New paper published!

19.05.2023

New publication of Philip R. Nigst and colleagues in the Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology on the results of the new excavations at Korolevo II in Ukraine.

The site of Korolevo II in western Ukraine - located in the border area between central and eastern Europe - is mainly known for its Early Upper Palaeolithic assemblage, argued in the past to represent an assemblage at the transition from the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic. Hence, the site holds a potential for a better understanding of the Middle to the Upper Palaeolithic transition and the replacement of Neanderthals by modern humans. In this paper we report on our new fieldwork between 2015 and 2017, which provided a new view on the stratigraphy, chronology and archaeological sequence of the site. We present a new assessment of the stratigraphy, new Upper Palaeolithic assemblages and first radiocarbon dates for some of them. Our results show the great potential of the site and contribute to a better understanding of a key sequence along the northern fringe of the Pannonian Basin. Of special interest is the assemblage of cultural layer D - which one might tentatively label as Bohunician - adding to our understanding of the first Upper Palaeolithic assemblages and their diversity across western Eurasia.

 

Usyk, V. I., Gerasimenko, N., Garba, R., Damblon, F., & Nigst, P. R. (2023). Exploring the Potential of the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic Site Korolevo II (Ukraine): New Results on Stratigraphy, Chronology and Archaeological Sequence. Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology, 6(1), 16. 10.1007/s41982-023-00144-0

Map showing the location of Korolevo I and II and other sites discussed in the text. 1: Korolevo I, 2: Korolevo II, 3: Sokyrnytsya I, 4: Beregovo I, 5: Willendorf II, 6: Vedrovice V, 7: Brno‐Bohunice, 8: Pavlov sites, 9: Dolni Vestonice sites, 10: Szeleta Cave, 11: Mitoc‐Malu Galben, 12: Molodova V. Inset shows satellite image of Korolevo I and II. Graphic: Philip R. Nigst and Vitaly Usyk. Basemap and riv‐ ers: HYDRO1K dataset from U.S. Geological Survey Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center, doi.org/10.5066/F77P8WN0. Satellite image: GoogleEarth

© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023

 

Korolevo II: CL D (excavation area IIIa): 1—10 blades, flakes; 11—core (refitting); (hyalodacite). Scale in 1‐cm increments. Photos: Vitaly Usyk.

© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023

 

Korolevo II: CL A (excavation area IIIa): 2–9—blades/flakes; 10—core, (hyalodacite). Scale in 1‐cm increments. Photos: Vitaly Usyk.

© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023