Post-Pleistocene adaptation and subsistence economy complex of hunter-gatherers of eastern Siberia: A case study of Ust’-Khaita I site

Abstract

The reflection of the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene in the material culture of hunter-gatherers and related adaptational processes is the subject of some debates among scholars studying the Stone Age of northeastern Asia. The case study of cultural components 9 and 9A of the Ust’-Khaita I site in the region of the Baikal lake in eastern Siberia, can contribute to understanding hunter-gatherers’ adaptation on the boundary between the Pleistocene and Holocene. The analysis of the materials of cultural components 9 and 9A provides information about the subsistence economy complex consisting of medium and large-size prey hunting with domestic dogs and fishing. Changes in morphology and technology of the microblade industry – one of the most representative categories of artifacts in the northeastern Asian region, most likely reflect changes in adaptation and mobility patterns in this period. Artifacts from layers 9 and 9A include microblade cores and grooved bone tools. These assemblages reflect the cultural and economic adaptation processes that took place during the Pleistocene–Holocene transition in eastern Siberia. Comparing material from Ust’-Khaita to those from sites of the Far East, we intend to highlight the variability of adaptation patterns throughout Northeast Asia during this pivotal period in human history.