This study describes an early site on the northern coast of West Java, affected by the Austronesian culture-Subanglarang near Binong in the Subang Regency. Geologically, during the 2000-1000 BP interval, it was part of the coastline of the northern coast of West Java, situated more than 5 m asl. During the 2013 surveys and excavations in 2016 and 2018, fi ve burials were revealed. On the basis of the fragments of red-slipped pottery, pickaxes, beads of various shape and size, and metal weapons, the site is dated to the Bronze Age. Artifacts similar to those of early Austronesians were discovered. The analysis of various beads from Subanglarang attests to trade relations with other areas. Further excavations on the northern coast of West Java will hopefully shed more light on the life of the Bronze Age people of that area.

The article reviews the history of the evolution of views on the origins of pottery on the South American continent, since the birth of the Jomon-Valdivia hypothesis and the events that preceded and contributed to it, the reports and participants of the 31st International Congress of Americanists in 1954, dedicated to the cultures of the Pacific coast. Special attention is paid to the research of the Real Alto site in 1974 and, for this reason, new versions of the origin of ceramics in South America and the contribution of Russian scientists to this discussion.

Данные археологии и физической антропологии убедительно свидетельствуют о том, что все этапы появления в островной части Юго-Восточной Азии ранних представителей Homo и последующего освоения этой территории Homo sapiens связаны со спецификой климатических условий и флуктуацией уровня мирового океана, необходимостью преодолевать водные пространства и активно осваивать морские ресурсы. Ранний палеолит в регионе связан с присутствием нескольких видов Homo — Homo erectus (более 1 млн л.н.), а также Homo floresiensis и Homo luzonensis после 700 тыс. л.н. Появление Homo sapiens фиксируется не позднее 50 тыс.л.н., в это время он уже достигает Новой Гвинеи, Соломоновых островов и Австралии. Около 5–4,8 тыс. л.н. с территории острова Тайвань начинается миграция носителей австронезийских языков и производящего хозяйства (в формате «неолитического пакета»), которые достаточно быстро расселяются по всей островной территории Юго-Восточной Азии и ассимилируют ранний пласт позднепалеолитического населения. Привлекательность островной тематики со всей очевидностью проявляется в поиске новых исследовательских парадигм, интегрирующих усилия и данные разных научных направлений. Это сопровождается и появлением новых дефиниций и терминов, среди которых заметное место занимает ниссология — наука об островах. Активно используемый на площадках экологических, географических и исторических дискурсов, этот термин пока дозированно воспринимается и используется археологами, предпочитающими привычный термин «островная археология».

Целью статьи является характеристика полевых и лабораторных исследований, проведенных первой российской археологической экспедицией совместно с коллегами из Эквадора и Японии в Южной Америке в 2014-2015, 2017-2018 гг. Объектами были памятники архаического (10,8-6,6 тыс. л.н.) и раннеформативного (5,5-3,5 тыс. л.н.) периодов в прибрежной части Эквадора (пров. Санта-Элена). В результате работ на памятниках Реаль-Альто (культура вальдивия) и Лома-Альта (культура лас-вегас) получены представительные археологические, антропологические и фаунистические коллекции, существенно расширена база радиоуглеродных дат (AMS), что позволило сформулировать ряд принципиально новых положений о хронологии и периодизации культур, а также о времени происхождения и особенностях гончарства на Южно-Американском континенте. В частности, на основе анализа археологического материала впервые удалось доказать сосуществование в самом начале формативного периода двух раннекерамических традиций — вальдивия и «Сан-Педро», продемонстрировать специфику «тропического пакета» в каменном инструментарии и проследить ранее неизвестные черты погребального обряда культур лас-вегас и вальдивия. Данные радиоуглеродного анализа позволили скорректировать хронологию позднего этапа докерамической культуры лас-вегас (8,0-4,8 тыс. л.н.) и предварительно определить время появления гончарства (4,8-4,7тыс. л.н.). В Заключении обозначаются основные приоритеты и дальнейшие перспективы исследований российских археологов на тихоокеанском побережье Южной Америки, подчеркивается необходимость и важность международной кооперации.

Th e book is dedicated to the anniversary of Academician A.P. Derevianko. Th e monograph systematizes the results of archaeological and ethnographic studies of the right and left banks of the Upper and Middle Amur River, reveals the current state of archaeological and ethnographic knowledge about the Amur region. Th e content of the book covers all historical epochs. Special attention is paid to those epochs in the study of which the greatest contribution was made by A.P. Derevianko. Th e publication of the book is part of the project “Archaeology and Ethnography of the Far Eastern Frontier. International scientifi c conference dedicated to the anniversary of Academician A.P. Derevianko”.

Представлен краткий обзор исследований по теме происхождения цивилизаций в современной археологии Китая и Японии (на материалах изучения памятников эпохи неолита). Анализ публикаций показывает, что в китайской и японской археологии сложились оригинальные научные традиции с собственными методологическими основами и терминологическим аппаратом. Дана характеристика важнейших концепций формирования цивилизации, разработанных исследователями Китая (Су Бинци, Янь Вэньмин, Ли Боцянь, Сюй Хун, Гао Цзянтао) и Японии (Харунари Хидэдзи, Ватанабэ Хироси, Сасаки Фудзио, Ясуда Ёсинори). Показано, что большинство китайских ученых считают становление государства обязательным проявлением перехода общества к стадии цивилизации, однако проблема выделения критериев формирования государства и цивилизации на материалах памятников археологии в настоящее время не решена окончательно. Приводятся примеры археологических признаков формирования цивилизации, предлагаемых китайскими специалистами. В работах японских исследователей связь между возникновением государства и цивилизации не выявлена. Большинство китайских археологов датирует появление цивилизации и первых государственных образований поздним неолитом (культуры давэнь-коу, хуншань, лянчжу, луншаньская культурная общность и др.), ок. 3 500-2 000 лет до н.э. Существуют альтернативные гипотезы — ранний (культура эрлитоу) и поздний (эпоха Чуньцю) бронзовый век. В японской археологии представлены две основные позиции по вопросу о времени сложения цивилизации — эпоха дзёмон (неолит) и период яёй (эпоха палеометалла). Специального историографического исследования требуют внутринаучные и внешние (в т.ч. политические) факторы, оказавшие влияние на формирование современных концепций происхождения цивилизации.

First volume of the “History of Siberia” addresses the earliest and longest period in the history of mankind – the Stone Age and subsequent Paleometal Age. Th ree sections of the volume describe the emergence and development of cultural traditions in the Paleolithic, Neolithic, and Bronze Age in Siberia, focusing on interdisciplinary research into archaeological complexes, their chronology and periodization, clarifi cation of time and methods of settlement, and reconstruction of economic activities among prehistoric communities. Development of Neolithic cultural processes, emergence of various economic structures and productive forms of economy in the Asian part of Russia are discussed. It has been observed that transition from the appropriating to producing economies among the carriers of ancient cultures occurred at diff erent times. Specifi c nature of uneven development of cultural and historical processes in the Bronze Age is presented in the boundaries of large geographical regions. Individual chapters discuss paleoeconomies, social structures, and spiritual culture of the ancient population which lived in diff erent natural conditions of North Asia. Th is volume is intended for archaeologists, historians, anthropologists, local historians, and wide public.

Due to the geochemically distinctive characteristics of volcanic glass, archeologists can determine the source of obsidian artifacts via element analysis, which is highly accurate and reliable (Glascock et al., 1997). In terms of human migration and resource exchange, obsidian source analyses provide new insights into whether obsidian materials were indirectly transported through cultural exchange or directly transported through humanity migration. Pioneering immigrants who directly transported obsidian while moving into new lands typically adapted their skills to fit new environmental resources. In this context, the archeological impacts resulting from cultural contact (e.g., exchanges of material and information) are not as substantial as those produced by immigrants. This chapter investigates the actual environmental adaptations that occurred in the eastern margin of the Eurasian continent during the end of the Pleistocene.

The article examines a range of directions and current stage of obsidian studies within the Pacifi c basin such as (1) geochemistry, identifi cation of volcanic glass sources used in ancient cultures; (2) technology, obsidian exploration methods, their evolution, as well as experiments, and (3) cultural context, the use of obsidian in ritual practice, in the format of prestigious technologies, and in decorative art. While the geochemical studies have reached signifi cant progress within the Pacifi c basin two other directions obviously require further development. Experimental works, conducted in 2020–2021 in Primorye, allow making useful observations both about the peculiarities of the local raw material base and about the behavioral side of the knapping process (such as the process of teaching and learning of knappers’ competencies). In tu rn, the study of cultural meaning of obsidian includes not only the interpretation of the archaeological artifacts of high quality from the burials and caches (ritual, prestige, nonutilitarian), but also addressing to the ownership of the raw material sources, trade/ exchange mechanism, and the status of the highly - skillful knappers in ancient and traditional societies.

This article discusses difficulties in the use of Japanese archaeological terminology, especially with regard to the Amon period. The history of the notions of "style", "type", and "form" is outlined, which are the most adequate concepts for the interpretation, classification, and description of new styles of the Amon pottery. The evolution of the terms is traced using the works by Yamanouchi Sugao and Kobayashi Tatsuo. Their basic views on the typology of Amon artifacts and the notions behind the key terms are described.

Incipient Jomon — 14 000—10 000 BP (16 000—11 500 cal. BP) — the first period of the Neolithic on the Japanese Archipelago the content of which includes the significant changes in lithic industry, the origin of pottery-making, the transformation of economic and settlement patterns against the background of climatic and landscape fluctuations in the Final Pleistocene and the Pleistocene-Holocene boundary. The abundance of archaeological materials and an extensive database allow us to evaluate different variants of the internal division of Incipient Jomon, to examine the common and local manifestations of transitional periods for Hokkaido, Honshu, and Kyushu, and to make a correlation of Incipient Jomon lithic industry with the industry of the Initial Neolithic Osipovka culture in the neighboring territory of the Russian Far East.

This article is related to the 100th anniversary of the birth of the world famous North American archaeologist Betty Jane Meggers (1921–2012), who made an invaluable contribution to the study of archaeological antiquities in Ecuador, Brazil, Venezuela, Chile, Peru, etc. Her long list of achievements includes the creation of a chronological chart for the archaeological cultures of the coastal part of Ecuador (in collaboration with Clifford Evans), remaining relevant today. Also, the name of B. J. Meggers is often mentioned in the context of the debatable hypothesis “Jōmon-Valdivia” which was made at the very beginning of the 1960s. It is focused on the possibility of transoceanic contacts between the population of the Japanese archipelago and the inhabitants of the Pacific coast of South America 5500–6000 years ago. This was preceded by a significant period of B. Meggers’ work in the Amazon (1947–1954). A brief outline of the first half of life and career of the North American researcher allows us to trace the main stages of transformations of her scientific interests. Keywords: South America, Brazil, Ecuador, Amazonia, biography, research history

This article addresses the caches of stone artifacts of the Final Paleolithic - Neolithic/Jomon (35,000-2500 cal. BP), which have been found in the Russian part of the Far East and the Japanese Archipelago, focusing on terminology and functional purpose of the artifacts. There are less than dozen of such complexes in the Russian part (Novopetrovka culture on the Middle Amur, Osipovka culture on the Lower Amur, Ustinovska complexes in Primorie, and Ushki sites in Kamchatka), whereas there are over four hundred sites of the Final Paleolithic - Jomon on the Japanese Archipelago. Although caches significantly differ in terms ofnumber of artifacts and their types, production techniques, location, and raw materials, in almost all cases, a single term is used for this category of finds both in Russian and Japanese archaeological literature. This term seems to be too general and does not reflect the diversity and specific junctional features of the evidence. As an example of the typological division of caches, the author mentions the experience of specialists working with the evidence of Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA, 12,000-8500 cal. BP) in the Near East and Western Asia, as well as ritual complexes of bifacial artifacts belonging to the Classical (3rd-10th centuries AD) and Post-Classical (10th-15th centuries AD) periods in Mesoamerica. The variants proposed for dividing caches into functional (deposits, reserves), those temporarily excluded from the technological chain, and symbolic (votive, dedicatory, joint), intended exclusively for the ritual realm, are discussed, and prospects for further research of this topic are suggested.

The focus of this investigation is on the technology of micro-percussion in the Upper Paleolithic of Mongolia. Micro-percussion is defined as the entire assemblage of lithic artifacts associated with the production of microblades. The complexes analyzed here include microcores and microblades, but not tools made of them. Until recently, microblade percussion has never been considered a distinct trend emergent in the lithic technology of the Early Upper Paleolithic of Mongolia. In this paper, based upon lithic materials from northern Mongolia and the Gobi Altai, we prove the existence of microblade percussion at the early stages of the Upper Paleolithic (37–26 000 BP) and persisting until the very beginning of the Holocene (11–10 500 BP). In other words, this is crosscutting technology for the region. We conclude that in the Early Upper Paleolithic complexes of northern Mongolia, preferential reduction initially emphasized narrow-front and, later, wedgeshaped microcore production. Analysis of materials from the Final Paleolithic and the Early Holocene horizons at the Tolbor-15 site, along with representative surface collections and GIS modeling of site location patterns along tributaries of the Selenga River, allow us to formulate a series of hypotheses regarding the origin of the wedge-shaped flaking technique in northern Mongolia and the dynamics and directionality of its diffusion. The microblade technique observable in the Final Paleolithic of northern Mongolia exhibits more similarities with lithic complexes known archaeologically to the south (Inner Mongolia) and east (Russian Far East, Korean Peninsula, and Japanese Archipelago), not with the Russian Trans-Baikal region. Keywords: Mongolia, Central Asia, Far East, Upper Paleolithic, microblade percussion

The tradition of lithic caches illustrates a special strategy of storing lithics which were extracted from chaîne opératoire for some time to be kept/hidden in a special place with/without subsequent return and use. For the Palaeolithic – Neolithic/Jōmon of the Far East (Russian part and the Japanese Archipelago) within the frame of 35 000–2400 cal BP, this tradition demonstrates an impressive multiplicity (more than 400 cases), high diversity, duration, dynamics, and local variability. Such an abundant source of data opens rich perspectives for detailed technological analysis, functional interpretations, and interregional correlations, with analogies in the Stone Age cultures of the Near East, Europe, and North America.

The initial peopling of the Japanese Archipelago by Homo sapiens took place during the Late Palaeolithic, not earlier than 38-35 000 years BP. Very specific lithic tool-kit (trapezoids, tanged points and ground axes) is characteristic of the earliest period, while the blade flaking technologies appeared starting from 32-30 000 years BP, and microblade ones about 20 000 BP. The important peculiarity of the Late Palaeolithic on the Japanese Islands is a very early appearance of distinct local traditions due to the variability of climatic and landscape conditions and the availability of diverse raw materials for tool production. The analysis of a wide range of the Upper Palaeolithic industries of North Asia, Central Asia, and the Far East (40-15 000 years BP) leads to a conclusion that the Japanese archipelago must have been settled from the territory of the Korean Peninsula, which casts doubt on the Northern route hypothesis.