The architecture of mammoth bone circular dwellings of the Upper Palaeolithic settlements in Central and Eastern Europe and their sociosymbolic meanings PDF

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Quaternary International 359-360 (2015) 324e334 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Quaternary International journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/quaint The architecture of mammoth bone circular dwellings of the Upper Palaeolithic settlements in Central and Eastern Europe and their socio-...

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Quaternary International 359-360 (2015) 324e334

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Quaternary International journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/quaint

The architecture of mammoth bone circular dwellings of the Upper Palaeolithic settlements in Central and Eastern Europe and their sociosymbolic meanings Lioudmila Iakovleva Institute of Archaeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kiev, Ukraine), CNRS UMR 7041 ArScAn, Paris, France

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Article history: Available online 29 September 2014

In central and eastern Europe, the development of the architecture of mammoth bone dwellings is associated with the abundance of mammoth bone beds which were exploited by human groups in the Upper Paleolithic. The present paper focuses on the mammoth bone circular dwellings of Gravettian and Epigravettian cultures: Pavlovian (Early Gravettian of Moravia), Gagarino and Pouchkari (Gravettian of Eastern Europe), Kostienki 11/1a (Zamiatnine culture), and Mezinian. The difference between architectures is discussed, focusing on the procurement of the mammoth bones, the ground plan, and the 3D reconstruction of the dwellings. A spectacular “parietal art” is visible in the dwellings of the Mezinian, in the grouping in the outer wall of jaws and long bones showing a geometric pattern of lines, chevrons and zigzags, which are also figured in the painted bones of the dwellings and in the mobile art of the statuettes, tools and various artefacts, confirming they are the manifestation of a socio-symbolic system of the Mezinian culture. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Upper Palaeolithic Settlement Dwellings Architecture Socio-symbolic function

1. Introduction The birth and development of mammoth bone architectures in the Upper Palaeolithic in Central and Eastern Europe are directly related to the existence of mammoth bone concentrations, which provided the bones extensively procured in these regions by groups of hunters-gatherers. The systematic location of the settlements in the vicinity of significant mammoth bones concentrations resulted in a plurality of mammoth bone constructions, with architecture related to the variability of cultural traditions. The large availability of the most voluminous and heaviest parts of the skeleton of a mammoth are at the origins of varied and complex dwelling structures in settlements of the Pavlovian Pouchkari, Gagarino, Kostienki 11(1a), Kostienki 4, Kostienki 2, and Mezinian sites. There is originality in the monumental architecture, and particularly a circular dwelling type with a large number of large bones of mammoths, from which can be deducted socio-symbolic events that are expressed in the construction of residential settlements. 2. Settlements with circular mammoth bone structures, Early Gravettian of Central Europe Spatial structures made with mammoth bones are known in
stonice, Milovice, and Pavlov (Klima, 1963, 1995, Moravia at Dolní Ve E-mail address: [email protected]. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2014.08.050 1040-6182/© 2014 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.

2001; Svoboda, 1994; Oliva, 2009; Djindjian, 2012). These studies
stonice, Klima has gave rise to various interpretations. In Dolní Ve highlighted two circular dwellings 6 m in diameter limited by stones, a loess embankment and setting holes, with internal hearths and external pits. Nearby, a filled ravine provided an accumulation of mammoth bones 45 m long and 12 m wide. In Pavlov, Klima has discovered eleven similar circular dwelling structures. In Milovice, Oliva has discovered several circular dwelling structures with central hearths, defined by circles of large mammoth bones (long bones, scapulae, pelvis, and jaws) collected from the mammoth bone accumulations in the vicinity. Several types of dwelling structures have been defined in the Pavlovian (Svoboda, 2003): - Circular semi-subterranean dwellings surrounded by a stone
stonice (Klima, 1963). J. circle, represented by hut n 2 of Dolní Ve Svoboda stressed that the reconstruction in elevation proposed by Klima (inclined flat roof) is hardly convincing and suggests a tipi structure with a circular plan (A). - Circular open air dwelling marked by a circle of mammoth bones, known in Dolní Vestonice I and Milovice (B). - Semi-subterranean circular dwelling without bones or stone circle, of which the most representative is Pavlov dwelling n 5, but others are known at Pavlov I and Dolní Vestonice II (C). Three types of dwellings (and a fourth (D), represented by a central fireplace without visible limits) are variants of a single type

L. Iakovleva / Quaternary International 359-360 (2015) 324e334

of dwelling, tipi-shaped, whose circular settings are mammoth or stone bones, and for which the sleeping area has been leveled, dug in a basin shape or without any preparation (Fig. 1). In this type of circular dwellings of the Gravettian of Central Europe, the use of stones and mammoth bones is also found in Gagarino, Pouchkari, and Kostienki 4, and the use of many large mammoth bones is also found in the dwellings of Kostienki 11(1a), Kostienki 2 (Zamiatnine culture) and the Mezinian sites in Eastern Europe. The use of clustered bones and, among other things, mammoth jaws in the south-southwest part of the wall of the
stonice (1928 excavations) can be dwelling (cluster 6e8) of Dolní Ve compared with the more systematic and more sophisticated use of mammoth jaws in the dwellings of Kostienki 11 (1a) and also in the Mezinian sites. 3. Mammoth bone circular dwelling structures in Eastern Europe 3.1. Late Gravettian settlement of Pouchkari 1 The settlement of Pouchkari 1, located in the village of the same name on the right bank of the Desna, a subsidiary of the upper Dnepr, was discovered by Roudinski who excavated it in 1932e33, followed by Boriskovski in 1937 and 1939. The latter found a 4  12 m2 dwelling, consisting of three contiguous circular structures, each centered on a fireplace. Many mammoth tusks (69) were found around the three fireplaces, masking the fact that there are few other associated large mammoth bones. The reconstruction that was proposed is a long dwelling, inspired by that proposed by Rogachev for Kostienki 4 (Boriskovski, 1953). Chovkoplass (1965) rightly pointed out the inconsistency of this type of construction in which the wooden poles would obstruct the interior space. The settlement of Pouchkari I is more likely a seasonal camp of short duration installed near flint outcrops. Workshops were organized around fireplaces for flint knapping. Belaeva restarted excavations in this site in 1980, and found another isolated circular structure of

Fig. 1. Types of spatial structures in the Pavlovian (from Svoboda, 2003).

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about 2.5 m in diameter with an interior fireplace, 12 m away from the previous one (Beliaeva, 2003). The role of tusks, collapsed in the central fireplace but unburned, suggests a lightweight tipi construction, with the tusks linked at the top to form a corbelled frame covered with reindeer skins. 3.2. Stone and bone mammoth dwelling, Eastern Gravettian settlement of Gagarino In the middle Don Basin, 160 km north of Voronezh, in the open air settlement of Gagarino (Eastern Gravettian), during the 1926e1927 excavations, a circular dwelling was discovered by Zamiatnine (1935). A part of the dwelling was damaged by fieldwork before the excavations. The dwelling has a surface 4.5e5.5 m in diameter, with a central hearth inside. The circular wall of the dwelling has been built with large limestone plates and mammoth bones (skulls and tusks mainly). Two deep and elongated pits, located at the north of the dwelling, accentuate the similarity with the pits known in the dwelling structures of Kostienki 1, Avdeevo, and Zaraysk (Fig. 2). The Gagarino dwelling is also known for the three bare female statuettes carved in ivory which were found inside, near the circular wall. Altogether, in the settlement of Gagarino, 14 figurines have been discovered, among which are 5 quite intact female statuettes, 1 double statuette left unfinished, 4 drafts, 1 anthropomorphic statuette, and 3 fragments (Tarasov, 1979, p.123e142). The presence of female statuettes in the dwellings and pits at Gagarino, Kostienki Avdeevo, Zaraysk, and Khotylevo 2, all sites of the Eastern Gravettian, reveals a characteristic feature of the ideology of hunter-gatherers in which the female theme particularly flourished in residential settlements. 3.3. Mammoth bone dwelling of Kostienki 11/1a In Eastern Europe, in the periglacial steppe-tundra zone of the regions of Ukraine and Russia, a monumental architecture of mammoth bone dwellings, particularly sophisticated and spectacular, appears in the region of the middle Don basin: Kostienki 11/1a and in the regions of the middle and upper Dnieper, in the settlements of Gontsy, Dobranichivka, Mejiriche, Ioudinovo, Mezine, and Suponevo. These residential settlements are always installed near large mammoth bone concentrations, revealing a particular search for this material, indispensable to construct dwellings with a very elaborate architecture. The great importance given to the monumental architecture in residential settlements, compared with the modest spatial structures without bone constructions in the small seasonally-occupied sites, confirms the difference in function and time occupation. In the middle Don Basin, circular dwellings built with a large number of mammoth bones, surrounded by storage pits, are known in the settlements of the culture of Zamiatnine: Kostienki 11/1a, Kostienki 2, Kostienki 3, and Kostienki 19. These sites, partially excavated, provided inconsistent 14C dates, but the sites could be most probably dated around 19,000 to 20,000 BP or earlier. The most characteristic feature of these sites is the settlement of Kostienki 11/1a, also called Anosovka 2, which is located on the promontory of the slope of Anosov. The site of Kostienki 2, which is located 160 m north, could belong to the same settlement. In the current state of the research in Kostienki 11/1a, two large circular mammoth bone dwellings are known. They are located 17 m apart (Popov and Anikovich, 1982). These two dwellings, surrounded by storage pits, have a similar architecture based a circular set of mammoth bones that form a wall circumference. A first dwelling was excavated only over a quarter of its area with a pit. The second dwelling was excavated over its entire surface and was then kept in situ under the protection of the building of a site

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L. Iakovleva / Quaternary International 359-360 (2015) 324e334

Fig. 2. Dwelling of Gagarino (from Zamiatnine, 1935).

museum (Fig. 3). It is a large circular mammoth bone dwelling 9 m in diameter. It is surrounded by 5 storage pits, 70 cm deep and 2 m in diameter. Despite partial damage during the discovery, the inner circle of 7 m in diameter was made by digging 30 cm into loess to flatten the floor of the dwelling. Currently, the in situ dwelling is composed of 573 mammoth bones from 40 individuals. Probably, the removed loess was used to seal the bones of the perimeter wall (Popov and Anikovich, 1982). In the outer perimeter wall of the dwelling, 8 groups of bones were organized in a circle by pairs of mammoth skulls, and completed with long bones, scapulae, pelvis, jaws, and tusks. A detailed description of the bones of the dwelling was recently published by Popov and Anikovich (1982). The composition of the bones of each of these groups is different. However the internal position of the pairs of skulls and the grouping of bones are common features: scapulae and pelvis in vertical and horizontal position, long bones repetitively grouped in vertical and horizontal position, associated jaws with chin down

with the exception of a few jaws in the reversed position. The clustered and rhythmic location of the same bones decorates the architecture of the dwelling. The decorative aspect of the compositions of mammoth jaws in the outer wall of the two dwellings of Kostienki 11/1a is notable. The wall decor has been erected from many mammoth jaws, put one next to each other or stacked with each other in the same anatomical position, following rhythmic patterns of zigzags and chevrons. 4. Mammoth bone dwellings of the Middle and Upper Dnepr basin (Mezinian) The settlements with the most sophisticated mammoth bone dwellings are concentrated in the middle and upper Dnepr basin: Gontsy, Dobranichivka, Mejiriche, Ioudinovo, Elisseevichi 1, Timonovka 1 and 2, Mezine, Suponevo, and Boujanka 2. The sites are associated with the Mezinian culture, often considered as an

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complemented by working areas, outdoor fireplaces, dumping areas (ashes from hearth cleaning and flint knapping), butchering areas, and mammoth bone beds. One of the most characteristic examples of such a complex settlement is given by the current excavations in Gontsy (Iakovleva and Djindjian, 2005, Iakovleva et al., 2010, Iakovleva et al., 2012). Gontsy, like other residential sites, has characteristic dwellings: four large huts surrounded by storage pits, but also an original construction resembling a small dwelling. The particular importance of the site of Gontsy is marked by the presence of a large mammoth bone bed mixed with bones of other animals (reindeer, bison, musk ox, marmot, carnivores) and widely exploited by the human group (artefacts, hearths). The mammoth bone bed is located on the side and at the bottom of a large, shallow depression dug by a system of paleoravines which fill rapidly, which carved the promontory on which the camp was installed. Exploitation of the mammoth bone bed by the human group is demonstrated by the presence of many artefacts: burnt bone hearths; mammoth bone and ivory tools, flint tools, and blanks. Microstratigraphic studies throughout the site demonstrate the contemporaneousness of the bone bed in the paleoravines and the occupation layers of the dwellings (Iakovleva et al., 2010, 2012) giving a new light on the steps of installation of the settlement and the construction of the dwellings from the available bones of the mammoth bone bed. The excavation of three new large dwellings has allowed linking the bones of a large dwelling and the mammoth carcasses of the bone bed for the first time.

Fig. 3. Dwelling of Kostienki 11/1a (photo L. Iakovleva).

Epigravettian culture, and dated between 15,000 and 14,000 BP by 14 C dates (Iakovleva and Djindjian, 2005). The area of the settlements varies between 500 and 2500 m2 depending on the completeness of the excavations. The site of Gontsy, including the promontory of the settlement and the bone bed, reached nearly 10,000 m2. The architectural tradition of this type of settlement is characterized by the presence of large dwellings 4e6 m in diameter surrounded by storage pits (which could be used as dumps) 1 to 2 or 3 m in diameter, mainly filled with bones of mammoths and other animals, and flint knapping. The dwellings are located 10e24 m apart. Iolated storage pits and some other constructions of smaller size and different shape (elongated walls, small dwellings) are present, well known in Gontsy and Mezine. Up to four large dwellings have been discovered at Gontsy, Dobranichivka, Mejiriche, and Ioudinovo (Fig. 4). The selection and the arrangement of the mammoth bones, considered as architectural elements of each dwelling, is varied. Inside are a central hearth (Gontsy, Dobranichivka, Mejiriche and Ioudinovo), several off-centered hearths (Mezine), or no hearths at all (Dobranichivka, Ioudinovo). The number of pits varies in the settlements. Nine pits surround dwelling n 1 of Gontsy, and six pits surround dwelling n 4 of Mejiriche. Four pits surround the four dwellings of Dobranichivka and the same number was found on the side of dwelling n 1 of Mezine. The location and function of the pits as their abandonment may be variable in each settlement. These structures are

4.1. Architecture and shape of the dwellings The architecture of mammoth bone dwellings is based on the large availability of bone raw material inside the territory of huntergatherers. Monumental constructions were erected with a very large number of bones and tusks of mammoths in Gontsy, Dobranichivka, Mezine, Mejiriche, Ioudinovo, Elisseevichi 1, Timonovka, and Suponevo (Chovkoplass, 1965, 1970, 1972; Polikarpovitch, 1968; Pidoplichko, 1969, 1976; Gladkikh and Korniez, 1979; Iakovleva, 1991, 2009; Abramova and Grigorieva, 1997). Despite their specificity, all the dwellings have the same common structure, erected with the most voluminous and heaviest bones of the mammoth skeleton. The complexity of this architecture may be analyzed especially in the large dwellings, made with a significant number of mammoth bones and tusks, which have a circular or oval shape 4e6 m in diameter, as in the settlements of Dobranichivka, Mezine, Mejiriche, Gontsy, Ioudinovo, and Suponevo (Table 1).

Table 1 Characteristics of the best known circular Gravettian and Epigravettian dwellings of Upper Palaeolithic settlements of central and eastern Europe. N

Settlement

Culture

Dwelling type

Dimensions

1 2 3 4 5 6

Dolni Vestonice n 1 Dolni Vestonice n 2 Pavlov n 5 Dolni Vestonice II n 3 Milovice G Pouchkari

Early Gravettian Early Gravettian Early Gravettian Early Gravettian Early Gravettian Late Gravettian

Tipi Tipi Tipi Tipi Tipi Tipi

Diameter Diameter Diameter Diameter Diameter Diameter

7 8 9

Pouchkari Gagarino Kostienki 4 Upper layer (2 dwellings) Kostienki11/1a Dwelling n 2 Kostienki 2

Late Gravettian Gravettian Gravettian

Tipi Tipi Tipi

Diameter 3e4 m Diameter 5.5 m Diameter 6m

Zamiatnine culture

Yaranga

10 11

Zamiatnine culture

Type Type Type Type Type

B A C D? B

3e4 3e4 3e4 3e4 3e4 3e4

Hearth inside m m m m m m

Hearths outside

Pits

Wall Art

H H H H

H

Y

H H

H

Y Y

Diameter 9m

H

H

Diameter 8m

H

?

5

Parietal art

Mobile art

Excavation date

Y Y Y

1963 1963 1954e56 1980 1983 1932e33, 1937e39 1980e90 1926e27 1937e59

Y

Y

1960 1953e56 (continued on next page)

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L. Iakovleva / Quaternary International 359-360 (2015) 324e334

Table 1 (continued ) N

Settlement

Culture

Dwelling type

Dimensions

Hearth inside

Hearths outside

Pits

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Mejiriche n 1 Mejiriche n 2 Mejiriche n 3 Mejiriche n 4 Dobranichivka Dobranichivka Dobranichivka Dobranichivka Gontsy n 1 Gontsy n 2

Mezinian Mezinian Mezinian Mezinian Mezinian Mezinian Mezinian Mezinia...