New anthropological data on the Neolithic of the Transbaikalia and the Far East. Part 1. Archaeology, Craniology

The history of the formation of the East Asian indigenous population is known only in general. Paleoanthropological materials from the Stone Age are few in number. This study introduces a new data on the Neolithic of this region. The results obtained are discussed in the spheres of forming an anthropological map of Siberia. Skulls from the burial grounds of Trans-Baikal lands (Zhindo, burial 6; Melnichnoe and Gruzdevoe) and Primorye (Devil's Gate Cave) were studied. The craniological characteristics of the findings studied are presented. They are compared with other sites in Siberia by the method of principal components. We used cluster analysis to compare our paleoanthropological materials with synchronous and modern groups from the territory of Eastern Siberia and Far East. It was found that the population of the two regions was different even in the Neolithic. Representatives of Primorye are characterized by a high and short skull, a large face width and a smaller nose protrusion. The East Siberian Neolithic population is distinguished by a long and low skull, the flattening of the face is expressed in an average degree. The comparison of Neolithic skulls with modern ones shows that the indigenous populations differ little from the Neolithic. These findings are consistent with the genetic study of the Devil's Gate Cave samples, which showed the similarity of the cave population with the modern Tungus-Manchurian groups (Siska et al. 2017). However, there is also a difference, which is expressed in a greater range of variability of Neolithic population.

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