Sample name: Grot Skeliastyi (III-3B)

Reference: O. Kovalchuk, L. Rekovets, A. Tsvelykh, V. Yanenko, V. Manko, and S. Tajkova. 2021. Living in a time of change: Late Pleistocene/Holocene transitional vertebrate fauna of Grot Skeliastyi (Crimea, Ukraine). Historical Biology 33(10):2074-2084 [ER 3774]

Lithology: sandstone

Taphonomic context: bird accumulation,human accumulation,rock shelter

Archaeology: stone tools

Habitat comments: "The rockshelter is a grotto under the mountain canopy, at a height of about 20 m above the water level. The site has an area of about 300 m2".
"The stratigraphy of distinguished cultural layers showed that there was almost continuous seasonal occupation of the site by people during the B÷lling-Boreal. The rock shelter probably played the role of a logistical hunter’s camp. The remains of large mammals could have been a part of the prey of carnivores, but most of them are associated with the hunting activity of people who inhabited the rock shelter. The hunting preferences of visitors to the rock shelter was confirmed by the findings of numerous flint lunates, trapezes and triangles which were used as arrowheads. The small mammal and other vertebrate remains were most likley accumulated by birds, namely the Eurasian eagle owl".

Life forms: carnivores,rodents,ungulates,other small mammals,birds,lizards,snakes,turtles

Sampling methods: quarry,screenwash

Sample size: 312 specimens

Sampling comments: "Grot Skeliastyi was discovered by Yu. Kolosov in 1983 and excavated by him in 1988–1989. Further research on this site was conducted by V. Cohen in 1993–1995. About 60 m2 were excavated at that time".
"Field works on the site were continued by research teams under the guidance of V. Manko in 2004–2007. During the excavations, another 28 m2 were explored. All of the sediment from the cultural layers was sieved and then washed".

Sample number: 4057

Contributor: Benjamin Carter

Enterer: Benjamin Carter

Created: 2023-02-16 16:27:11

Modified: 2023-05-30 03:51:34