N.A. Bokovenko

Chronology of the burial finds from Scythian monuments in southern Siberia and Central Asia

We present here new radiocarbon dates for the different barrows (burial mounds) of the nomadic tribes of the Scythian period in the Khakassia and Tuva regions (Central Asia). The time scale of these barrows is compared with the elite barrows of the Sayan-Altai. In agreement with archaeological evidence, some barrows in Khakassia are chronologically close in time to the Arzhan barrow. The first (super 14) C dates produced for the barrows from the Tuva region belong to a later Scythian period, compared with the elite Arzhan barrow. We determined the final stage of the barrow construction, but to establish the starting time, more dates are necessary (both by dendrochronology and (super 14) C).

Chronology of Holocene climate and vegetation changes and their connection to cultural dynamics in Southern Siberia

Two sediment sequences from Big Kyzykul Lake and the Shushenskoe paleolake in the Minusinsk depression, Southern Siberia, were studied by pollen, microfossil, and geochemical analyses, as well as radiocarbon dating. The records indicate the persistence of an arid period between ~11.77.6 cal kyr BP, increased effective moisture since ~7.6 cal kyr BP, 2 humid impulses at ~5.1 and 2.8 cal kyr BP separated by a dry interval, and the return to generally drier conditions after ~1.5 cal kyr BP. This is contrary to the findings noted for the Eurasian temperate zone, but agrees with proxy data reported for arid and semi-arid zones of Central Asia. Reconstructed changes in climate and environment are in good agreement with archaeological data. Almost no evidence of the Mesolithic-Neolithic cultures has been reported for the depression, which is consistent with a dry early and mid-Holocene. Effective moisture started to rise from ~7.6 cal kyr BP, followed by the beginning of human occupation at ~6 cal kyr BP. Two maxima of humidity are recorded in the late Holocene, corresponding to the arrival of trees in the depression. No gap was to be found from the Early Bronze to the Iron ages cultures at this time, with the exception of a dry interval at ~3.63.3 cal kyr BP, when the Minusinsk depression was sparsely occupied. The data obtained suggest a close relationship between climate change and cultural dynamics in the steppe zone of Southern Siberia.

The Sun, Climate Change and the Expansion of the Scythian Culture After 850 BC

The climate shift towards wetter conditions at the transition from Subboreal to Subatlantic in NW-Europe (ca 850 cal. yrs BC; caused by a decline of solar activity), is also evident in South Siberia. Areas that initially were hostile semi-deserts changed into attractive steppe landscapes with a high biomass production, and therefore high carrying capacity. We focus on south-central Siberia where an acceleration of cultural development and an increase in the density of nomadic Scythian populations took place shortly after 850 BC. We hypothesize a causal relationship between the Scythian expansion and migration, and the early Subatlantic shift towards increased humidity.