The Iron Gates Mesolithic in a regional context

He specific character of the Iron Gates Mesolithic material culture derives from the geomorphological and ecological features of the Iron Gates gorge in the Early Holocene. However, the Mesolithic of this geographic area can be entirely linked to the general flows of Mesolithic development in Europe as well as to the phenomena observed in the Adriatic-Ionian and Aegean zones. This demonstrates that the cultural, technological and economic changes which occurred during the Early Holocene were influenced by the same or similar factors as the entire area of the Balkan Peninsula. The absence of Mesolithic settlements outside the Iron Gates raises the question of whether the interior parts of the Central Balkans were inhabited during the Early Holocene. As hinted by the research in the Iron Gates and the Adriatic hinterland, Mesolithic settlements were probably located outside the denser forested areas (in the littoral and high-altitude zones) but this remains to be confirmed. Based on the assessment of the demographic potential of Mesolithic and Neolithic communities, four scenarios of Neolithisation of different parts of the Balkan Peninsula have been proposed

New Data about the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic in the Western Morava valley

A relatively small number of Lower and Middle Palaeolithic open-air sites have been registered in southeast Europe. There are only two regions where sites from this period have been systematically surveyed, and where they have been encountered in considerable numbers: the valley of the Pineios river in Greece and northern Bosnia. Not a single site with significant concentration of finds has been found in Serbia and isolated artifacts ascribed to the Middle Palaeolithic were found at few sites. All this has changed dramatically in recent years when a large number of sites with finds from the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic have been recorded in the zone from Čačak to Kraljevo in the West Morava valley. The site surveying in the area has opened an entirely new perspective in the investigation of the Palaeolithic in this part of the Balkans

A survey of Paleolithic sites in the Western Morava Valley

First evidence of habitation from Lower and Middle Palaeolithic in the Zapadna (Western) Morava valley were discovered few years ago. Sites located at the highest river terraces near Čačak (Kosovska Kosa, Viljuša, Vojnovića Brdo) yielded large quantity of artifacts of Lower Palaeolithic type including choppers, points of Quinson type and denticulated and notched tools on asymmetrical lakes. Similar situation has been encountered at Samaila-Vlaška Glava near Kraljevo, where Kombewa, Levallois and „proto-Levallois“ cores were discovered together with choppers as well as various types of sidescrapers and denticulated and notched tools. It has been established in the course of more recent site surveying that Palaeolithic inds also appear on the slopes of the Goč Mountain in the vicinity of Vrnjačka Banja. Artifacts have been encountered in the vicinity of secondary deposits of chert, opal and chalcedony in the area of villages Rudjinci and Štulac. Two partially worked bifaces were discovered at the site Rudno Brdo near the village Štulac, while tools made on large lakes (cleaver-like bifaces, massive points , notched tools) and on lakes some of which have the Levallois morphology were found on the banks of the Crnobarac creek. Middle Palaeolithic artifacts have been discovered also at lower terraces in the vicinity of Vrnjačka Banja (Ruđnci) and Kruševac (Globoder). Despite the fact that it concerns the surface scatters, whose integrity has yet to be conirmed, spatial distribution and technological variability of assemblages suggest an assumption that Western Morava valley was densely populated in the earliest phases of the Palaeolithic.У: Антоновић, Д., Филиповић, В. (ур.), XXXVIII Скупштина и годишњи скуп САД: програм, извештаји и апстракти, 04-06. јун 2015, Пирот, Србија (стр. 79). Београд и Пирот: Српско археолошко друштво; Музеј понишавља Пирот. (ISBN 978-86-80094-01-4) Теренска истраживања су финансирали Ерик Хефтер са Универзитета Аризона, Народни музеј у Краљеву и Културни центар у Врњачкој Бањи

A LATE PLEISTOCENE RODENT FAUNA (MAMMALIA: RODENTIA) FROM HADŽI PRODANOVA CAVE NEAR IVANJICA (WESTERN SERBIA)

Hadži Prodanova Cave in western Serbia is a multilayered site which, in addition to Palaeolithic tools, has yielded a relatively rich fauna of small and large vertebrates. In this paper the rodent fauna from this site is described. In total, 13 species of rodents have been found: Spermophilus cf. citelloides, Sicista subtilis, Mesocricetus newtoni, Arvicola cf. terrestris, Chionomys nivalis, Microtus arvalis/agrestis, Microtus subterraneus, Clethrionomys glareolus, Apodemus sylvaticus, Apodemus cf. uralensis, Spalax sp., Muscardinus avellanarius. This fauna has a mixed character and includes species of both open and forest habitats, the former being more numerous. According to its overall composition, it is tentatively ascribed to a relatively mild and wet period of the Last Glacial, probably MIS 3

Technological and environmental aspects of nickel production in Serbia

Demand for nickel is constantly growing due to the versatility of its application, at the first place for stainless steel production. Ore reserves and possibility of nickel production of today’s Serbia and in neighboring countries were thoroughly investigated, and presented work is part of a wider project of sublimation of scientific and professional experience in the field of nickel extractive metallurgy on domestic raw materials. Presented research explores the possibility of high pressure sulfuric acid leaching of Serbian lateritic ores from localities Rudjinci, Ba and Lipovac. All three investigated ore deposits behaved differently both during preparation and during hydrometallurgical treatment. As optimal method for ore preparation proved to be crushing-milling-sieving route, but without possibility of concentrate production. Only for Rudjinci ore deposit achieved leaching efficiency reached satisfactory level of 95%. Within presented paper flow-sheet is proposed for processing high-magnesium laterite ores, with iron and magnesium oxide Both could be recirculated and used again in technological process; MgO for iron precipitation and SO2 for production of leaching agent, sulfuric acid. Final decision on the sustainability of the process will be made according to techno-economic and environmental evaluation. Estimated overall impact of the project implementation on the environment is negative

Рекогносцирањa налазишта из доњег и средњег палеолита на североисточним обронцима Гоча

This paper describes several Palaeolithic open air sites found while surveying the northeastern slopes of Goč Mountain in Central Serbia. These sites were found in close proximity to primary deposits of flint, opal and chalcedony on the slopes of Rudno Brdo and Grot. These hills are located in an area of volcanic-sediments in the village of Dublje and on the second Pleistocene terrace (t2) of the Zapadna Morava River in the village of Ruđinci near Vrnjačka Banja. Survey was conducted using transects with 5m spacing while artifact concentrations were recorded using a hand-held GPS unit. In order to reduce the possibility of collecting geofacts (Wisniewski et al. 2014), only materials clearly identifiable as artifacts were collected. Artifacts from open air sites near the raw material deposits (Slatinski Potok, Crnobarac, Nišan) as well as from the village of Dublje (Gvozdenac), largely consisted of Lower Palaeolithic materials (unipolar, alternate and centripetal cores, scrapers and denticulate tools on irregular flakes), although some possible Middle Palaeolithic pieces were present. Slatinski Potok and Nišan had massive bifacially flaked artifacts, while artifacts from Slatinski Potok included one typical cleaver. On the other hand, Middle Palaeolithic artifacts are clearly present in Ruđinci. While some of the material from the survey resembles Acheulean lithic technology, such hypotheses must be confirmed by finding these artifacts in open air sites with preserved stratigraphy.(УДК: 903.4”632”(497.11); 902.2(497.11)”2015”) Теренска истраживања су финансирали i Ерик Хефтер са Универзитета Аризона, Народни музеј у Краљеву и Културни центар у Врњачкој Бањи

High-Resolution AMS Dating of Architecture, Boulder Artworks and the Transition to Farming at Lepenski Vir

The archaeological site of Lepenski Vir is widely known after its remarkable stone art sculptures that represent a unique and unprecedented case of Holocene hunter-gatherer creativity. These artworks were found largely associated with equally unique trapezoidal limestone building floors around their centrally located rectangular stone-lined hearths. A debate has raged since the discovery of the site about the chronological place of various discovered features. While over years different views from that of the excavator about the stratigraphy and chronology of the site have been put forward, some major disagreements about the chronological position of the features that make this site a key point of reference in European Prehistory persist. Despite challenges of re-analyzing the site's stratigraphy from the original excavation records, taphonomic problems, and issues of reservoir offsets when providing radiocarbon measurements on human and dog bones, our targeted AMS (Accelerator Mass Spectrometry) dating of various contexts from this site with the application of Bayesian statistical modelling allows us to propose with confidence a new and sound chronological framework and provide formal estimates for several key developments represented in the archaeological record of Lepenski Vir that help us in understanding the transition of last foragers to first farmers in southeast Europe as a whole

Assessing speleoarcheological geoheritage: Linking new Paleolithic discoveries and potential cave tourism destinations in Serbia

The aim of this paper is to perform a tourist assessment of the representative speleoarchaeological geoheritage in Serbia for the purposes of establishing new cave tourism destinations in Serbia. Seven caves have been selected based on their speleoarcheological values. However, only two of them are currently available for visiting. The research results were obtained by using the M-GAM model and they indicate exceptional tourist potential which still remains mainly untapped. To maximize this potential and develop this type of tourism in the future, an initiative strategy for the inclusion of speleoarchaeological values into contemporary tourism flows was also proposed. The focus is set on the establishment of speleoarchaeological visitor centers and a unique tourist affirmation of the researched scientific and educational potential. The presented strategy must be set as a priority in the future in order to contribute to further sustainability of scientific and socio-economic progress through speleotourism development