Primary Reduction in the Stone Industry of the Initial Stages of Upper Paleolithic on the Ushbulak Site (Eastern Kazakhstan)
We analyzed a primary reduction at lithic industry of 6th and 7th layers of Ushbulak site (Kazakhstan) that was opened and explored in 2016-2017. The site located on northeastern side of Shilikty valley, on the left bank of the creek, near its source. Ushbulak is the multi-layered site. Layer 1 considered the artifacts that can be dated by Neolithic or Mesolithic age. The Upper Paleolithic artifacts were found in sediments of layers 2-4. Most interest part of collection associated with layers 6 and 7. In accordance with a typological appearance and radiocarbon date 41 110±302 BP (45 249-44 012 cal BP) the complexes of these layers are related to the initial stages of Upper Paleolithic. The primary reduction in lithic industry of layers 6 and 7 is focused to blade production within parallel and subparallel volumetric bipolar technique. For this method match two kinds - one platform and double platform prismatic cores. The tool kit includes many retouched blades and flakes. The mass categories in a variety of tool kit are end-scrapers on big blades, burins, truncated blades. Like a simple samples are presented borers, side-scrapers, pies escae's and denticulate tools. An essential element of thetool set, which allow to carrying out its cultural and chronological attribution, is an availability of few product's kinds, submitted as a rule like a simple samples: points, blades with retouched base, end-scrapers and points with retouched blades, strangled blades. A comparison of the primary reduction in lithic industry of layer 6 and 7 with classic complexes of Early Upper Paleolithic in the Northern Eurasia (Kara-Bom, UP 1, 2 and Tolbor 4, layers 5 and 6) allows approving, that lithic industry of Usbulak site not only typologically, but also technologically refers to the early stage of Upper Paleolithic. The study of the materials of the Ushbulak site is very important in connection with the problem of emergence and spread of the human of modern physical type. Until now, in the territory of Eastern Kazakhstan, there were no known reliable stratified Upper Paleolithic objects. The opening of the Ushbulak site allows us to include this territory in the area of the first Homo sapiens.