Variants of Reconstruction of Stationary Dwellings of end of Bronze Age – Beginning of the Iron Age in the Western Siberian Taiga

Abstract

The article presents variants of graphic reconstructions of stationary tree-earth dwellings constructed by fishermen and hunters of the West Siberian taiga at the end of the Bronze Age – the Early Iron Age (12th century BC – III century AD). During this period, ground constructions of a frame-column structure with a ground part in the form of a truncated pyramid, with inclined walls of poles and thin logs, and with a shallow (0,2–0,4 m) rectangular pit that occupied the main part of the building continued to be built. The base of the walls of the dwelling was not installed in a sand pit, trimmed with wood, but on a small (0,8–1,5 m) distance from it. At the same time, similar structures appeared without foundation pit, dwellings with vertical log walls, fortified pillars, and houses with walls of a log structure. Each building was surrounded by a sandy mound of earth ("zavalinkа") and drainage pits-ditches. Ordinary dwellings had an area of 30–70 m2, and their height from the floor did not exceed 2,5 m. Large (200–650 m2) single timbered "fortified dwellings" were protected by ditches and sometimes – defensive walls. Small semi-dugouts were used mainly as economic objects, extremely rarely – as industrial and residential premises.

Keywords

• archaeology
• Western Siberia
• taiga
• end of the Bronze Age
• Early Iron Age
• dwellings
• reconstruction