History of the Study of the Late Paleolithic Site Malaya Syya:
On the 50th Anniversary of Its Discovery

E. V. Akimova; A. V. Barkov; L. V. Lbova

List of issues > «Geoarchaeology, Ethnology, and Anthropology Series». 2023. Vol 45

History of the Study of the Late Paleolithic Site Malaya Syya: On the 50th Anniversary of Its Discovery

Full text (russian)

Author(s)

E. V. Akimova, A. V. Barkov, L. V. Lbova

Abstract

This paper presents archival and published materials from the complex geoarchaeological site Malaya Syya, located in a promising area for studying the Paleolithic of Southern Siberia (at the junction of three large orographic structures: the Kuznetsk Alatau mountains, the Batenevsky ridge and the Chebakovo-Balakhta depression of the Minusinsk intermountain trough). The cultural horizons of Malaya Syya are included in deposits of complex genesis, which served as the general background for an ambiguous reading of the stratigraphic, chronological, and archaeological context of cultural remains. The development of archaeological knowledge in Siberia has made it possible to use more effective methods for studying the Malaya Syya assemblages from the point of view of attribution of the collection of stone and bone implements, chronological and planigraphic (spatial) determination. Returning to the early stages of studying this site, it required a detailed understanding of the sequence of formation of research hypotheses against the background of the general development of archaeological knowledge, analysis of the conclusions of researchers (V. E. Larichev, Yu. P. Kholyushkin, N. F. Lisitsyn, etc.) and an explanation of the reasons for the appearance such points of view. We have presented a detailed chronology of the history of research on Malaya Syya, based on the study and analysis of archival materials (archives of the Field Research Department of the Institute of Archaeology RAS, archives of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS) and published data. It seems to us that the early stages of research on Malaya Syya were dominated by the position of V. E. Larichev’s selfless desire to preserve the destroyed object within the framework of the Iyus Archaeological Reserve. The history of the study determines the key problems of modern understanding of the general process of sedimentation at the site Malaya Syya, geostratigraphy, geochronology, paleontology, characteristics of the archaeological context and attribution of collections, issues of adaptation of the ancient population in specific nature conditions. The current materials and results of research on the site are presented in a series of sequential publications, which are expected to be presented in a monographic study.

About the Authors

Akimova Elena Vasilievna, Candidate of Sciences (History), Senior Researcher, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS; 17, Akad. Lavrentiev av., Novosibirsk, 630090, Russian Federation. Senior Researcher, Siberian Federal University; 79, Svobodnyj av., Krasnoyarsk, 660041, Russian Federation, e-mail: elaki2008@yandex.ru

Barkov Aleksandr Viktorovich, Senior Researcher, LLC “Krasnoyarsk Geoarchaeology”; 25/1, Mira av., Krasnoyarsk, 660049, Russian Federation, e-mail: barkovalex@bk.ru

Lbova Lyudmila Valentinovna, Doctor of Sciences (History), Professor, Higher School of International Relations, Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University; 28, Grazhdansky av., St. Petersburg, 195265, Russian Federation, Novosibirsk State University; 1, Pirogov st., Novosibirsk, 630090, Russian Federation, e-mail: lbova-lv@yandex.ru

For citation

Akimova E. V., Barkov A. V., Lbova L. V. History of the Study of the Late Paleolithic Site Malaya Syya: On the 50th Anniversary of Its Discovery. Bulletin of the Irkutsk State University. Geoarchaeology, Ethnology, and Anthropology Series. 2023, Vol. 45, pp. 3–25. https://doi.org/10.26516/2227-2380.2023.45.3 (in Russ.)

Keywords

Southern Siberia, Early Upper Paleolithic, stone industry, history of archaeology.

UDC

902/904

DOI

https://doi.org/10.26516/2227-2380.2023.45.3

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