The Epigravettian Site of Yudinovo, Russia: Mammoth Bone Structures as Ritualised Middens

We present here the results of a study of woolly mammoth remains from Yudinovo (Bryansk oblast, Russia) and argue for a revised interpretation of Late Upper Palaeolithic mammoth bone structures in Eastern Europe. Five distinct mammoth bone accumulations have been identified in the main (lower) archaeological layer of Yudinovo, dated to ca. 14.9–14.5 14C kya BP (ca. 18.2–17.6 kya cal BP). Taphonomic and zooarchaeological analyses have shown that the mammoth remains found at Yudinovo derive from the butchery of animal carcasses, supporting the hypothesis of mammoth hunting during the Upper Palaeolithic. Our analyses indicate that hunting of both adult and young mammoths took place. Yudinovo was occupied at intervals during both the cold and warm periods of the year, and evidence for various activities is found at the site. The most recently excavated mammoth bone structure was built from a large number of bones, and had a circular or oval form, 4–9.5 m in diameter. The mammoth bone structures have traditionally been interpreted as the remains of dwellings, but we interpret them instead as ritualised middens. Such middens were probably an important part of the socio-symbolic systems of the Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers who built them.