The History of Kazakhstan from the Earliest Period to the Present time. Volume I. Zhanat Kundakbayeva
part of the Kazakhstan territory was desertificated.
Different regions of Kazakhstan in these changing conditions differently responded to these changes. Thus, the Caspian and Turan desert regions are characterized by stability of paleographic conditions. The region is characterized by a favorable climate, an abundance of hunting places and habitats, availability of fresh water. Therefore, on the coast of the Caspian Sea and the Ustyurt plateau remained numerous sites of the Stone Age.
Also, the Sary-Arka region, with a combination of small hills and plains was had been for a long time the area of primitive people habitat. But with coming of many years frozen conditions of the ground hominids left the habitat. The next hominid dispersal region is the southeast Karatau range, which climatically had exceptionally favorable conditions. The geological structure of the mountains also favourated the continuous habitation here large herds of animals. Therefore the Karatau range had been a favorite place for settling ancient hominids, who found here food and water sources. So, of the most interest are the early Paleolithic sites Borykazgan and Tanirkazgan. Here were found a wide range of heavily abraded flakes and cores, mostly irregular orthogonal cores, core-like products and modified flakes, but also bilateral chopping tools. Epipaleolithic (the transitional period from Early to Late Paleolithic) sites were discovered also in central Kazakhstan. For example, Kudaykol site with finely flaked blades, often with new technical developments like retouched backs. The Northern Pre-Balkhash area was also the settlement area in the Paleolithic era. In this area sites were found on river and lake terraces, on the tops and slopes of hills. So, at Semizbugu site in Zhezkazgan were stored a collection of stone objects in 1611 units. In East Kazakhstan the most ancient is the Kozybai site. As regards the Upper Paleolithic era in Kazakhstan there are no many completely studied sites. The most complete material for this period are the findings of stone objects at the Karatau range in Southern Kazakhstan, on the Irtysh River in Eastern Kazakhstan, in the Sarysu River in Northern Balkhash area.
The Mesolithic period on the territory of Kazakhstan is poorly studied. Today well studied and documented only about two tens Mesolithic sites in Kazakhstan. Mesolithic sites were found there where up till now have not been discovered Paleolithic ones. As a rule, sites located on the banks of rivers and lakes. Remains of housing constructions have not survived. During the Mesolithic period the climate had changed in the first place it was connected with the retreat of glaciers. At that time, formed the hydrographic network, close to the modern, formed the flora and fauna composition close to the modern. Because of the extinction of mammoths, there were going ways to provide the means of subsistence. During the Mesolithic period widely spread use of bows and arrows, bush techniques for making tools, increased mobility of the population. The most important invention of the Mesolithic epoch was the bow. It was stipulated with transition to individual hunting. In the Mesolithic there was also a further fundamental change in the technique of making tools – their size did not depend on the size of the stone. It was possible thanks bush technique what became the basis for making various tools. The most widespread tools became arrowheads, tips of darts, javelins and spears, scrapers for processing skins, hides, knives. Complexes with material remnants of Mesolithic sites do not show significant differences from the sites of the Southern Urals, Western Siberia and the Eastern Caspian region. The heyday of stone processing technique became the Neolithic period. At this time, there more and more was increasing specialization in making tools. Along with the improvement of pressure retouch technology, appeared new technological stone processing methods: grinding, drilling, sawing, began making stone axes, hoes, grinding stones, mortars, pestles. Currently in Kazakhstan there are discovered more than 800 Neolithic and Eneolithic sites. They are divided into four types: Spring, river, lake and cave. At sited of the lake and river types there are a significant quantity of findings. But the most widespread on the territory of Kazakhstan are spring sites, as arid and semi-arid zones are poor with a river network. Sites at the springs are often temporary and seasonal. One of the features of the Neolithic sites in Kazakhstan is in the fact that most of them are sites of the open type. Neolithic sites of Kazakhstan form several territorial groups. The most important feature of the Neolithic period is the transition from appropriating economy with gathering and hunting to the producing economy with the emergence of animal husbandry and agriculture. But in Kazakhstan, as the findings show, the transition was not so noticeable. As before hunting and fishing were the main sources of food. Obviously, continental climate did not favour the growth of population and there were natural resources enough to meet the needs of the population. Thus, in the Neolithic producing forms of economy on the territory of Kazakhstan did not nave their spreading. The most studied archaeological cultures of the Neolithic period on the territory of Kazakhstan are Atbasar and Mahandzhar culture. The Atbasar culture got its name on the place of the greaControl concentration of sites – The Atbasar area of the Akmola region. Here were surveyed about 200 sites, 20 of them have been excavated. The Mahanzhar culture is located on the bottom of the Turgai gully. Characteristic for this culture topography of sites is the location of the broad plots of the flood lands in the place where the river gets sharply narrow. Almost on all the sites the cultural layer consists of sand and sandy loam and in a large part has been dispelled. The Mahandzhar culture had a characteristic feature – presence of the original dishes. It was thin-walled ceramic tableware, hand-made and having elongate proportions. On the territory of Kazakhstan for the time have been discovered a few Neolithic burials, mostly in Northern Kazakhstan. None of the burials has external signs on the surface. In all the graves there were arrowheads, in the burials there was no much ceramics. As for the next stage of the archaeological periodization Eneolithic (the epoch of brass instruments introduction to people's life), in Kazakhstan stone industry not degraded, but rose to a higher level. Possibilities on stone processing not only had been implemented to the maximum, but there also was extended the range of production and household equipment. The most striking culture of the Eneolithic epoch is the Botai culture in Kokshetau oblast. In 1980, discovery of Botai settlement by the Kazakh archaeologist V.F.Zaybertom became a major event in the study of the Eneolithic era in Kazakhstan. European scientists have confirmed that just here the horse was first domesticated. The site is located on the right bank of the Iman-Burluk river, five km to the south of the Botai junction of the Volodarsky Area of the Kokshetau oblast. The area of the settlement was one hundred twenty thousand sq. km. On the surface were clearly fixed contours of eighty dwellings, the total capacity of the cultural layer, including housing depressions, reached from one point to two meters. Were found about sixty thousand objects made of stone, clay, bone. In the settlement in a large number were found animal bones, most of which, according to L.A.Ermolova, belonged to horses. Also were found bones of bison, aurochs, deer, elks, wolves-dogs, bears, beavers, etc. Stationary excavations at the Botai settlement also continued in subsequent years. During this time (5 years) was found quite informative material. The site industry had a flake character. The presence of various types of tools, their high range was evidence of a diversified economy. In the process of excavation was received large osteological material – about 25 thousand horse bones. Under the excavations it became clear that the settlement was stationary and functioned 300-400 years. Materials of the Botai settlement allowed the author to distinquish a separate Botai cultural type, which spread over a large territory of Northern Kazakhstan. The excavations have shown that they were buildings in the last stage of the settlement existence. So it can be concerned that the Botai is the settlement where the earliest horse domestication has been documented. Thus, the Botai culture marked the type of a community where emerged a new form of economy – mobile cattle-breeding.
Control questions:
1. Which of the regions of Kazakhstan became "a favorite place for settling by primitive people with the coming of many years frozen conditions of the ground"? Provide some information to explain why.
2. What are the features of the Neolithic epoch on the territory of Kazakhstan?
3. Give arguments in favor of the discovery by I. Saibert that the Neolithic Botai settlement is a major event in the archeology of Eurasia.
4. Describe two the most studied archaeological cultures of the Neolithic epoch.
5. Why on the territory of Kazakhstan, do not we see signs of the transition to the appropriating forms of economy in the Neolithic epoch?
Tasks for independent study:
Read Appendix I Rogozinskiy Alexei.