Palaeodietary patterning and radiocarbon dating of Neolithic populations in the Primorye Province, Russian Far East.

Abstract

Here, we report new radiocarbon dates and palaeodietary data ( i 13 C and i 15 N measurements) from human bone collagen of two Early Neolithic populations in Primorye (Maritime) Province, in the Russian Far East. We found that the coastal people of the Boisman 2 site ( n =10) had isotope values consistent with a diet of (likely hunted) sea mammals, while the inland population of the Chertovy Vorota site ( n =2) had isotope values consistent with a diet that was a mixture of both terrestrial and marine (mostly fish) food resources. Our results suggest that advanced sea mammal hunting already existed in Primorye at ca. 5800 BP (ca. 6600 cal years BP). Marine reservoir corrections were required for the radiocarbon dates on the human remains, due to the consumption of "old" marine-based carbon.