Geoarchaeological and Bioarchaeological Studies at Mira, an Early Upper Paleolithic Site in the Lower Dnepr Valley, Ukraine

Abstract

New geoarchaeological and bioarcheological research was undertaken at the open‐air site of Mira, which is buried in deposits of the Second Terrace of the Dnepr River, roughly 15 km downstream from the city of Zaporozhye in Ukraine. Previous excavation of the site revealed two occupation layers dating to ∼32,000 cal BP. The lower layer (II/2) yielded bladelets similar to those of the early Gravettian, while the upper layer (I) contained traces of an artificial shelter and hundreds of bones and teeth of horse (Equus latipes). Mira represents the only firmly dated early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) site in the Dnepr Basin, and occupies a unique topographic setting for the EUP near the center of the broad floodplain of the Dnepr River. The site was visited during a period of floodplain stability, characterized by overbank deposition and weak soil formation under cool climate conditions. Mira was used as a long‐term camp, but also was the locus of large‐mammal carcass processing associated with a nearby kill of a group of horses (Layer I).

The earliest evidence for dwelling construction in the Upper Palaeolithic of Eastern Europe: a 30,000-year-old surface structure from Mira layer I

“…Two Upper Palaeolithic occupations (layer I and layer II/2) and an intermediate layer of natu ral fire (layer II/1) were identified in the lower part of 13 meter thick profile uncovering depo sits of the up per part of the terrace (Gerasimenko, Haesaerts 2013;Matviishina 2013;Haesaerts et al 2014;Hoffecker et al 2014). Graygreenish sandy loams containing re mains of three archaeological layers appeared to be sandwiched between two sandy bodies of Dnieper…”

“…1). Strati graphic record encompasses almost 13 m of sedi mentary succession (Gerasimenko, Haesaerts 2013;Matviishina 2013;Haesaerts et al 2014;Hoffecker et al 2014) and includes three layers sandwiched be tween two sandy bodies of Dnieper alluvia.…”

“…Layer I represents a seasonal autumnwinter oc cupation located near the place of successful hun ting of a harem herd of a Pleistocene horse (Stepan chuk 2013; Stepanchuk et al 2004;Hoffecker et al 2014). Many various pits, postholes, hearths, bone and ashes accumulations etc.…”

“…">MIra layer I, general InforMatIonGeoGraphical position. Mira represents an openair Palaeolithic site recovered in the mid1990s in the body of a 30m terrace of the right bank of the Dnieper River valley in central Ukraine.Two Upper Palaeolithic occupations (layer I and layer II/2) and an intermediate layer of natu ral fire (layer II/1) were identified in the lower part of 13 meter thick profile uncovering depo sits of the up per part of the terrace (Gerasimenko, Haesaerts 2013;Matviishina 2013;Haesaerts et al 2014;Hoffecker et al 2014). Graygreenish sandy loams containing re mains of three archaeological layers appeared to be sandwiched between two sandy bodies of Dnieper…”

Geochronology and Geomorphology of the Pioneer Archaeological Site, Upper Snake River Plain, Idaho, USA

“…Alluvial sites are ideal for site preservation, providing valuable data for reconstructing site formation and archaeological context (Wriston, 2003;Hoffecker et al, 2014;Pitulko, Basilyan, & Pavlova, 2014). However, in the Intermountain West alluvial activity is usually marked by abrupt transitions from long-term dry conditions to high-energy flood events that carve out arroyos and erode cultural deposits (Waters, 1991) or form rapidly anastomosing braided systems, jumbling artifacts, as in the deepest layers of the Sunshine locality in Nevada where camel bones were redeposited with Paleoarchaic artifacts within gravelly channel deposits (Huckleberry, 2001;Beck & Jones, 2009).…”