В статье рассматривается каменная индустрия стратифицированной стоянки Года в Центральном Вьетнаме и определяется ее место среди синхронных памятников раннего палеолита Восточной и Юго-Восточной Азии. Дается морфологический технико-типологический анализ каменного инвентаря, сделан вывод о его принадлежности к индустрии анкхе, объекты которой расположены в районе г. Анкхе (Вьетнам). Заготовками для изготовления нуклеусов и орудий служили гальки, изредка отщепы. Первичное расщепление было ориентировано на эксплуатацию простых галечных нуклеусов с естественной ударной площадкой, реже использовались радиальные ядрища. Установлено преобладание в орудийном наборе изделий типа пик, скребел различной модификации, рубящих орудий типа чопперов и чоппингов, зубчатых и выемчатых инструментов, а также определено наличие в этой индустрии двусторонне обработанных изделий — бифасов. Эти материалы образуют единую гомогенную индустрию, которая проявляет однообразие в первичном расщеплении, подготовке и оформлении маркерных изделий. На основе анализа стратиграфического разреза стоянки Года и абсолютной даты 806 ± 22 тыс. л.н., полученной по тектитам калий-аргоновым методом, сделано предположение о более древнем возрасте этого памятника по сравнению с другими датированными объектами индустрии анкхе. Ее происхождение, по-видимому, связано с конвергентным развитием Homo erectus с галечно-отщепной индустрией, который представляет первую волну миграции гоминин из Африки. Рассматривается возможность включения археологических материалов стоянки Года как части индустрии анкхе в обширную зону обитания древних гоминин со сходными технико-типологическими характеристиками каменных индустрий на рубеже нижнего и среднего плейстоцена на территории Юго-Восточной Азии.

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.

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

Direct velocity measurements of the Malvinas Current (MC) were carried out on multiple occupations of five transects across the flow using a Shipborne Acoustic Current Profiler (SADCP) on the R/V Akademik Sergey Vavilov and Akademik Mstislav Keldysh. These data are used to determine local features of the three-dimensional velocity field of the current. The occupations covered the northern branch of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) and the southern part of the MC. Five transects across the flow were located at 350-550 km from each other from the Drake Passage to the western Argentine Basin at 46 degrees S. The new observations reveal that the current is organized in two branches, namely, an inshore branch extending to a depth of 200-300 m and a main offshore branch, which flows approximately over the 1,400 m isobath. This two-branch structure is observed on each of the cross-flow transects. The observed velocities of the inshore branch exceed 40 cm/s on each studied crossing of the current. The MC is a cold western boundary current that follows the Subantarctic Front. This flow originates as an offshoot of the northern branch of the ACC and continues over the Falkland/Malvinas Plateau and along the western slope of the Argentine Basin. Volume transports of the upper 700 m of the MC calculated for each crossing range between 1.4 and 4.4 Sv for the inshore branch and between 21.2 and 25.5 Sv for the offshore (main) branch.

In 2019, the Russian-Kazakhstani archaeological expedition discovered the first stratified Mesolithic site in Eastern Kazakhstan — the Karasai site. The site is located in the mid-mountain part of the Shilikta Valley, about 1500 m asl. In the course of excavations a rich cultural layer (layer 2) with numerous artifacts of the Early Holocene age was recorded. The industry includes elements of all stages of lithic production, and the typological features of the primary knapping and the tool kit correspond to the Mesolithic time. This chronological characteristic is confirmed by a series of AMS- and OSL- dates in the range of 12000—9000 cal BP. The Karasai industry has a similarity with the complexes of the initial Holocene without geometric microliths in the Northern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Mongolia.

Paleolithic sites in the Russian Primorye appeared not earlier than 18,000 cal. BP. In the territories to the south and southwest, there are a large number of sites with microblade industries dating back to the time before the beginning of LGM. The largest number of dated sites falls at the beginning of LGM (24,000-20,000 cal. BP). Researchers suggest that after 20,000 and up to 15,000 cal. BP, due to the changes in climate, there was an outflow of population from the Korean Peninsula and from northeast China. In Korea, the most prominent representatives of the post-glacial lithic industries are the Hopyeong-dong, Hahwagye-ri, Songdu-ri, and Gigok sites, in northeast China—Datong and Yuafang. The industrial complexes of these sites are characterized by wedge-shaped microcores, end scrapers, burins, punctures, drills, leaf-shaped bifaces, arrowheads, and retouched microblades. In the Russian Primorye, the closest parallels to these complexes are found in the collections of the Ustinovka group of sites. The materials of the early sites, Suvorovo 4, Ustinovka 5, 7 (18,000-16,000 cal. BP) demonstrate direct parallels with the industries of the Hopeyong-dong and Hahwagye-ri sites (25,000-19,000 cal. BP). Later Paleolithic complexes, Suvorovo 3, Ustinovka 6, Ilistaya 1, and Gorbatka 3, are similar to the industries of the Korean Songduri and Gigok sites, and the Chinese Datong and Yuafang sites. Due to the cold period, mobility of ancient man increases rapidly, he actively began to develop coastal areas freed from the sea. Along the coastal strip, there were migrations to the neighboring territories of the Russian Primorye. This process was repeated and was active in both directions.

The origin of Ankhe industry is connected with the convergent evolution of Homo erectus populations which moved from Africa within the first migration wave of pebble-flake industries around 1,800000-1,600 000 BP. It is not connected with the Acheulian complexes of the second wave of migration to Eurasia. Ankhe industry is documented by materials from 23 locations on the banks of Ba River. Representative material (about 2500 items) was discovered in stratified situation in a number of digs. This gave the base for typological and technological analysis of cores and tools. As a result, a number of simple core forms (of parallel and radial modifications), and tools (peaks, bifacial hand-axes, choppers and choppings, high scrapers) were recognized as typical for the Early Palaeolithic complexes. Bifacial Ankhe industry appeared about 800 000 BP on the local pebble-flake technological base. Similar complexes with bifacial artifacts of approximately the same age are known in Indonesia (Pajitanian complexes) and in China (Baise basin).

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.

Утверждено к печати Ученым советом ИА РАНРедакционная коллегия:

Каменная индустрия нижнего палеолита анкхе включает в себя материалы более 30 местонахождений на левом берегу р. Ба и двух объектов на правом берегу. Помимо обширной коллекции каменных артефактов, собранных с поверхности, получен представительный стратифицированный материал из раскопов (ок. 2500 экз.). Статья посвящена типологическому и в какой-то мере технологическому анализу нуклеусов и орудий, полученных из культурного слоя стоянок Роктынг-1, -4 и -7. Заготовками для производства нуклеусов и орудий служили гальки и валуны разных размеров и форм, а также их фрагменты. Изредка в качестве преформ использовались сколы. Первичное расщепление на всех раннепалеолитических местонахождениях было ориентировано на эксплуатацию нуклеусов с естественной ударной площадкой (однои двухплощадочные), с подготовленной ударной площадкой, многоплощадочных многофронтальных и радиальных. Основную массу составляют одноплощадочные нуклеусы для получения укороченных массивных отщепов. Выделенные типы нуклеусов отражают, скорее всего, не стремление получить то или иное ядрище, а степень редукции нуклеусов. Самую многочисленную группу среди орудий составляют скребла, насчитывающие ок. 70 предметов, которые подразделяются на продольные и поперечные. Рубящие изделия – чоппинги и чопперы также представлены продольными и поперечными вариантами, встречаются образцы и с приостренным выступом-шипом. Реже встречаются изделия с выделенным выступом-«носиком», а также зубчатые и выемчатые инструменты. Наибольших затрат энергии, особого умения и осмысленной деятельности требовало производство двусторонне обработанных изделий – бифасов. Вторичной обработке подвергался только заостренный конец. Иногда имелась подправка лезвия более мелкими сколами. Бифасиальная индустрия анкхе возникла ок. 800 тыс. л.н. на местной основе, на базе галечно-отщепной индустрии. Об этом свидетельствует и первичное расщепление, и вторичная обработка каменных орудий, и весь раннепалеолитический технико-типологический комплекс.

We present the findings of excavations at the stratified site of Ushbulak, discovered during a joint Russian-Kazakhstan research project in 2016. The site is located in the Shilikty Valley, northeastern Kazakhstan, at the junction of routes connecting southwestern Central Asia, southern Siberia, and northern China. On the basis of stratigraphy, chronology, and technological evidence, we identify three technological complexes, relating to the Metal Ages (stratum 1), Final Upper Paleolithic (strata 2-4), and Initial Upper Paleolithic (strata 5.2-7). Focusing on the principal markers of the Initial Upper Paleolithic in the region, we conclude that finds from strata 5.2-7 belong to the southern Siberian-Mongolian variant of the Initial Upper Paleolithic, as evidenced by the uni- and bidirectional parallel volumetric blade core reduction, tool types, and absolute chronology. The tool kit includes mostly endscrapers, heavily retouched blades, and truncated-facetted or notched implements. Particularly diagnostic types include waisted blade, blade with a ventrally retouched distal edge, beveled point, backed blade, stemmed implement with a sharp tip, stemmed endscraper, and burin-core. Two AMS-dates from stratum 6 date this layer to ca 36,180 +/- 730 and 41,110 +/- 302 BP. The closest known parallels to the industry of the lower strata of Ushbulak are finds from horizon UP2 of Kara-Bom in the Russian Altai. Our results suggest that Ushbulak strata 5.2-7 correlate with the Initial Upper Paleolithic industries of the Altai (Denisova Cave), northern China (Luotoshi), and Mongolia (Tolbor-4 and -21).

The paper deals with microlithic technology in the Early Upper Palaeolithic of Mongolia. The assemblages from 5 sites under consideration contain both microcores and microblades, but no tools made of microblades are present. The materials from Northern Mongolia and Gobi Altai testify to the existence of microlithic technology since the early stages of the the Upper Palaeolithic (ca. 37-26 kya). In the Early Upper Palaeolithic of Northern Mongolia (Tolbor-4 and Tolbor-15 sites) microblades were usually detached from narrow-front and, less frequently, wedge-shaped microcores. The materials of Tsagan-Agui Cave in Gobi Altai include elongated cores with negatives of microblade removals on the narrow front. The Early Upper Palaeolithic layer of Chikhen-Agui Rockshelter yielded a subprismatic microcore designed for microblade production and 24 microblades. In addition, microblades and microcores were found in the Early Upper Palaeolithic layers of the open air site of Chikhen 2.

This study deals with the origin of bifacial industry in the Lower Paleolithic of Southeast Asia. We describe stone tools from the stratifi ed sites of Goda and Rocktyng near the town of Ankhe, Vietnam. The lithics represent a homogeneous industry characterized by uniform Lower Paleolithic techniques of primary and secondary reduction. Cores and tools were made of pebbles, and some tools were manufactured on fl akes. The tool-kit includes bifaces, pics, becs, carinate end-scrapers, various types of side-scrapers, choppers and chopping tools, denticulate and notched pieces. Bifaces and pics are the principal types. Primary reduction was aimed at manufacturing simple pebble cores with cortex striking platforms, whereas radial and orthogonal cores are less frequent. Tektites found with the lithics were dated by 40K/38Ar-method to 806±22 and 782±20 ka BP. We propose to name this industry the Ankhe culture. It likely emerged by convergent evolution of the pebble-fl ake industry associated with the fi rst wave of Homo erectus migration from Africa 1.8–1.6 million years BP, and is unrelated to the Acheulean tradition introduced by the second migration wave from Africa.