Early Bronze Age Krokhalevo Culture on the Territory on Kuznetsk Depression (Material Complex and Chronology Specifics)

In 1992, V.V. Bobrov proposed a schedule of genesis of the Bronze Age cultures in Kuznetsk-Salair mountain area according which in Kuznetsk basin there were Krokhalevo culture settlements. This culture includes the sites with so called "false textile" flat-bottomed ceramics (1st group) in forest-steppe zone and flat-bottomed ware ornamented with nail incisions (2nd group) in forest areas of Gornaya Shoriya: "Pure" "false textile complexes" are found in the South of Lower Tom River area and at Dolgaya-1, Dolgaya-2, Ivanovka-1, Ivanovka-2, Sinerechka-1 sites and at the upstream end of the River Inya on the settlement Pomortsevo-2 and Ust-Urop. Together with the Inya-2 and Tanay-4 (Eastern Salair area), Lebedi-1 (middlestream of River Inya) and Kuznetsk-1/2 (South of Middle Tom River area) settlements, this limits the area of the sites with "false-textile" ware occupying the whole territory of the depression. Mountain regions of Shoriya and the South of Middle Tom River area were a contact zone for both traditions. Attributing the term "Krokhalevo" for forest-steppe sites with the first group ware, let us outline the cultural specifics of Taiga settlements within Mundybash type of ceramics of the Early Bronze Age. A part of "false-textile" ceramics on the Kuznetsk basin settlements can approach 100 % while on the Krokhalevo settlements of Novosibirsk Ob River region it does not exceed 32.1 %. It again raises a question about the content of Krokhalevo type ceramics and the cultural genesis of its components. All Krokhalevo culture settlements are situated on low riverside terraces. There are no remains of dwellings in-depth in soil as on the Salair area sites. A specific characteristic of the Southern Lower Tom River area complexes are roundish or subrectangle pebble lining and shallow middens, as well as schistic-pebble pathways. On the settlements of Tom River area (Ivanovka -1, Ivanovka-2, Kuznetsk-1/2, Dolgaya-2), large locations for stone treatment have been found. This defines the Krokhalevo sites of Kuznetsk basin as industrial settled centers. Stones tools were found everywhere and in very big amount. On the Tom River area settlements pebble material was very important. The most part of the collection are aerites with irregular removals, cortex flakes, flakes. Tool set includes pebble hammerstones, big flake knives, end-scrapers on flakes, sandstone abrasive slabs, large handaxes, grinded adzes, large crushing tools, subtriangular and leaf-like bifaces, single grinded knives of Baikal type. The part of blades among them is minimal. Bronze-casting production was not centralized. In Kuznetsk basin on the Krokholevo sites, as well as Novosibirsk Ob River region and Salair region settlements, single objects have been found which are associated with bronze-casting - core fragments, smelting ladles, casting moulds. Some fragments have "false-textile marks" similar to those on the ware. Some casting moulds fragments from Dolgaya-1 settlement similarly to Umna-6 settlement in Novosibirsk Ob River area prove the production of spade-like celts. For the first time in the Isotope Center of the Department of Geology and Geo-Ecology in Herzen State Pedagogical University (Saint-Petersburg) three dates for "false-texile" culture ware from the South of Lower Tom River area were obtained: SPb_1532 (Ivanovka-1, ceramics) - 3469±120, in calibrated values 2058-1504 BC (2a - 92,8 %) and 1937-1638 BC (1a - 68,2 %); SPb_1533 (Ivanovka-2, ceramics) - 3599±120, or 2296-1638 BC (2a - 95,4 %) and 2135-1868 BC (1a - 55,6 %); SPb_571 (Dolgaya-2, deposites) - 3550±100, or 2200-1600 BC (2a - 95,4 %) and 2030-1750 BC (1a - 68,2 %). Thus, the range of probable values includes the most of the first half of II millennium BC, but the complexes of "false-textile ware" could be dated to the last quarter of III millennium BC. This partly proves the synchronization of Krokhalevo complexes with Krotovo, Samus and Elunino artifacts proposed earlier. In some cases, Krokhalevo ware and Samus and Krotovo cultures ceramics have been found at the same settlements (Lebedi-1, Preobrazhenka-6 etc.), there are not typologically "mixed" complexes. A question arises about some possible mechanisms of coex-istance of Krokholevo people with their relatively archaic culture and more developed Samus, Krotovo and Elunino people in the common ecological niche of forest-steppe Ob River area.

Keywords

Authors

References