphical sections of the test-pits along the fringe of the upper site of the Hill indicate that defensive earthen works dating to the first half of the 9th century based on archaeological finds and the radiocarbon method existed in the Hill. There is an occupation layer under the earthen works, its oldest horizon contains ceramics related with the Kolochin tradition and is dated within the 4th–6th (7th) centuries, whereas the main assemblage of the finds is dated back to the (7th) 8th – 9th centuries and includes ceramics and items typical of Smolensk-Polotsk long kurgans. The economy of the population was based on agriculture and animal husbandry as documented by the analysis of the osteological assemblage and finds of grains of cultivated crops. According to the proposed interpretation, the settlement on Cathedral Hill was the Smolensk city of the Krivichs mentioned in ancient chronicles.

We present new data on regional correction factor (Delta R) conducted for Chukotka, the Commander Islands, and the western Aleutian Islands and summarize data previously published for the other parts of the region. Paired radiocarbon dates of coeval marine and terrestrial materials from the archaeological site Kaniskak were obtained in Chukotka, and one such pair was analyzed from Shemya Island (western Aleutians). Three samples of sea otter (Enhydra lutris) bones of known collection date were used for the Commander Islands. In conjunction with previously published data, the new results showed that Delta R estimates conducted for the five regions of the northern Pacific do not differ statistically. Delta R assessments combined for archaeological sites resulted in probability density curves of the same shape as that of marine organisms. Comparison of Delta R estimates made with various species of marine animals showed that sea otters and small fishes residing within coastal waters throughout their life histories are better suited for Delta R measurements than migrating seals, on the one hand, and the shells of sedentary organisms, on the other. The study provides additional support to the hypothesis that the northern Pacific is characterized by the same reservoir offset, which we estimate as 525 +/- 75 yr.

— The vegetation history of the Alсan Creek peat deposit on Shemya Island (the Near Islands of the Aleutian Arc) has been reconstructed. We chose this flat island because there are no volcanoes on it and they have less impact on the vegetation. The sedge tundra dominated until 7000 years ago. Then it was replaced by mire with a noticeable participation of Sphagnum and Equisetum during the Holocene warming maximum 7000–5000 years ago. Forb sedge-grass meadows spread about 4700 years ago as a result of a local change in humidity. As a consequence of cooling and leaching processes, heather tundra began to dominate in the inner part of the island about 3400 years ago.

AbstractIn the Aleutian Islands during the Holocene, terrestrial predators were actually absent; as a result, large seabird colonies thrived along the coasts or across entire islands. Bird guano enriches the soil with nitrogen, which can lead to the formation of highly modified ornithogenic (bird‐formed) ecosystems. For a more detailed investigation of avian influence, we reconstructed more than 10,000‐year‐old vegetation dynamics of the coast of Shemya Island (Near Islands) by pollen analysis. At the initial stages of vegetation development (10,000–4,600 cal year BP), sedge–heather tundra grew in the studied area. A seabird colony existed on Shemya from 4,600 to 2,400 cal year BP according to stable isotope analysis. During a period of at least 2,200 years, nitrogen enrichment led to the development of ornithogenic herb meadows with a high presence of Apiaceae. A long‐term increase in δ15N above 9–10‰ led to radical shifts in vegetation. Noticeable reduction of seabird colonies due to human hunting led to grass‐meadows spreading. After a prolonged decrease δ15N below 9–10‰ (2,400 cal year BP to present), there was a shift toward less productive sedge‐tundra communities. However, the significant enrichment of guano affected only the coastal vegetation and did not alter the inland Shemya Island.

To assess the trophic position of the exceptionally large-sized brown bears from the Pleistocene of Yakutia, we used stable nitrogen and carbon isotope analyses of the collagen contained in fossil bones and teeth. Modern brown bears of Yakutia were compared to the large Pleistocene predators. As a result of the measurements taken for the Pleistocene bears, we obtained δ 13 С values typical of terrestrial ecosystems and relatively high δ 15 N values typical of such Pleistocene predators as the cave lion. We explain the high δ 15 N values of the bone collagen of the study fossil bears, as well as other Pleistocene brown bears of Yakutia and Chukotka, by (1) the absence of large competitors such as Arctodus simus , which allowed the bears to use large amounts of animal food; (2) the physiological effect of hibernation, expressed in an increased content of 15 N in the bone collagen; and (3) an increased content of 15 N in vegetation due to more severe climatic conditions, which affects the isotopic composition of the entire mammoth fauna of western Beringia. The δ 13 C and δ 15 N values of modern brown bears in Yakutia indicate a plant diet, suggesting that the modern brown bears (compared to fossils) occupy a fundamentally different trophic niche adapted to the modern low-productivity ecosystems of Yakutia.

An Erratum to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359021660018

A diatom analysis of a peat deposit from Shemya Island (Aleutian Arc, USA) is performed, and the dynamics of the diatom community are described. According to the radiocarbon dating, the formation of the deposit began 9300 cal. years BP. Principal component analysis made it possible to relate the dynamics of the diatom community to certain environmental conditions and the factors that influenced the coastal ecosystems during its formation. The following factors (predictors) were considered: the influence of age, zoo- and anthropogenic effects, and changes in climatic conditions. Sea level change was the main driver of the diatom community in the studied water body having a continuous direct and indirect influence on the studied small water body, i.e., by bird colony formation and more humid and coastal conditions. Since 3000–2000 cal. years BP, the anthropogenic factor (hunting depression of the bird colony) also became significant. During the whole water body lifetime and following peat formation, the diatom community was influenced by groups of factors: global factors (e.g., sea level rise) caused gradual change of local factors, which resulted in smooth shifts in community. In contrast, local factor influence (bird colony rise and fall due to human activity) caused abrupt and transient shifts. We can hypothesize that the relatively stable global environmental conditions in the Late Holocene were an auspicious background to see abrupt changes due to influence of the zoogenic and anthropogenic factors. We believe that further works on the material from other islands will make it possible to form a general picture of changes in the diatom communities in the Holocene and interpret it in connection with climatic changes in the region.

Studying the isotopic composition of carbon and nitrogen in contemporary natural communities contributes to creating palaeoecological reconstructions of the landscape environment and food resources of the medieval rural population. The objectives of the study are to determine the isotopic composition (ratio C-13/C-12 and N-15/N-14) of flora and fauna representatives of the modern (b)oreal forest in European Russia, as well as a preliminary reconstruction of the nutrition and habitat of medieval residents in the studied area. Identification of the isotopic composition of nitrogen and carbon in 320 samples of flora and fauna from Peno and Andreapol districts of Tver Region allowed forming the ideas of the characteristic values of nitrogen and carbon isotopic composition in plants, the humus horizon of soil, and the collagen of bone tissue in mammals and fish. The results obtained are similar to data from adjacent regions (Baltic states, Poland, and Kirov Region of the Russian Federation), which suggests a homogeneous structure of the "isotopic landscape" in northeastern Europe. The study analyzed isotopic composition of carbon and nitrogen in the collagen of the bone tissue of individuals from the burial grounds and mounds of Tver Region and medieval Novgorod. The paper discusses issues of variability in isotopic indices depending on difference in the environment and use of food resources.

AbstractCombined archaeological, ecological, and geologic research on Chuginadak and Carlisle Islands in the Islands of Four Mountains (IFM) probed questions about the sustainability of human settlements over the past 4000 years in the face of geologic, ecological, and social hazards. We use a human ecodynamics approach to frame the investigation and present original archaeological evidence from this poorly known region of the remote Aleutian Islands. Several village sites occupied during the last four millennia are clustered in locations that were not damaged by earthquake-induced tsunamis; however, new geologic evidence indicates that at least one volcanic eruption forced humans to abandon one or more prehistoric village sites. Combined archaeological, ecological, and geologic analyses demonstrate resilient Unangax̂ occupations of the IFM through long-term climate change as well as earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions with occasional community vulnerability to volcanic eruptions.

Abstract We present the results of multiproxy study of a peat deposit from Carlisle Island (the Islands of Four Mountains, Aleutians). Vegetation on the initial stage of the peat is characterized by heath vegetation dominated by Ericales indicating cold conditions at 7300–6100 cal yr BP. The appearance of Betula and Alnus is the result of long-distance transportation attributable to strong winds at this time. Sedge-grass (Cyperaceae and Poaceae) communities began replacing heath vegetation at 6100 cal yr BP because of the climatic amelioration. C/N ratios and pollen spectra remain relatively stable at 6100–2450 cal yr BP. For the CR-03 peatland, volcanic tephra contributed significantly to the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy spectral data. Volcanic input created overlap of an aluminosilicate signal with carbohydrate vibrations. Significant changes occurred at approximately 2450 cal yr BP when there is the some evidence of cooler and wetter conditions of the Neoglacial. High values of δ15N observed at 7100–7000 cal yr BP reflect the fertilizing effect of seabird nesting colonies. A decrease in δ15N ca. 6900 cal yr BP may indicate initial settlement on Carlisle Island corresponding with harvesting seabirds. Human predation continued until a series of volcanic eruptions, which deposited Okmok II and CR-02 tephra layers at ca. 2000 and 1050 cal yr BP, respectively.

We discuss the cultural roles of dog and red fox recovered from Carlisle Island, Islands of Four Mountains, Alaska, within the context of Aleutian ethnographic and zooarchaeological records. Three dog bones were recovered from the Ulyagan archaeological site, Unit 5, in levels that date to AD 1450-1645. Three red fox bones come from the Ulyagan site, Unit 4, in levels that date 460 BC-AD 95. Our analyses show that both red fox and domestic dog date earlier than the contact with Russians and that these canids do not extend west of the Islands of Four Mountains archipelago. Given the rich history of human intervention on the Aleutians ecosystems over the last 250 years, we argue that indigenous red fox inhabited the Islands of the Four Mountains region prior to western contact; however, foxes did not have a pronounced cultural role for prehistoric Aleuts. Domestic dogs accompanied humans in the Aleutians after AD 950, suggesting that these canids might be linked with the Neo-Aleut culture. In the light of Arctic and oceanic cases of human use of dogs considered in the paper, we suggest that dogs might have served as reserve food sources during long trips for people migrating west.

AbstractThis first zooarchaeological analysis for the Islands of Four Mountains (IFM), Aleutian Islands, Alaska, provides data about local hunter-gatherer resource exploitation over three thousand yr. The majority of zooarchaeological material represents faunal resources that were harvested within several kilometers of villages. Our analysis shows that IFM subsistence system was shaped by the small size of these islands, which is mostly true for all of the Aleutian Islands. The archaeological middens indicate that Aleuts readily exploited new resources when they became available, expanding their dietary niche. Despite human harvesting, most faunal populations remained stable; however, Aleuts overexploited the storm-petrel colony on Carlisle Island.

Using six paired terrestrial and marine organics collected in the Islands of Four Mountains, Alaska, we present a new regional correction factor, Delta R (495 +/- 20 yr), for the eastern Aleutians. We compare our Delta R with previous North Pacific marine corrections. Using the Delta R for the eastern Aleutians, we calibrated the radiocarbon dates of 80 human skeletons recovered from village site Chaluka and cave burials at Ship Rock and Kagamil Islands. These burial places contain two morphologically and genetically distinct humans-an early form called Paleo-Aleut and a later form called Neo-Aleut. Researchers have contested (1) the timing of Neo-Aleut movements into the Aleutians, and (2) Neo-Aleut interactions with Paleo-Aleuts. Our recalibrations indicate that the oldest Paleo-Aleut burial (1135 BC) occurred at Chaluka and the youngest Paleo-Aleut cave burial occurred at Kagamil during the fourteenth century (AD 1305). Neo-Aleuts buried their dead at Chaluka by AD 1375. The oldest definitive Neo-Aleut cave burial occurred during the fifteenth century (AD 1420) at Ship Rock. Eastern Aleuts buried their dead in caves for centuries, with the youngest Neo-Aleut buried at Kagamil circa AD 1865.