Copper Stone Eneolithic. Eneolithic: material culture and way of life of people

The first era of metal is called the Eneolithic (Greek enus - "copper", lithos - "stone"). During this period, copper things appear, but stone ones predominate. Two theories about the distribution of copper: 1) originated in the region from Anatolia to Khuzistan (8-7 thousand BC) and spread to neighboring territories; 2) arose at once in several centers. Four stages in the development of non-ferrous metallurgy: 1) native copper as a kind of stone; 2) melting of native copper and mold casting; 3) smelting of copper from ores, i.e. metallurgy; 4) copper-based alloys - for example, bronze. Copper deposits were discovered according to external signs (green spots of oxides). When extracting ore, stone hammers were used. The boundaries of the Eneolithic are determined by the level of development of metallurgy (the third stage). The beginnings of agriculture and animal husbandry were further developed, thanks to the expansion of cultivated cereals. The horn hoe is being replaced by an arable tool that requires the use of draft animals. In different areas, the wheel appears almost simultaneously. Thus, cattle breeding develops, and pastoral tribes become isolated.
Eneolithic - the beginning of the domination of patriarchal-clan relations, the dominance of men in pastoral groups. Instead of graves, mounds of burial mounds appear. The study of ceramics shows that it was made by specialists who masterfully mastered the technique of pottery production (craft). Exchange of raw materials - flint. The Eneolithic was the time of the emergence of class societies in a number of regions of the Mediterranean. The agricultural Eneolithic of the USSR has three centers - Central Asia, the Caucasus and the Northern Black Sea region.

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  General characteristic. The first era of metal is called Chalcolithic(Greek enus - "copper", lithos - "stone"). During this period, there copper things, but stone ones predominate.


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  Bronze century. General characteristic. Bronze century corresponds to a dry and relatively warm subboreal climate, in which
  Also in Eneolithic carts and wheels appeared.


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  General characteristic. Bronze century corresponds to a dry and relatively warm subboreal climate, in which pr. Eneolithic Central Asia.



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  General characteristic. The basis of the archaeological periodization of primitive history is the differences in the technique of stone processing.


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  Eneolithic. General characteristic.


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  General characteristic. The Neolithic (5.5-3 thousand BC) covers the warm and humid Atlantic climatic period.
  Eneolithic. General characteristic.

At the end of the 4th millennium BC. Neolithic civilization gradually exhausted its potential and the first crisis era in the history of mankind began - the era of the Eneolithic (copper - stone age). Eneolithic is characterized by the following parameters:

1. Eneolithic is the transition from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age
2. Metal becomes the predominant material (copper and its alloy with tin - bronze)
3. Eneolithic - a time of chaos, disorder in society, a crisis in technology - the transition to irrigated agriculture, to new materials
4. Crisis social life: the destruction of the leveling system, the early agricultural societies are formed, from which civilizations subsequently grew.

The Copper Age approximately covers the period of 4-3 millennium BC, but in some areas it exists longer, and in some it does not exist at all. Most often, the Eneolithic is included in the Bronze Age, but sometimes it is also considered a separate period. During the Eneolithic, copper tools were common, but stone tools still prevailed.

The first acquaintance of a person with copper occurred through nuggets, which were taken for stones and tried to be processed in the usual way by hitting them with other stones. Pieces did not break off from nuggets, but were deformed and they could be given the necessary shape (cold forging). They did not know how to fuse copper with other metals to obtain bronze. In some cultures, nuggets were heated after forging, which led to the destruction of intercrystalline bonds that make the metal brittle. The low distribution of copper in the Eneolithic is connected, first of all, with the insufficient number of nuggets, and not with the softness of the metal - in regions where there was a lot of copper, it quickly began to displace the stone. Despite its softness, copper had an important advantage - a copper tool could be repaired, and a stone one had to be made anew.

The oldest metal objects in the world were found during excavations in Anatolia. The inhabitants of the Neolithic village of Chayonyu were among the first to begin experiments with native copper, and in Chatal-Guyuk ca. 6000 BC learned how to smelt copper from ore and began to use it to make jewelry.

In the Mesopotamia, metal was recognized in the 6th millennium (Samarr culture), at the same time jewelry made of native copper appeared in the Indus Valley (Mergarh).

In Egypt and on the Balkan Peninsula they were made in the 5th millennium (Rudna Glava).

By the beginning of the IV millennium BC. copper products came into use in the Samara, Khvalyn, Srednestog and other cultures of Eastern Europe.

From the IV millennium BC. copper and bronze tools began to replace stone ones.

In the Far East, copper products appeared in the 5th - 4th millennium BC. (Hongshan culture).

The first finds of copper objects in South America belong to the II - I millennium BC (Ilam culture, Chavin). Later, the Andean peoples achieved great skill in copper metallurgy, especially the Mochica culture. Subsequently, this culture began to smelt arsenic, and the Tiwanaku and Huari cultures - tin bronze.

The Inca state of Tahuantinsuyu can already be considered an advanced Bronze Age civilization.

The first era of metal is called the Eneolithic (Greek enus - "copper", lithos - "stone"). During this period, copper things appear, but stone ones predominate.

Two theories about the distribution of copper:

1) arose in the region from Anatolia to Khuzistan (8-7 thousand BC) and spread to neighboring territories;

2) arose at once in several centers.

Four stages of development of non-ferrous metallurgy:

1) native copper as a kind of stone;

2) melting of native copper and mold casting;

3) smelting of copper from ores, i.e. metallurgy;

4) copper-based alloys - for example, bronze. Copper deposits were discovered according to external signs (green spots of oxides). When extracting ore, stone hammers were used. The boundaries of the Eneolithic are determined by the level of development of metallurgy (the third stage). The beginnings of agriculture and animal husbandry were further developed, thanks to the expansion of cultivated cereals. The horn hoe is being replaced by an arable tool that requires the use of draft animals. In different areas, the wheel appears almost simultaneously. Thus, cattle breeding develops, and pastoral tribes become isolated. Eneolithic - the beginning of the domination of patriarchal-clan relations, the dominance of men in pastoral groups. Instead of graves, mounds of burial mounds appear. The study of ceramics shows that it was made by specialists who masterfully mastered the technique of pottery production (craft). Exchange of raw materials - flint. The Eneolithic was the time of the emergence of class societies in a number of regions of the Mediterranean. The agricultural Eneolithic of the USSR had three centers - Central Asia, the Caucasus and the Northern Black Sea region.

Trypillia culture

Tripolskaya (end of the 5th - the third quarter of the 3rd millennium BC) is a large center of the producing economy in Moldova and Right-Bank Ukraine, including part of Romania. In the village of Trypillya near Kyiv. It was agricultural, it required uprooting of roots, stumps, which raised the role of male labor. The patriarchal system of the tribes. Early period (end 5 - middle 4 thousand). The river valleys of Moldova, the west of Ukraine, the Romanian Carpathian region. Parking lots are surrounded by a moat. Small clay houses. In the center of the house is an altar. Places were changed every 50-70 years (fall in fertility). Agriculture has been around for a long time. The earth was cultivated with hoes, furrows were made with a primitive ral. They cultivated wheat, barley, millet, legumes. The harvest was harvested with sickles, the grain was ground with grain grinders. Cattle breeding and hunting. Hot forging and welding of copper, but there was no melting yet. Treasure near the village of Karbuna (444 copper objects). Ceramics with in-depth serpentine ornament. The agricultural cult of the mother goddess. Middle period (second half of 4 thousand). The area reaches the Dnieper. Multi-room houses are growing. 2nd and 3rd floors appear. The house was occupied by a large family community. Settlements now have up to 200 or more houses. They are located high above the river, fortified with a rampart and a moat. Grapes have been added to the plants. Cattle breeding was pastoral. Painted utensils and a spiral ornament appear. There was a pouring of copper. Import of metal from the Caucasus. Stone tools predominate. Late period(beginning-third quarter 3 thousand). The largest area. Workshops of flint products. Metal casting in double-sided molds. Two types of ceramics - rough and polished. Story painting. The number of sheep is growing, the number of pigs is decreasing. The role of hunting is growing. Tools were still made of stone, bone and horn. A patriarchal clan develops.



Eneolithic

Eneolithic. New material fixation of scientific knowledge.

1. PRIMARY COMMON SYSTEM. EASTERN SLAVES IN ANCIENT

1.2. Age of Copper and Bronze

2. THE CONCEPT OF THE ENEOLITH AGE. HISTORY OF THE RESEARCH

2.1. The content of the concept of "Eneolithic"

conclusions

Literature

1. PRIMARY-COMMUNAL STRUCTURE. EASTERN SLAVES IN ANCIENT

1.1. Stone Age: from Paleolithic to Neolithic

The history of the Slavs is rooted in deep antiquity, in that very long period of development human society, which is called the primitive communal system. One of the most common periodizations of this formation is archaeological, i.e. dividing it into stone age, copper stone ( Chalcolithic), Bronze and Early Iron Ages. This periodization is based on the principle of the predominance of one or another material in the production of tools. The Stone Age, the longest in the history of people, is also divided into the Paleolithic - the ancient Stone Age, the Mesolithic - the Middle Stone Age and the Neolithic - the New Stone Age. In turn, the Paleolithic is divided into early (lower) and late (upper). In the era of the early Paleolithic, there is a process of anthropogenesis - the emergence and development of "homo sapiens". According to the scientific approach, man stood out from the animal kingdom thanks to labor, the systematic manufacture of tools. In the process of labor activity, the human hand improved, speech appeared and began to develop. science behind recent decades more and more ancient the phenomenon of humanization of our animal-like ancestors, which in turn makes us look for answers to new questions. The missing links of anthropogenesis are filled with new finds, but new gaps also appear. The first human ancestors, who embarked on a long path of development, were monkeys - Australopithecus. As for ancient people(archanthropes), then, judging by the finds in Africa in recent decades, their appearance dates back to 2 - 2.5 million years from us. At the end of the early Paleolithic, about 100 thousand years ago, Neanderthal man appeared, named after the first find in Germany. Neanderthals are paleoanthropes, they are much closer to modern man than the archanthropes that preceded them. Neanderthals spread very widely. Their parking lots on the territory of our country were found in the Caucasus, in the Crimea, in Central Asia, Kazakhstan, in the lower reaches of the Dnieper and Don, near Volgograd. Glaciation, which changed the composition of animals and the appearance of flora, began to play an important role in the development of man. Neanderthals learned how to make fire, which was a huge conquest of the emerging humanity. Apparently, they already had the first rudiments of ideological ideas.

In the late Paleolithic (40-35 thousand years ago), a person of the modern type (Cro-Magnon man) was formed. These people have already significantly improved the technique of making stone tools: they are becoming much more diverse, sometimes miniature. A throwing spear appears, which greatly increased the efficiency of hunting. Art is born. Rock art served magical purposes. Images of rhinos, mammoths, horses, etc. were applied to the walls of the caves with a mixture of natural ocher and animal glue. (for example, Kapova cave in Bashkiria). In the Paleolithic era, the forms of human communities also gradually change. From the primitive human herd - to the tribal system, which arises in the late Paleolithic. The tribal community, which is characterized by common ownership of the main means of production, becomes the main cell of human society. The transition to the Middle Stone Age - the Mesolithic in our territory began in the XII-X millennium BC, and ended in the VII-V millennium BC. During this time, mankind made many discoveries. The most important invention was the bow and arrow, which led to the possibility of not driven, but individual hunting, and also for small animals. The first steps were taken in the direction of cattle breeding. The dog was tamed. Some scholars suggest that pigs, goats and sheep were domesticated at the end of the Mesolithic. Cattle breeding, as a type of economic activity, was formed only in the Neolithic, when agriculture was also born. The transition to a productive economy is of such extraordinary importance for humanity and, in terms of the Stone Age, occurred so quickly that scientists can even speak of a Neolithic "revolution". The range of stone tools is expanding and improving, but fundamentally new materials are also appearing. So, in the Neolithic, the manufacture of ceramics was mastered, still stucco, without a potter's wheel. Weaving was also mastered. The boat was invented and shipping began. In the Neolithic, the tribal system reaches a higher stage of development - large associations of clans are created - tribes, intertribal exchange and intertribal ties appear.

1.2. Age of Copper and Bronze

The development of metals was a real revolution in the life of mankind. The first metal that people learned to mine was copper. The appearance of copper tools intensified the exchange between the tribes, since copper deposits are distributed very unevenly over the earth. The Neolithic community was already much less closed off than the Paleolithic community. This time is called Eneolithic. Over time, on the basis of copper, people learned to create new alloys - bronze appeared.

In the era Eneolithic(Copper-Stone Age, 4-3 thousand BC) people mastered the processing of copper. The development of tribes is intensifying, people live in houses built with their own hands. The people themselves in appearance already differed little from modern people.

The Eneolithic is a transitional era from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. At this time, the population got acquainted with metallurgy and copper metalworking. The main materials for the manufacture of tools were stone and bone. Single metal objects - plates, knives, needles, awls and other small items - are made by forging.

The Eneolithic era is characterized by the spread and strengthening of productive forms of economy, the use of a new natural material - copper, the invention of wheeled transport. On a number of vast territories where the possibilities of agriculture were limited, cattle breeding had broad prospects for the development of new forms. Gradually spreading in the latitudinal and meridional direction, cattle breeding penetrated into the zone of hunting and fishing cultures, the population of which quickly realized its effectiveness. In the forest-steppe regions, the productive economy was combined with the traditional forms of appropriation - hunting, fishing, and gathering. The introduction of the new economy and its features predetermined the formation of new cultures and systems of relations, the creation of previously unknown cults and traditions.

The ideological views and beliefs of the Eneolithic farmers of Eastern Europe were constituent part their being. The central place was occupied by the cult of fertility, as evidenced by clay female figurines, cult inventory, and painting on vessels found in specially constructed sanctuaries. A special group is made up of amulets associated with the cult of the solar bull and other animals that were the object of worship. Clay models of dwellings, in which the furnace was the most important structure, are also ritual. These models were used in household rituals during the baking of bread and in magical actions aimed at ensuring a bountiful harvest. At the beginning of the Eneolithic era, having adopted the ideas of cattle breeding, the forest-steppe tribes began to tame wild horses, which had previously been an object of hunting and had inhabited the territory of the Volga-Urals since ancient times. The spread of large and small cattle occurred as a result of the advance of the Eneolithic tribes from the western regions of Eastern Europe.
With the beginning of horse breeding, the cult of the horse began to take hold, which was reflected in the construction of altars with horse skulls and the spread of horse images.
The religious beliefs of the forest-steppe tribes were reflected in their funeral rites. The discovery and study of burial grounds showed that, compared with the previous era, the ideological representations of the tribes that inhabited the territory of the Samara Volga region have changed significantly. The construction of the burial ground - an ancient cemetery - was accompanied by certain ritual actions associated with people's ideas about life and death. The dead tribesmen were placed in shallow pits in an extended position on their backs, with their heads to the north or northeast. One to three people could be buried in one grave pit. On top of the body sprinkled with ocher, red paint, symbolizing blood, life, warmth.

2. THE CONCEPT OF THE ENEOLITH AGE. HISTORY OF THE RESEARCH.

In table. 1 given historical position of the Eneolithic in the history of the development of scientific knowledge about mankind, in the material development of mankind and its influence on ethnohistorical processes.

Table 1

Time steps 1	Archaeological characterization	Anthropological characteristic
4181 (5600)		bipedal walking
2584 (2600)	The beginning of the gunnery	astralopithecines
1597	Olduvai	Homo habilis 2
987 (1000)	Abbeville (labor tradition)	Archanthropes 2
610 (600)	Early Acheulean 5	Archanthropes 2
377 (400)	Middle Acheulean 5	Paleanthropes 3
233 (230)	Late Acheulean 5 4	paleanthropes
144 (140-120)	Early Mousterian 6	paleanthropes
	Middle Mousterian 6	paleanthropes
	Late Mousterian 6	paleanthropes
34 (40)	Upper Paleolithic early	Neoanthropes
	Upper Paleolithic Middle	Neoanthropes
	Upper Paleolithic Late 7	Neoanthropes
	Neolithic	Modern man
	Eneolithic	Modern man
	early bronze	Modern man
	Late Bronze Age	Modern man
	Early Iron Age	Modern man
	Late Iron Age	Modern man

Notes:

1. Unit of account 1,000 years; time steps are given without specifying the origin.

2. development within the biocenosis (biosphere).

3. mastery of fire, exit from the biocenosis and the formation of the noosphere.

4. development within the noosphere.

5. Lower Paleolithic, planetary chronology, prehistory.

6. Middle Paleolithic, planetary chronology, prehistory.

7. regional chronologies, regional history.

2.1. The content of the concept of "Eneolithic".

First, I will consider the question of what is meant by the term "Eneolithic". Here we encounter different approaches. The authors of the volume "Eneolithic of the USSR", drawing a line under the list of available approaches to the definition of the Eneolithic, distinguish two main approaches: formal-semantic and meaningful. The authors note one-sidedness in using the formal-semantic method, since when determining the era, the main attention is paid to the presence of copper and stone products, and everything is limited to this. This approach has been used in many teaching aids and reference literature. They consider another method to be more effective - a meaningful one, since the basis of archaeological periodization is the whole complex of cultural elements, the carriers of which were ancient tribes, which was reflected in archaeological materials. The founder of this method was B.B. Piotrovsky. It should be noted that a great achievement of the developers of the meaningful method was the realization of the "Eneolithic" as an independent archaeological era in the development of ancient cultures, when there is an intensive development of the producing forms of the economy (in various combinations) and the new cultural traditions corresponding to them, which manifested themselves in new archaeological sets of things. - "... flat-bottomed richly ornamented ceramics, small plastic, durable dwellings with a flat floor."

Other authors have departed from the opposition of these approaches when defining the concept of "Eneolithic". The direction of research has also changed when using the capabilities of each of them in combination. So A.V. Artsikhovsky combines in his definition of "Eneolithic" both archaeological signs (formal-semantic) and signs of a historical order (substantive). The Copper Stone Age, according to the researcher, was the era when "... copper appeared, but the overwhelming predominance in the industry belonged to stone, ... this corresponds to the wide spread of agriculture and cattle breeding, ... settlements with painted ceramics are typical; characteristic features: the dominance of hoe agriculture, large adobe houses of primitive communal groups, figurines of ancestors, characteristic of the maternal clan.

V.N. Chernykh connects the beginning and development of the Eneolithic era with the development of the Balkan-Carpathian metallurgical province. Signs (metallurgical) of the era are: "... the appearance of forged and open-cast copper products without artificial impurities; - the distribution of three main types of heavy copper weapons and tools along with small products. This coincides with the consolidation of huge cultural and historical communities and cultures ; emergence of powerful cultural and industrial centers; reorientation of cultural and economic ties of large ethnic groups".

However, it should be noted that in developing criteria for the definition and content of the term "Eneolithic", the researchers, whose points of view are outlined above, were mainly based only on the materials of agricultural and pastoral cultures of Central Asia, the Caucasus and Right-Bank Ukraine, i.e. regions with a predominantly agricultural form of economy. In relation to the more northern regions - the forest zone - there was an opinion about the Eneolithic as a transitional period during which economic and social development proceeded at an especially rapid pace, when "... Neolithic traditions still dominate throughout the entire period" in the socio-economic structure and in everyday life. Only rare copper products appear, and the stone industry reaches a perfection that is not observed even in the Neolithic. The organization of the hunting and fishing economy is becoming more complex and productive, the camps are larger and more durable. At the same time, contacts between tribes and exchanges sharply expanded.

In the work of I.B. Vasilyev and A.T. Sinyuk considers the origin and periodization of the cultures of the Dnieper-Don-Volga forest-steppe with the involvement of materials from the steppe region. Meaning by "Eneolithic" an independent archaeological epoch, they emphasize that it is associated "... with the appearance of copper products for any purpose and those archaeological features that caused the introduction of metalworking and metallurgy into life, before the spread of products from artificial alloys." According to the researchers, the purpose of their study is to identify those features that are specific in different geographical areas, and behind which are hidden historical phenomena due to the development of productive forms of economy and metallurgical production.

The next step in the development of the concept of "Eneolithic" was made by I.F. Kovaleva. She supported the point of view, according to which both approaches, technological and economic (in the interpretation of I.F. Kovaleva) are closely interconnected when defining the concept of "Eneolithic". The first defines the criteria for selecting a period, the second determines its content. Therefore, as a principle on the basis of which one should judge the economic nature of the era, there is the presence of copper products, but not single, but stable types. In economic terms, this led to general progress in the economy, "... the formation of a pastoral and agricultural economy, accompanied by a regrouping of the population, the formation of new systems of relations."

It is impossible not to recognize the validity of this characterization of the "Eneolithic" era, however, the beginning of the metal era, from my point of view, dates from the moment the first, still single finds of copper appeared on the monuments. Taking into account the great value of these products at that time, especially at the initial stage, when each used item was melted down, the appearance of single metal finds is sufficient to attribute the monument to the Eneolithic.

The most correct point of view regarding the concept of "Eneolithic" of Eastern Europe, in my opinion, was expressed by A.T. Sinyuk. The author notes the fact that the beginning of the Eneolithic should be associated with the appearance of not only developed types of copper products (because they penetrated later than the time of their emergence as types in general under the influence of the cultures of the Balkan-Carpathian metallurgical province), but also complexes of archaeological features, "... which materialize the phenomena associated with the use of copper: the revaluation of the types of labor and the products themselves, the emergence of new cult representations and rituals, cultural reorientations, new forms of intertribal and interethnic contacts. These features are specific to different landscape-climatic zones or areas inhabited by tribes that differed in the specifics of their economy and culture. A.T. Sinyuk singles out such a set of features that is characteristic of the early stage of the Eneolithic: earthenware with a characteristic collared top; with rounded and flat bottoms; with the inclusion of wavy drawn lines in the ornament system; the presence of collective cemeteries with elongated burials decorated with shells, bone zoomorphic plates, with stone tops of maces of the "second Mariupol type" - signs characterizing the cemeteries of the Mariupol type; altars with the remains of horses; accompaniment of burials with parts of horse carcasses; horse bones among faunal remains in the cultural layers of sites; knives on large knife-like plates; the first products made of copper and gold. These archaeological features reflect, according to A.T. Sinyuka, cattle-breeding direction of the economy of the tribes, with a predominance of horse breeding.

Thus, studies by a number of authors have shown that the "Eneolithic" is an independent archaeological epoch, the definition of which includes signs of both archaeological and historical order. Its material signs are a new level of fixation of scientific knowledge about the development of mankind.

conclusions

As I have considered, the concept of "Eneolithic" has a specific manifestation in various regions or landscape zones of Eastern Europe. The study of the material culture and economy of the population that left the monuments gives a series of facts that are consistent with the definition of the "Eneolithic" of the East European steppe and forest-steppe as "... an independent era in the system of archaeological periodization, starting with the spread of cultures characterized by such a complex of archaeological features that are due the skills of making the first copper products and the spread of cattle breeding, including horse breeding.

Since facts are the main form of scientific knowledge, the material monuments of the Eneolithic are their material fixation.

A scientific fact arises as a result of a very complex rational processing of observational data: their comprehension, understanding, interpretation. In this sense, any facts of science represent the interaction of the sensual and the rational. Facts are determined by the properties of material reality and therefore can confirm or disprove a theory.

In this paper, I present the facts of new scientific knowledge about the history of human development in the Eneolithic era:

1. Obtaining and using a new material in the economy - copper. Introduction of metalworking and metallurgy.

2. The invention of wheeled transport.

3. Construction of a new type of dwellings and the use of stoves.

4. Development of horse breeding.

Literature

1. Boriskovsky P.I. The ancient past of mankind. 2nd ed. L, 1979.

2. Bray W., Trump D. Archaeological Dictionary. M., 1990.

3. Vernadsky V.I. Selected works on the history of science. M., 1981.

4. Gurin Yu.G. Monuments of the early Eneolithic of the Seversky Donets basin.

5. Mellart J. Ancient civilizations of the Middle East. M., 1982.

6. Mesolithic of the USSR / Archeology of the USSR. M., 1989.

7. Paleolithic of the USSR / Archeology of the USSR. M., 1984.

8. Soviet encyclopedic dictionary / Scientific and editorial board: A.M. Prokhorov (prev.). - M.: " Soviet Encyclopedia", 1981. - 1600 p. with illustrations.

9. Eneolithic of the USSR / Archeology of the USSR. M., 1982

Historical periodization distinguishes several stages in the development of man and human society. Until recently, historians assumed that the Stone Age followed the Bronze Age one after the other. But not so long ago it was established that there was a time gap between them, which was classified as the "copper age". What was the change in the opinion of historians about the gradual transition of mankind from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age? What distinguished this time period from others and what features are inherent in this period in the development of mankind? Read about all this below.

Timeframe of the Copper Age

The Copper Stone Age, also known as the Eneolithic, originates in the 6th millennium BC and lasts for almost 2,000 years. The time frame for this period was different meaning depending on the region: in the east and in America, it began somewhat earlier than in Europe. It is worth noting that the first acquaintance with copper began about 3 thousand years before the beginning of the period in question. It happened in the territory of the Ancient East. Initially, nuggets were taken for a soft stone, amenable to the action of harder rocks, that is, cold forging. And only many centuries later, man learned to melt copper and cast many useful items from it: needles, jewelry, spearheads and arrows.

Further development of the metal marked the beginning of such a period as the copper-bronze age, when methods and technologies for the manufacture of alloys became known to man, which, in their characteristics, were better than pure copper. In a word, this period is very significant in historical development humanity and civilization in general.

Why "copper"?

The Copper Age in archaeological and historical periodization is characterized by the beginning of the use primitive man tools made of metal, namely copper. This led to the gradual replacement of stone and bone tools with softer, but at the same time easy-to-use axes, knives, and scrapers made from it. In addition, the development of methods for processing this metal allowed a person to make, albeit simple, but at the same time more original and sophisticated jewelry and figurines. The Copper Age marked the beginning of a new round of stratification in terms of well-being: the more copper a person had, the higher the status in society he had.

Household in the copper age

Awareness of the value of copper as a means of exchange between tribes and as the main material for the manufacture of many devices contributed to the active development of early handicraft industries. It was the Copper Age that laid the foundation for the emergence of such crafts as ore mining, metalworking and metallurgy. At the same time, such a phenomenon as specialized agriculture and animal husbandry spread. Pottery production during this period also acquired new features.

Trade also flourished during this period. At the same time, the tribes that mined copper and produced various products from it could exchange with those who were far beyond the borders of their settlement. This is evidenced by the fact that items made of copper mined in the Near East region and the Middle East were found on the territory of Europe.

Archaeological finds from the Copper Age

The most characteristic and striking finds related to copper age, are figurines of women. This is due primarily to the worldview of the people who lived in the Eneolithic. The greatest value for them was the harvest and fertility, which just symbolized such products. At the same time, a large number of them are made of clay, and not of metal.

Paintings on pottery also depicted women and the world. According to the ideas of people who lived in the copper age, the world was divided into three components: the Earth with plants, animals and people, the Middle Sky, radiating the sun's rays, and the Upper Sky, filled with rain, filling the rivers and nourishing the earth.

In addition to products endowed with a sacred meaning of being, archaeologists find knives made of pure copper or bone, tips, needles and much more.

The Eneolithic is a transitional period from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age and falls on the 15th - 11th millennium BC. e. It was a qualitatively new time in the development of the productive forces and production relations of primitive society, the time of further improvement of agriculture and animal husbandry. Primitive hoe farming is being replaced by more productive cultivation of the land using the ral and draft power of domestic animals. Specialization appears in cattle breeding, sheep breeding and horse breeding stand out. A striking indicator of the development of the Eneolithic tribes is the mastery of the first metal - copper, the extraction and processing of which served as the beginning of a qualitatively new production activity - primitive metallurgy.

During this period, the population increases significantly, and the size and number of settlements increase accordingly. Relative overpopulation caused intensive development of new territories.

In the Copper Stone Age, the leading role in Eastern Europe belonged to the Tripoli culture tribes, who got their name from the first monument explored near the village of. Tripoli in Ukraine. This bright and original archaeological culture occupied vast territories from the Dnieper to the Carpathians and the Danube. It has gone a long way of development, during which the nature of material culture, settlement and historical environment have undergone significant changes. Therefore, the history of the Tripoli tribes is usually divided into separate chronological periods: early, middle and late.

Early stage. Tribes of Trypillian culture. There are several points of view regarding the origin of the Trypillian cultural community. Some researchers believe that it arose on the basis of the local Neolithic Bug-Dniester culture. Others are of the opinion that its origins should be sought in the Balkans or in the Eastern Mediterranean, from where it, in an already relatively formed form, penetrated into the interfluve of the Dniester and Prut. However, the most likely opinion is that the Trypillia culture in the territory of the Dniester region was formed as a result of a merger of local and alien elements. There is no doubt that already in the second quarter of the 4th millennium BC. e. Several groups of the settled Trypillia population lived here. All of them are characterized by a common culture and way of life, different from the neighboring tribes of the Early Eneolithic. Initially occupying a small territory of the middle Siret and Prut, the early Tripoli tribes gradually mastered the lands from the Carpathians to the left bank of the Dniester.

For their settlements, they chose coastal areas of the floodplains of the Dniester and its tributaries. Sometimes they settled on the first terrace above the floodplain, and only in individual cases- on the root bank along the river valleys, where there were water sources. In addition, when choosing such places, the availability of pastures for livestock and fertile land for growing plants, as well as the possibility of hunting and fishing, were taken into account. The unfortified settlements of this period included dozens of dwellings and outbuildings located in rows or in a circle. It is assumed that several hundred people lived in each settlement.

The population of the Trypillia culture built dugouts, semi-dugouts, ground dwellings, inside which hearths and stoves were built. Clay houses appeared already at an early stage and are known from excavations in a number of settlements in Transnistria. Their inhabitants led a diverse economy: they were engaged in agriculture, cattle breeding, hunting, gathering and fishing. When cultivating the land, primitive arable tools were used using the draft power of animals. But still, the hoe and digging stick continued to be the main tillage tool. Farming during this period was extensive, allowing only comparatively limited areas to be cultivated.

The cultivated plants were dominated by different kinds wheat and barley, most adapted to local soil and climatic conditions. Millet, peas, vetch, cherry plum, plum and even apricot were also grown, the bones of which were found during excavations. The crop was harvested with composite sickles, which were only twice as productive as iron sickles. As necessary, the grain was crushed with the help of stone grain grinders.

On pastures and in forests near the settlements, domestic animals were kept all year round: cattle, pigs, sheep and goats. Animal husbandry, being at a fairly high level of development, pushed back the hunt for. the second plan, although for a long time she continued to play a certain economic role in the life of the Tripoli tribes. The main objects of hunting most often were red deer, elk, roe deer, bear, wild boar, as well as badger, wolf, lynx and other animals. Gathering and fishing did not lose their importance as additional sources of food.

In the era of the early Trypillia, agriculture and cattle breeding were quite stable. Dry lean years were rare, but the low fertility of the loess-like loams on which farming was carried out affected. From year to year, the yield fell, which forced the inhabitants to periodically look for and develop new lands.

Tools and weapons of this period were made of flint and other types of stone, as well as wood, bones and animal horns. Massive axes, bracelets, beads, amulets and other jewelry were made from copper brought from deposits in the Carpathians and the Balkans by forging and later casting. The first finds of copper products from Trypillia tribes date back to the beginning of the 4th millennium BC. e., but signs of local processing of copper were noted only by the middle of the millennium. Probably, metalworking was formed here on the basis of traditions borrowed from the neighboring tribes of the Balkan Peninsula. By this time, the local population had mastered spinning and weaving, as evidenced by numerous finds of clay sinkers for primitive looms.

Compared with the Neolithic era, progress is especially noticeable in the production of ceramic dishes, which can be conditionally divided into the front, or dining room, and kitchen. During this period, the variety of forms increased significantly, the preparation of the clay mass and the technique of sculpting vessels were improved. The dishes were fired in household ovens and pottery kilns. Trypillian vessels vary in size from 5 to 100 centimeters in height, some of them are anthropomorphic or zoomorphic, that is, they imitate the figures of people and animals. As a rule, the dishes are richly ornamented with carved or smoothed lines, spirals, flutes and impressions of a jagged stamp. Often the carved ornament is filled with white paste. At this stage, tableware painted with red ocher appears.

Numerous clay figurines of women and zoomorphic armchairs decorated with bull horns reflect the religious beliefs of the local population. The images of the great mother goddess and the bull, symbolizing the sun and the masculine principle, were elements of an extremely developed agricultural fertility cult. The whole system of life in the early Trypillia was associated with the dominant role of women in production, everyday life and family and clan relations. The woman was the guardian of the family, the hearth and personified the idea of ​​fertility and the continuation of life. Therefore, it is natural that the account of kinship was conducted along the maternal line.

Early Tripoli communal settlements occupied an area from 1 to 40 hectares and consisted of 10 to 100 dwellings, respectively. The growth of labor productivity led to an improvement in living conditions and led to the formation of large clusters of small and large settlements, which were grouped around centers. Three similar groups of the Early Tripoli population existed on the upper Dniester. The most significant of them was the southern one, which occupied the entire interfluve of the Dniester and Reut and even the lands south of their confluence. Probably, one of the most numerous early Tripoli tribes lived here.

Middle stage. Tripoli tribes in their heyday. Middle and second half of the 4th millennium BC e. characterized by the active development of the economy and culture of the Tripoli tribes. Hoe farming is becoming the leading branch of the economy everywhere. Along with the traditional, a new type of reaping tool is spreading - a large flint plate, fixed at one end in a bone or wooden handle. At the same time, threshing boards equipped with flint inserts appear. Among the imprints of cultivated plants, there are already grape seeds with a small berry so far. It is assumed that the cultivation of grapes came to the Dniester region from the territory of the Balkans.

The presence of meadow pastures in the river valleys and the wide distribution of deciduous forests created a good fodder base for animal husbandry even in winter. During this period, animal husbandry resolutely pushes hunting into the background, occupying a leading place in the economy together with agriculture. It is significant that in a number of settlements

cattle breeding predominates even over agriculture. So, the predominantly cattle-breeding was the economy of the inhabitants of the Transnistrian village of Soroki (Lake).

The main materials for tools are still stone, bone, horn and wood, but the processing of flint reaches special perfection. Whole villages specializing in the production of flint products arose. The craftsmen of this culture made scrapers, large knives, saws, arrowheads, darts and spears. Often, these tools were distributed hundreds of kilometers from the place of their production. Further development also receives the manufacture of polished stone axes, adzes and hammers with holes.

Ceramic production has reached truly rare heights. The firing of pottery was carried out with amazing skill. During this period, the painting of vessels with black, red, less often white paints flourished. The painting, combined with engraving and moldings, created an exquisite ornament, which, along with the aesthetic, also performed cult and magical functions. According to researchers, the images on ceramics most often symbolized the feminine principle and the cult of fertility associated with it.

The invention of special two-tier pottery kilns, or forges, significantly improved the quality of ceramics. Their appearance in the settlements indicates that in the Tripoli tribes there were professional craftsmen, which were engaged exclusively in the production of vessels and other ceramic products. Thus, pottery making becomes a communal craft. Along with ceramics, the production of copper products, which required special knowledge and skills, is probably also becoming a communal craft. Despite the fact that copper products often came here in finished form, a number of Trypillia settlements were found large pieces copper slag, fragments of crucibles and stone hammers for crushing ore. These finds suggest that metal processing played a significant role in the economic activity of the local population. Axes of various shapes, fish hooks, awls and various ornaments were made from copper.

Trypillian tribes achieved particular success in house building. In the settlements, large two-story dwellings with a number of enclosed interior spaces are often found. The frame of the dwelling was built of wood, which was covered with clay outside and inside. During the excavations, it was possible to establish that large family communities, consisting of several paired families, lived on the ground floor. For each of them, a separate room, fenced off from the others, with a stove and a hearth was intended. The second floor was used for storage and for other household needs. The two-story structure of Trypillia houses is also confirmed by the finds of models of clay dwellings, which had entrance openings in the end part of the walls, round openings instead of windows, and gable thatched or reed roofs.

The development of production created conditions for the accumulation of excess product and the expansion of exchange relations with the nearest neighbors. The local tribes actively exchanged with the population of Volhynia, from where ready-made tools and their preparations made of high-quality flint came in large numbers. At the same time, close contacts were noted with the population of the Balkan Peninsula and the Carpathian Basin, which had a significant impact on cultural development Transnistria.

The rise of the economy and culture was accompanied by an increase in the population. Small settlements up to 3 hectares are disappearing. They are replaced by large settlements with an area of ​​up to 30 hectares with dozens and hundreds of dwellings and outbuildings. Several communal settlements formed separate regional formations connected not only by cultural and kinship relations, but also by common military and defensive tasks. Large Trypillia settlements often consisted of fortifications on a hill and an unfortified lowland part. Defensive structures were found on some of them: ramparts and ditches, which reliably protected the population living here.

Aerial photography and geomagnetic studies carried out showed that the largest Trypillia settlements served as a kind of tribal centers and, possibly, were the prototype of future cities (the so-called proto-cities). Analyzing total dwellings in various settlements, it was possible to calculate that from several hundred to several thousand people lived there at the same time. Thus, in the era of the heyday of the Trypillia culture in Pridnestrovie, a significant population density was noted: per 1 sq. km accounted for an average of about 13 people.

In the northern part of the Dniester-Prut interfluve, perhaps the most densely populated region of the entire distribution area of ​​the Trypillia tribes is formed. This region has become one of the main centers of this culture. There are three areas of the highest concentration of ancient settlements, and one of them includes the territory of the northern part of Transnistria.

late period. Triyolskoe society at the final stage. By the end of IV and in the first half of III millennium BC. e. Trypillia culture reached its peak, after which the first signs of a crisis began to appear. Its main reason is the deterioration of natural conditions associated with the expansion of the steppe landscape and the reduction of forest vegetation. Hoe farming on infertile loess soils, hunting and fishing could no longer provide the former standard of living for the ever-increasing population. The arid climate has drastically reduced the fodder base of cattle breeding.

Under these conditions, the importance of agriculture continued to grow, which developed through the development of new areas. The technique of cultivating the land and harvesting remained at the same level, since the primitive horn rales on an ox cart were unsuitable for raising virgin soil and were used mainly for loosening the soil before sowing. Loess-like soils were quickly depleted after several years of intensive use and were restored only after decades. The decrease in soil fertility forced the inhabitants of Trypillia settlements to leave them every 40-50 years and create new ones on other lands.

In livestock farming, cattle still remained the main source of meat food and skins, despite the appearance of chickens and horses in Trypillia villages. The horse, most likely, was borrowed from neighboring pastoral tribes, and it was used not only for transporting goods, but also for riding. As before, cattle were kept mainly on grazing, which led to a periodic reduction in the herd on the eve of winter.

Primitive agricultural technology and relatively low culture animal husbandry could not provide a normal existence. Therefore, approximately by the middle of the III millennium BC. e. there is a certain transformation of Trypillia communities. A number of new ethnocultural formations are emerging, chronologically occupying an intermediate position at the stage of transition from the Eneolithic to the Early Bronze Age. On the territory of Transnistria during this period, two related local groups of the late Tripoli population were formed.

Tribes of the Usatov local group. By the middle of the III millennium BC. e. part of the population of the Middle Dniester was forced to leave their lands and move to the steppe regions of the North-Western Black Sea region and Romania. Unusual for Tripoli tribes natural conditions the steppe south turned out to be unsuitable for agriculture, but they greatly contributed to the development of cattle breeding, so it became the leading branch of the economy for the Usatov group of the population. This group got its name from the first discovered and explored monument of this type near the village. Usatovo near Odessa.

For their settlements, these tribes often chose naturally protected areas, often additionally fortified with ramparts and ditches. Along with small fortified sites, rather large settlements were built with a variety of stone economic and religious buildings, which, most likely, were intertribal cultural centers. The main one was the settlement near the village. Usatovo, next to which there were several burial mounds and soil burial grounds. Usatov barrows had rather complex structures, consisting of stone domes, mortgages and cromlechs. Judging by the grave goods, they buried mainly tribal leaders and tribal elders. Burials of ordinary members of the tribe were ground burial grounds. As a rule, these were small pits covered with stone slabs or mortgages and containing poor grave goods.

It is indicative that only settlements and mounds of this local group are known in the territory of the Lower Dniester to date. On the left bank of the Dniester, Usatov barrows were discovered near the city of Tiraspol, as well as near the villages of Butory, Speya, Krasnogorka, Bychok, Grigoriopol region, Parkany, Ternovka and Sukleya, Slobodzeya region. Almost in each of them characteristic pottery, tools, weapons made of stone, bone and metal were found.

The brightest and richest group of Usatov burials was investigated on the right bank of the Dniester near the village. Purcari district Stefan Voda. Here, on the plain plateau of the root bank, there were four burial mounds containing 11 Usatov burials. Three of them were surrounded by massive stone lining. One of the richest burials of that time was found in the center of the largest barrow. Along with table and kitchen vessels, there were six bronze items, silver temporal rings, a horn hoe and many ornaments made of polished bird bones. The presence of a series of bronze tools and other grave goods, as well as an impressive burial mound indicates that this complex belongs to a representative of the local tribal nobility. In this area, directly at the Dniester, a synchronous settlement is known, to which the discovered mounds probably belonged.

In addition, the materials obtained suggest that in this region of the Lower Dniester region, the Usatov tribes constantly grazed their cattle. This is confirmed by the finds in paired burials of the skeletons of children and young men who could be shepherds. A characteristic element of the burial inventory of the Usatov tribes are peculiar stylized figures of women on cubic pedestals, as well as a large group of kitchen ceramics with a significant admixture of crushed shells in the dough. At the same time, there is a decrease (compared to the previous era) in the diversity of ceramic forms and a gradual degradation of the painted ornament.

The population of the Usatovskaya group bred mainly goats and sheep, but both horses and cattle were used in the economy. Cattle breeding was of a transhumant nature, but was based on fortified settlements. Arable agriculture faded into the background and was practiced mainly in the river valleys. Hunting and fishing did not occupy any important place in the economy.

Playing the role of an outpost of the Trypillia world in the south, the Usatov tribes were the first to come into contact with the pastoral population of the Yamnaya culture, and then held back their onslaught for some time. Probably, at the first stage, their relationship was quite peaceful, which was reflected in a number of steppe imports in the late Trypillia burial complexes. However, by the end of the III millennium BC. e. the Usatov population leaves the historical arena, being forced out or assimilated by newcomer tribes.

Tribes of the Vykhvatinsky local group. These tribes got their name from the first studied monument near the village. Vykhvatintsy Rybnitsa region. They occupied the territory on both banks of the Dniester, approximately from the town of Soroka in the north to the town of Dubossary and the mouth of the river. Reut in the south. Vykhvatinsky settlements and barrowless burial grounds are few in number and practically unexplored. On some of them, the remains of ground dwellings-platforms, dugouts and outbuildings were found.

The most striking monument of this cultural group, of course, is the Vykhvatinsky burial ground, accidentally discovered on the territory of the village of the same name. It was located on a high cape formed by the left bank of the Dniester and two ravines, not far from the synchronous settlement. During the years of excavations, an area of ​​900 sq. m, on which there were a total of 74 graves. Many of them were surrounded by stone facings or had stone ceilings.

All the buried of this burial ground lay in a crouched position, mostly on their left side, sprinkled with white clay or red ocher. Most of the graves contained quite expressive grave goods. The collection of tools and weapons discovered here is not numerous and is represented mainly by flint, stone, horn and bone products, as well as one metal object - an awl. Pottery clearly predominates in the inventory, which is divided into the dining room, made of fine-grained clay, and the kitchen, molded from the mass with an admixture of finely crushed shells. The originality of tableware is given by the exclusively horizontal structure of the painting, applied in dark brown, sometimes in combination with red, ocher. Kitchen ceramics are decorated with parallel cord imprints and are of lower quality. Particularly expressive is the anthropomorphic plasticity represented by realistic female figurines and an excellently preserved rattle, which were found in children's graves.

According to archaeologists, the burial ground was divided into two sections. One of them was intended for the burial of ordinary members of the community, the other - for members of isolated families. Each of these family necropolises contained the remains of one or two men, one woman, and three to five children. Thus, at the stage of transition from the Late Eneolithic to the Early Bronze Age, the patriarchal family becomes the main unit of society. Judging by the funeral rite, in the same period, the tribal elite was separated - the elders and leaders who possessed wealth and power. The social stratification of society is clearly evidenced by the grave goods of some burials, as well as the appearance of wands, battle and ceremonial axes in the settlements and burial grounds. The primitive communal system was at the threshold of its decomposition.

In addition to the Vykhvatinsky burial ground, which continues to be the largest and most expressive for this group of the late Tripoli population, only two locations of similar burial complexes are known - near the villages of Golerkany and Oksentiya, Dubossary district, on the right bank of the Dniester, which are almost completely destroyed by the waters of the Dubossary reservoir. However, there is no doubt that more thorough archaeological exploration in Transnistria will lead to the discovery of new Vyhvata-type burial grounds.

In the late Trypillia era, the role of men in the life of the family and community is steadily increasing, which is due to the need for the rapid development of new lands, which required the raising of virgin lands, felling and uprooting of forests, specialization in metalworking, pottery and flint processing, the construction of defensive fortifications and the development of cattle breeding. In an atmosphere of increased military clashes, the figure of a male warrior is of particular importance. This is evidenced by the finds of numerous battle axes and picks made of deer antler, stone and metal. The role of women is increasingly limited to the sphere of the household and its attendant activities. But she still remains the keeper of the hearth associated with the cult of the mother goddess and fertility.

On the territory of Transnistria, the societies described above developed over the course of three to four centuries - from the 21st to the 22nd century. BC e. This period is characterized by major economic and social changes, stormy intertribal relations. The study of the Trypillia culture showed that it was one of the main centers of a developed manufacturing economy in Europe and was distinguished high level development of the material and spiritual life of the local population.

The most ancient pastoral tribes of the Eneolithic. long time it was believed that the first pastoral tribes that penetrated the North-Western Black Sea region were the carriers of the Yamnaya culture. However, large-scale excavations of mounds carried out over the past 20 years have refuted this point of view. It turned out that the earliest burial complexes are the earliest ones, which preceded the burials not only of the Yamnaya, but also of the Usatov culture.

The total number of the most ancient burial mounds is small and includes several dozen burial complexes in Pridnestrovie. The earliest of them are characterized by a crouched position of the skeleton on the back and an oriental orientation. According to the researchers, these sites were originally barrowless and associated with small groups of pastoralists and artisans who entered the region from the east.

A certain standard in the characterization of this group of burials is the main burial complex in the mound near the village. Suvorovo, Odessa region. Here, in a double burial, among the rich inventory, represented by tools and jewelry made of copper, flint and unio shells, a stone scepter was found, realistically depicting a horse's head with a bridle on. The finds of scepters found in the layers of various ancient agricultural societies testify to the deep antiquity of the complex. An analysis of such stylized zoomorphic images made of stone - the so-called scepters - made it possible to attribute them to a relatively narrow chronological period - the middle of the 4th millennium BC. e. This conclusion is also confirmed by a fragment of a schematic scepter found at the Trypillia settlement of Upper Zhory (I) on the Dniester.

With a certain degree of probability, the group of the most ancient cattle-breeding burials can be attributed to the Novodanilovskaya group of monuments identified in Ukraine, which dates back to the middle - the beginning of the second half of the 4th millennium BC. e. The fact that these tribes lived in the lower reaches of the Dniester is evidenced by the discovery by Pridnestrovian archaeologists of the first similar complex in a mound near the village. Slobodzeya. Here, in the central burial destroyed in antiquity, tools made of copper and stone were found, as well as jewelry made of bone, characteristic mainly of the Novodanilovsk sites. Single finds of such burials indirectly indicate that the penetration of the first pastoralists here was extremely small and most likely had an episodic character.

The second group of Eneolithic monuments is characterized by a crouched position on the left or on the right side. With burials of this particular type, a tradition of erecting mounds arose in this territory. The idea of ​​building mounds was obviously due to the mobile way of life of the first pastoral tribes: the mound is clearly visible on the flat expanses of the Eastern European steppes. The peculiarity of these monuments made it possible to distinguish them into the Khadzhider cultural group, which is characteristic mainly for the territory of the Dniester-Pruto-Danube interfluve.

Eastern orientation prevails among the main complexes of this group. The discovered grave goods are very expressive and consist of rare vessels various forms, tools, weapons made of flint and horn, motifs, as well as adornments characteristic of the Eneolithic - necklaces made of animal teeth and bone beads. The most striking series of this group was given by the study of a unique cult complex in mound 9 near the village of. Red Grigoriopol region. Here, under the most ancient mound, nine Eneolithic burials and a monumental and ritual complex associated with them were discovered. Probably, in ancient times this mound was a kind of temple-sanctuary for the local pastoral population. It consisted of wooden and stone structures and included primitive zoomorphic and anthropomorphic stone slabs and images, dominated by the heads of a bull and primitive images of a human figure. It is significant that an expressive bone scepter with a copper plate inserted into the working part and inlaid with six copper rods was found in one of the burials. He had no traces of harmony and, most likely, belonged to the leader of the tribe or the priest of this temple.

The pastoral Eneolithic tribes bred mainly small cattle - goats, sheep - and horses. An important place in the herd was occupied by cattle. An image of a bridle on a scepter found in a barrow near the village. Suvorovo, allows us to assert that during this period horse riding was already mastered, which contributed to the mobility of the steppe population. Exceptionally interesting are the data of the trace analysis of flint artifacts from two burials in the mound near the village. Red. In one of them there were tools for working wood, in the other - for working leather, which allows us to speak of the beginnings of handicraft specialization already in the Eneolithic era.

The high development of ideological ideas associated with the cult of the bull and the sun is evidenced not only by the temple complex near the village. Red, but also the discovery of the remains of a similar sanctuary with anthropomorphic steles near the village. Olanesti district Stefan Voda on the right bank of the Dniester. The oldest monumental images found on these monuments speak of their cultural belonging to the traditions of the Eneolithic era, although in subsequent times they were widely used to cover later, mostly pit, burials.

The historical development of the Eneolithic ends with the penetration of the next wave of other cultural pastoral tribes of the so-called post-Mariupol group into these lands. Most of these monuments are also associated with barrow construction and are characterized by the extreme poverty of grave goods. The main features of the noted complexes are the elongated position of those buried on their backs and the absence of pottery. Their connection with the eastern regions of the North Black Sea steppes is confirmed by similar burials in the Orel-Samara interfluve. The relative chronology of the most ancient burial mounds in Transnistria makes it possible to attribute the post-Mariupol group to the second quarter of the 3rd millennium BC. e.

Different funeral rite and the inventory of Eneolithic burials allows us to conclude that the first pastoral tribes of the region were polyethnic, represented by at least three noted cultural and chronological groups. The penetration of the first tribes of the Yamnaya culture on the left bank of the Dniester marked the onset of a new historical era here - the Bronze Age.