A new type of Early Bronze Age Maikop culture Tombs in the North Caucasus.

Der Kaukasus als Brucke der Kulturen steht im Mittelpunkt des Innovationstransfers zwischen Mesopotamien und Europa im 4. und fruhen 3. Jahrtausend v. Chr

Curated cauldrons: Preserved proteins from early copper-alloy vessels illuminate feasting practices in the Caucasian steppe

Large metal and metal-alloy cauldrons first appear on the far western steppe and Caucasus region during the Maykop period (3700-2900 BCE); however, the types of foods or beverages cooked in and served from these vessels have remained mysterious. Here, we present proteomic analysis of nine residues from copper-alloy cauldrons from Maykop burial contexts where we identify muscle, blood, and milk proteins specific to domesticated, and possibly wild, ruminants. This study clearly demonstrates that the earliest, large-volume feasting vessels contained both primary and secondary animal products, likely prepared in the form of a stew

Red Pigments in the Bronze Age Burials in the North Caucasus: Complex Analysis for Identification of Pyroprocessing of Iron Minerals

Ochre is a natural pigment of yellow or red color, mainly consisting of iron minerals. Along with determining the origin of mineral dyes, one of the main problems of studying natural pigments in archaeology is identifying the origin of the so-called “red” ochre, made on the basis of hematite. Hematite is a widespread mineral found everywhere. However, it can be obtained by pyroprocessing goethite, which is the main component of the “yellow” ochre. To test the hypothesis of the red ochre production through the pyroprocessing of iron oxides, 3 samples of ochre from the burials of the Bronze Age in the Republic of Adygea and the Krasnodar area have been studied. To identify the traces of thermal treatment of the raw ochre, we’ve carried out complex analysis, including the X-ray diffractometry, element analysis, infrared spectroscopy and microstructure analysis. The traces of the pyroprocessing have been revealed in the ochre sample from the burial of the Early Bronze Age near the Kazanskaya settlement. The form and size of the hematite crystals in the burial of the Ladozhskaya settlement indicate the unperformed heat treatment and the endogenous origin. The sample from the Novosvobodnaya village shows the traces of pyroprocessing, but the pigment’s microstructure indicates the sedimentary origin of the iron minerals from which it is composed. It’s been found that the color of pigments does not depend on the percentage of iron in the raw material sample. The presence and the ratio of hematite and goethite in the pigment, as well as the composition of other minerals in the final product are the most significant discoveries. P.I. Kalinin has carried out the complex analysis of pigment properties, data interpretation, literature review and paper writing; V.A. Trifonov has determined the archaeological context, interpreted the data, edited paper and approved the final version; N.I. Shishlina has provided samples for analysis, interpreted the data, made fundamental editiond to the paper; A.O. Alekseev has interpreted the mineralogical analysis and made certain amendments

The genetic prehistory of the Greater Caucasus

5月16日，厦门大学人类学系、德国马普所、德国考古所、俄罗斯文化遗产联合会、奥地利维也纳大学人类学系、爱尔兰都柏林大学学院考古系、罗蒙诺索夫莫斯科国立大学考古系和人类学博物馆、俄罗斯国立东方艺术博物馆、俄罗斯联邦达吉斯坦考古与民族志研究所历史系、美国韦尔斯利学院人类学系、瑞士巴塞尔大学史前与考古科学研究所、德国国家遗产博物馆等36家单位的46位共同作者组成的国际合作团队在BioRxiv上预发表论文《The genetic prehistory of the Greater Caucasus》，厦门大学人类学系王传超研究员为论文的第一作者和通讯作者，也是该国际团队中的唯一一位来自中国的合作者。【Abstract】Archaeogenetic studies have described the formation of Eurasian 'steppe ancestry' as a mixture of Eastern and Caucasus hunter-gatherers. However, it remains unclear when and where this ancestry arose and whether it was related to a horizon of cultural innovations in the 4th millennium BCE that subsequently facilitated the advance of pastoral societies likely linked to the dispersal of Indo-European languages. To address this, we generated genome-wide SNP data from 45 prehistoric individuals along a 3000-year temporal transect in the North Caucasus. We observe a genetic separation between the groups of the Caucasus and those of the adjacent steppe. The Caucasus groups are genetically similar to contemporaneous populations south of it, suggesting that - unlike today - the Caucasus acted as a bridge rather than an insurmountable barrier to human movement. The steppe groups from Yamnaya and subsequent pastoralist cultures show evidence for previously undetected Anatolian farmer-related ancestry from different contact zones, while Steppe Maykop individuals harbour additional Upper Palaeolithic Siberian and Native American related ancestry.This work was funded by the Max Planck Society and the German Archaeological Institute (DAI). C.C.W. was funded by Nanqiang Outstanding Young Talents Program of Xiamen University (X2123302) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities. 该研究由德国马普学会、德国考古所、厦门大学南强青年拔尖人才支持计划资助

Ancient human genome-wide data from a 3000-year interval in the Caucasus corresponds with eco-geographic regions

Archaeogenetic studies have described the formation of Eurasian 'steppe ancestry' as a mixture of Eastern and Caucasus hunter-gatherers. However, it remains unclear when and where this ancestry arose and whether it was related to a horizon of cultural innovations in the 4 th millennium BCE that subsequently facilitated the advance of pastoral societies in Eurasia. Here we generated genome-wide SNP data from 45 prehistoric individuals along a 3000-year temporal transect in the North Caucasus. We observe a genetic separation between the groups of the Caucasus and those of the adjacent steppe. The northern Caucasus groups are genetically similar to contemporaneous populations south of it, suggesting human movement across the mountain range during the Bronze Age. The steppe groups from Yamnaya and subsequent pastoralist cultures show evidence for previously undetected farmer-related ancestry from different contact zones, while Steppe Maykop individuals harbour additional Upper Palaeolithic Siberian and Native American related ancestry

Analysis of the correctness of retrieving the vertical atmospheric temperature distribution from lidar signals of molecular scattering at the main lidar of the Siberian Lidar Station

The methodological issues of lidar measurements of the vertical distribution of atmospheric temperature up to altitudes of 90 km are considered. The method is based on lidar measurements of the vertical profile of atmospheric molecular density using the Rayleigh scattering effect. The results obtained in the upgraded channel of the Rayleigh scattering of the 2.2-m diameter lidar based on the main mirror of the Siberian Lidar Station (SLS) are discussed. One of problems in carrying out measurements with the use of large-diameter telescopes is the giant dynamic range of lidar responses. The work with this range requires special attention both to the methodology and to the experimental technique. For solving this problem, an improved technique for the retrieval of temperature from molecular backscattering lidar signals is proposed. Numerical experiments have shown that the accuracy of the temperature profile retrieval depends on the choice of the position of the calibration point and the error in setting the temperature in it. The technique of the temperature profile retrieval, when the calibration point is chosen at the top of a sounding path, is sufficiently stable even under conditions of a giant dynamic range of lidar responses at the SLS. The comparison of the results of temperature retrieval from the real lidar responses with the satellite measurement data revealed significant discrepancies associated with the distorting instrumental and atmospheric effects on the lidar signal shape. A correction procedure based on the lidar calibration can significantly reduce measurement errors

Photon counting system with automated detection and selection of photodetector discrimination thresholds

The paper considers a block diagram of a photodetection system based on a new version of the four-channel photon counter "PHCOUNT-4" used for precision lidar measurements of atmospheric temperature. The results of using the new capabilities of the analog part of the photon counting system, which makes it possible to automatically record the amplitude distribution of single-electron pulses of each of the photodetectors installed in the channels and determine the optimal discrimination threshold, are described. It is shown that setting the optimal discrimination thresholds makes it possible to achieve a small spread in the end-to-end quantum efficiency of each of the channel

Possibility of recording the unbiased scatter lidar signals in the altitude range of 30÷100 km on the main SLS lidar

The paper discusses the problem of ensuring the linearity of photo registration of the lidar signal of molecular scattering on the main lidar of the Siberian lidar station (SLS) based on a unique mirror with a diameter of 2.2 m. To reduce the dynamic range of signal changes, it is proposed to use a mechanical shutter based on a disk obturator to cut off the near zone of the lidar signal in the altitude range of 0ч30 km. A high-speed brushless motor was used as an obturator driver. The synchronization signal was generated by a Hall sensor. Bench and full-scale tests of the obturator were carried out. It is shown that the error of the Hall sensor does not affect the delay and duration of the shutter opening