ИСТИНА

On the right bank of the Middle Don, near the villages of Kostenki and Borshchevo, there is the largest complex of Upper Paleolithic monuments in Eastern Europe. Active geoarchaeological work aimed at reconstructing the habitat of ancient man has been carried out since the middle of the 20th century. Despite of the large number of paleosol studies of the Kostenki sites, the question of the genesis and evolution of paleosols and the conditions of their formation has not yet been resolved. Soil-sedimentary sequences containing cultural layers are not characterized analytically in sufficient detail, and a wider range of lithological-soil methods should be used. The purpose of this study is to reconstruct the local natural environment on the territory of the Kostenki-17 archaeological site, from the late Pleistocene to the present. For the first time, for the sediment sequence at the Kostenki-17 site, lithological and soil analyzes were performed with high detailing: samples were taken from the wall of the excavation (with a total depth of 6 m) with a step of 5 cm without interruptions. The following types of analyzes were performed in sampled sediments: elemental composition, C:N ratio, magnetic susceptibility, spectrophotometric characteristics in CIE-L*a*b* system, particle size distribution, radiocarbon dating and hierarchical morphological description. Conducted analysis made it possible to divide the sequence according to the mechanisms of sedimentation, to reveal the participation of slope cryogenic, fluvial, soil biogenic and eolian processes. It was found that in the period earlier ~40 ka formation of sediments mainly occurred due to the filling of small channels of temporary water courses, which formed an alluvial fan. In the period from ~40 to ~20 ka processes of soil formation and solifluction alternated. Starting from ~20 ka the intensity of slope processes decreased, sedimentation occurred to a large extent, due to the eolian dust input. In the Holocene, the surface stabilized, and a full Сhernozem profile was formed. This research was funded by the Russian Science Foundation , project №19-18-00327