Archaeology and Prehistory

Rezume. Problem-situation of the "Post-ubeid period" in Caucasus (4500 – 3500 BC)
The author of the article makes an attempt to examine the dynamics of cultures dated back to the beginning of the  copper-bronze age in the Caucasus  ( the second half of V – first half of IV Millennium BC). This period in the archaeological literature was called as a "post-ubeid period" and the start  of the Uruk period. There are mainly analyzes the topic of the situation deal with  the monuments of the Near East, according to radiocarbon dating. Further there are raised questions about the characterization of the dynamics of cultures in Before Caucasus in the beforemaikop  period and peculiarities of localization of the typo-logical variants of the Maikop-novosvobodnaya  community. There are discusses the gen-eral characteristics of the metal fabrication space, military affairs, cults and beliefs, emer-gence of kurgan rites.

The Spiti Valley is located in the Trans-Himalayan terrain of India, from where non-geometrical microliths have been discovered. While the Siwalik Hills have been subjected to extensive prehistoric surveys, this is the first evidence of lithic tools discovered in the Trans-Himalayan region of Himachal Pradesh, India. Due to its topographical and intense climatic features, the Trans-Himalayan region has generally been regarded as a barrier since prehistoric times. However, Dzamathang cannot be considered as an isolated site in the Trans-Himalayas. In fact, in the adjoining areas of Ladakh, Tibet and Nepal, similar lithics have been reported from several sites and been assigned to the Middle and Upper Palaeolithic. The discovery of this site suggests that the Trans-Himalayan zone may have acted as a possible route rather than a barrier during human migration. Large numbers of lithics have been recovered in the Dzamathang area of the Spiti Valley. Based on the collection of the artefacts from the surface, this paper tries to understand the geological and geographical setting of the area, particularly concerning prehistoric settlements in the Trans-Himalayas. This assemblage consists of assorted artefacts, which include a unifacial chopper, microlithic cores, flakes, blades, bladelets, burin and a large amount of debitage fragments. The majority of artefacts are on quartzite or quartzarenite. Future surveys will be targeted at recovering primary context sites for excavations and absolute dating.

New electron micro-probe analysis of residues found on the median 'stitched-seams' of Scandinavian flint daggers dating to the late Neolithic are presented and linked to previous work on the mode of production of this artefact type. Analysis suggests that previous interpretation of the production sequence requires revision with consequences for the understanding of social organization of craft production in Southern Scandinavia.

The paper examines the character of the population in central and eastern prealpine Lombardy during the Late Bronze Age. The analysis involves the sites of Parre-Botti, Iseo-Ex resinex, Ubiale-Castello, Muscoline-Monte Guarda di Castrezzone, Lovere-Colle del Lazzaretto, Chiuduno-Cicola and Sirmione.