I work in the field of the archaeological petrography. My purpose is to reconstruct the history of stone mining of the Central Ukraine and other regions from the Paleolithic to the Middle Ages.
Досліджені зразки були представлені частиною кам’яного знаряддя праці доби раннього модерну та дв... more Досліджені зразки були представлені частиною кам’яного знаряддя праці доби раннього модерну та двома фрагментами будівельного матеріалу з культурного горизонту доби пізньої бронзи. За результатами петрографічного аналізу було встановлено, що знаряддя козацької доби було виготовлене з роговообманкового діориту, а зразки, датовані бронзовою добою, були представлені пісковиками з кременистим та карбонатним цементом, відповідно. Стосовно походження сировини артефакту козацького часу, з’ясовано, що географічно найближчими до місця проведення розкопок є прояви діоритів в зоні Середньопридніпровського мегаблоку Українського щита. Пісковик з кременистим цементом є найбільш подібним до аналогічних порід олігоцен-міоценової полтавської серії, поширених у регіоні. Зразок пісковика з карбонатним цементом, найбільш вірогідно, утворився в зоні виходу на поверхню підземних вод, має четвертинний вік та цілком міг мати місцеве походження
Journal of Geology, Geography and Geoecology, Jun 29, 2024
The article is devoted to solving the question of the origin of the raw materials of stone artifa... more The article is devoted to solving the question of the origin of the raw materials of stone artifacts discovered during the study of the surface of the Lower Paleolithic localities near the settlement of Andriivka in the Kharkiv Region (Ukraine). The material of a significant part of artifacts was represented not by flint but by other rocks that are not typical for the area where the sites are located. Thus, an assumption was made about the likely mass use of remote stone raw materials in the Early Paleolithic, which is not typical for the territory of Ukraine. To confirm this fact, a petrographic study of the raw material of the artifacts was conducted based on 12 selected samples. Transparent thin sections had been produced from all the items, and the study using a polarizing microscope was performed. Research on the raw materials in the studied collection determined that it includes limestone, chalcedony rock (silicified limestone), sandstone, and two samples showing the contact between quartzites and schists. The studied limestones are represented by oolitic, coral, and chemogenic cryptocrystalline species. Also, the raw material of some of the products was identified as silicified limestone. All the mentioned rocks are characteristic of the occurrences of the Oxford stage of the Upper Jurassic, common in the Izium and Lozova Raions of the Kharkiv Region. The raw material of one item was identified as quartz sandstone with rock fragments and relict argillaceous-siliceous cement. Such rocks are typical for the deposits of the Carboniferous system of the Donets Coal Basin, they are found southeast of Andriivka, downstream of the Siverskyi Donets River, and also within the Open Donbas. Since in ancient times, only rocks exposed to the day surface could be mined, most likely, the sandstone got to the place of discovery from the territory of the modern Donetsk Region. Two of the studied products were made from contact rocks: one sample is identified as a contact of micaceous quartzite and sericite-quartz schist, and the other as a contact of microquartzite and quartz-biotite schist. The first rock, most likely, was formed as a result of recrystallization of siltstone, and the second-owing to quartzization of argillaceous limestone and carbonate-biotite schist. Siltstones are characteristic of Paleozoic deposits and may have the same origin as sandstone. The second sample may have the same provenance as the investigated limestones. Based on the results of the research, it was determined that all the samples from the locations near Andriivka come from the territories located mainly downstream of the Siverskyi Donets River, or in the southwestern direction in the territory of the modern Lozova Raion of the Kharkiv Region. The data provided by the sites in the Andriivka area testify to the relatively high mobility of the ancient population, as the identified rocks include samples from occurrences located at a distance of more than 60 km and some-more than 100 km. Thus, the distance between the deposits and the sites is greater than is usually recorded for the Lower Paleolithic archaeological sites of Ukraine. The obtained data indicate the origin of the purposeful collecting and supply of remote stone raw materials by man on the territory of Ukraine no later than 300 thousand years ago.
Purpose. To determine the rock composition and origin of raw materials of non-fl int stone produc... more Purpose. To determine the rock composition and origin of raw materials of non-fl int stone products found during the study on the Mira Upper Palaeolithic archaeological site in the Middle Dnipro area. Methodology. The research on the artefacts was carried out using the mineralogical and petrographic methods. The rocks were studied in transparent thin sections using a polarized microscope. To verify the accuracy of the petrographic analysis of some specimens, the XRD and XRF methods were applied. Establishing the provenance of the rocks was performed using comparative mineralogical and petrographic analysis, for which the specimens of samples from the outcrops were used, as well as geological survey and literary data. Findings. To conduct petrographic research, seven specimens of stones with traces of processing, found during archaeological excavations of the Upper Palaeolithic Mira site, were taken. As a result of the petrographic analysis, it was established that the stones with traces of processing are represented by the aplitoid two-feldspar granites, altered dolerite, quartz arenite, quartz rock, amphibolite and actinolitite. All the mentioned rocks are typical for the Middle Dnipro area. The specimens of the granites, dolerite, and arenite, by their petrographic features, have analogues among the rocks of the region and, more likely, are of the local provenance. Most likely, a quartz sample comes from the territory of the Ukrainian Shield. The types of amphibolite and actinolitite, which are analogues to the studied artefacts by their petrographic and chemical features, do not occur today among the rocks that form natural outcrops in the Middle Dnipro area. Thus, the specimens of the amphibolite and actinolitite may have both local and other origin. More accurate determination of the provenance of the amphibolite and actinolitite samples requires further study involving sample collections from other regions, wherefrom these rocks could have been carried. Originality. For the fi rst time, the Upper Palaeolithic Mira archaeological site stone artefacts were studied in thin sections and with the application of XRD and XRF analyses, which made it possible to make more precise fi ndings on their petrographic properties and origin. The studied samples are of great importance because, today, they are the earliest non-fl int stone artefacts from the Middle Dnipro area to be studied by means of petrography, particularly those made from crystalline rocks of the Ukrainian Shield. Practical value. The results obtained can be used in performing studies on archaeology and the history of mining, as well as in popular science works.
The types of rock that were used by the Scythian population of Transdnepria for stone sculpture p... more The types of rock that were used by the Scythian population of Transdnepria for stone sculpture production were determined. Conclusions were drawn about the raw stone materials used and the probable locations of their mining. An important issue for archeology and quaternary geology is to determine the origin of raw materials ancient stone sculptures. To solve similar tasks allows mineralogical and petrographic analysis of raw material artifacts. This article focuses on the mineralogical and petrographic research works Scythian stone sculpture of funds Dnipropetrovs’k National History Museum. Installed name rocks used Scythian people of the Middle Dnieper for making stone sculptures, as well as identify possible design space stone materials. It is concluded that the Scythian people of the Middle Dnieper for making stone sculptures, most likely used the local rocks outcrop near the places of production and further location data artifacts. The raw material for works of stone sculpture ...
The article presents the results of petrographic research of building stone that was used for the... more The article presents the results of petrographic research of building stone that was used for the construction of a cromlech, sanctuary, and the ceiling of the Eneolithic burials No. 20-22 from the kurgan No. 29 near Shakhtar village, Nikopol rayon, Dnipropetrovsk oblast. The purpose of this work was to establish a probable place for mining the stone blocks and rubble used in the construction. As a result of petrographic and X-ray fluorescence analysis, it was determined that the studied rocks can be divided into two groups, namely granitoids and limestones. The group of granitoids included tonalites, plagiogranites (trondhjemites), altered granite gneiss, and feldspar crystal from pegmatite. All the limestones were represented by spherical layered aggregates, which most likely belong to oncoids-carbonate structures that form as a result of cyanobacteria growth. The studied samples from the materials of the cromlech and the sanctuary of burial No. 22 were represented by plagiogranitoids, pegmatoid granite, and limestones. The first of them served as the main material for the construction of the cromlech. Carbonate aggregates together with the granites were also used as a backfilling when installing wooden pillars of the cult complex associated with the burial. The plates covering the burials No. 20 and 21 were made of tonalites. All the studied granitoids are typical rocks for the area where the excavations took place. In the Middle Dnipro Area, plagiogranitoids are represented by the rocks of the Dnipropetrovskyi, Surskyi, Saksahanskyi, and Inhuletskyi complexes of the Archaean. Plagiogranitoids of the Dnipropetrovskyi complex are the most common in the studied area. They occur here in the middle and upper reaches of the Solona River and along the rivers of Bazavluk and Bazavluchok upstream the Sholokhove Reservoir. The closest to the excavation site are the occurrences of plagiogranitoids, which are exposed on the right bank of the Solona River, opposite the village of Shakhtar. In this area, pegmatoid granites are found in the form of veins that intersect plagiogranitoids. In the area of excavations, carbonate oncoids are found in the Sarmatian limestones of the Neogene. Most often they are found as the uncemented specimens that spilled out of the limestones. Today, such structures occur on both banks of the Kakhovske Reservoir, located south of the village Shakhtar. However, in ancient times there may have been closer outcrops of these rocks, as the Sarmatian limestone occurrences are common in the immediate vicinity of the excavation site, namely between the rivers Bazavluk and Solona, near their confluence, and the middle and upper reaches of the Chortomlyk River. As a result of the research, it is proved that in the valley of the river Solona during the Eneolithic, there began the active extraction of stone raw materials for mound construction, which was continued in later epochs, particularly, in the Scythian time.
Збірник наукових праць Національного гірничого університету, 2022
Встановлено, що долерити і діабази у Середньому Придніпров’ї почали ви-користовуватися понад 30 т... more Встановлено, що долерити і діабази у Середньому Придніпров’ї почали ви-користовуватися понад 30 тис. років тому. Їх спеціалізована розробка проводилася за доби енеоліту-бронзи в зоні поширення порід Середньопридніпровського мегаблоку УЩ та Криво-різько-Кременчуцької шовної зони. Стародавньою людиною використовувалися долерити і ді-абази, видобуті з проявів по рр. Дніпро, Мокра Сура, Базавлук, Саксагань та Інгулець, проте могли застосовуватися породи і з інших дайок. Основним способом застосування дайкових порід основного складу в давнині було виготовлення шліфованих знарядь праці та зброї. Го-ловними петрографічними особливостями, що сприяли активному використанню долеритів і діабазів, була відносна м'якість їх головних породоутворюючих мінералів, масивна текстура, дрібнозерниста структура, а також міцність, обумовлена призматично-зернистою структурою. За доби раннього заліза використання даних порід практично припиняється та відновлюється лише з розвитком промислового виробництва, напевно, з початком активного будівництва на території колишніх земель Війська Запорізького наприкінці ХVIIІ ст. – поч. ХІХ ст.
Purpose. Determination of the rocks used for the building of the 4 th millennium BCE megalithic c... more Purpose. Determination of the rocks used for the building of the 4 th millennium BCE megalithic construction in Novooleksandrivka (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine) as well as establishing the places of their probable provenance.
Methodology. The study was performed using the method of comparative mineralogical and petrographic analysis in thin sections of the building stone and the rocks from the outcrops in the valleys of the rivers Mokra Sura and Dnipro. The chemical composition of the petrographically identical rocks was also compared using X-ray fl uorescence analysis.
Findings. Nine specimens of rocks that represent all the species of granitoids used for the cromlech-crepidoma construction of the Novooleksandrivka kurgan "Sura-Oba" were analyzed. As a result of the conducted research, it was ascertained that they are represented by plagiogranites (trondhjemites), tonalites, granite gneisses, migmatites and pegmatites. Besides, some granitoids comprise small xenoliths of biotite gneiss. All the indicated rocks are characteristic for the occurrences of the Surskyi and Dnipropetrovskyi plagiogranitoid complexes, widespread in the valley of the river Morka Sura-the right tributary of the river Dnipro, where the monument is directly located. Granitoids with the massive structure were most likely to be delivered from the occurrences located upstream of the river Mokra Sura in the village of Sursko-Lytovske. Migmatites and gneiss-like granites occur both downstream and upstream of the river from the village of Novooleksandrivka. Originality. For the fi rst time, the building stone of the megalithic construction, discovered during the excavations of the "Sura-Oba" kurgan in the village of Novooleksandrivka (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine) has been studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis; in addition, the probable places of its extraction were determined.
INTERDISCIPLINARIA ARCHAEOLOGICA. NATURAL SCIENCES IN ARCHAEOLOGY, 2022
Petrographic research was undertaken on the second casting moulds complex discovered in 2018 at t... more Petrographic research was undertaken on the second casting moulds complex discovered in 2018 at the archaeological monument Tokivske-1 in Ukraine. Metalworking of the Late Bronze Age in the Northern Black Sea region is known for its utilisation of stone moulds made from meta-ultrabasites (“talc schists”) by representatives of the Sabatynivka culture. Field investigations in the vicinity of Tokivske indicated the probable place of stone mining, from where a considerable part of the casting moulds under study were made. The discovery of the place of stone mining near Tokivske-1 and finds of similar moulds in other regions give grounds for considering the monument to be not only a centre of metalworking but also stone-processing. The obtained data are also the first geologically proved evidence that the Kryvyi Rih area, which was previously considered the main supplier of “talc schists”, was not the only place of mining of raw materials for the manufacturing of casting moulds in the Middle Dnipro area. Both complexes, the second and the previous one, found in 2017, contain matrices made of identical raw materials, namely, the samples made are untypical for the Middle Dnipro area species. This fact indicates the synchronicity of both complexes and a significant volume of casting production in Tokivske-1.
Проаналізовані результати петрографічного дослідження сировини кам'яних виробів, знайдених при ро... more Проаналізовані результати петрографічного дослідження сировини кам'яних виробів, знайдених при розкопках відомої каменеобробної майстерні доби бронзи на острові Стрільча Скеля на Дніпрі; визначені джерела надходження кам'яної сировини.
У результаті проведених археолого-перографічних досліджень визначено, що граніти і гранітоїди, як... more У результаті проведених археолого-перографічних досліджень визначено, що граніти і гранітоїди, які розроблялися у Середньому Подніпров'ї і використовувалися протягом всієї історії, належать до порід фастівського, дніпропетровського, сурського, мокромосковського, токівського, саксаганського та інгулецького комплексів. Напевно, також використовувалися породи демуринського і тетіївського комплексів гранітів. Історія використання гранітів і гранітоподібних порід Середнього Подніпров'я триває, починаючи від доби верхнього палеоліту. Граніти слугували матеріалом для виготовлення знарядь праці та головним будівельним каменем у зоні поширення порід Українського щита. Їх спеціалізована розробка із застосуванням гірничих прийомів зародилася разом із появою мегалітичних споруд та кам'яних стел, які створювалися у Середньому Подніпров'ї, включно до доби середньовіччя. За часів Київської Русі граніт стає одним з основних видів будівельного каміння, що застосовувався у кам'яній архітектурі. Можна стверджувати, що розробка багатьох родовищ, що експлуатуються зараз або експлуатувалися протягом ХХ ст., розпочалася близько тисячі років тому.
The analysis results of the amphibolite use in the Middle Dnipro area during different historical... more The analysis results of the amphibolite use in the Middle Dnipro area during different historical epochs are given. The first amphibolite articles found as a result of archaeological excavations in the study area date back to the Upper Palaeolithic. The active use of these rocks in antiquity was primarily due to the manufacture of polished tools applied by ancient people from the Neolithic to the Early Iron Age. The physical properties and prevalence of natural outcrops made amphibolites the most widely used material for the manufacture of stone axes, hammers, and other products, which were later, with the development of ancient metallurgy, replaced by metal analogues. It is determined that the period of the most active use of amphibolites was the Early-Middle Bronze Age, when there were numerous workshops in the Middle Dnipro area, which specialized in the manufacture of polished stone tools and provided these products not only to the local population but also supplied their goods to other regions. Also, amphibolites, starting from the Eneolithic era, have always been used as building stones along with other rocks. Based on the results of petrographic studies of archaeological monuments and rocks from natural outcrops, it is proved that the Konkska series rocks of the Surska, Verkhivtsivska, Sofiivska and Chortomlytska greenstone structures, Novorkyvorizka suite of Kryvorizka series as well as Aulska series, which forms xenoliths among the granitoids of the Dnipropetrovsk complex, served as a raw material base for the amphibolite extraction in the Middle Dnipro area in ancient times.
Мета. Отримання нових даних з історії використання різних видів гірських порід скіфами для вигото... more Мета. Отримання нових даних з історії використання різних видів гірських порід скіфами для виготовлення творів кам'яної скульптури. Методика дослідження полягає у проведенні мінералого-петрографічного аналізу сиро-вини стародавньої скіфської стели та порівнянні отриманих даних з петрографічними харак-теристиками подібних гірських порід з метою визначення походження матеріалу досліджува-ного артефакту. Результати дослідження. У результаті проведеного аналізу було визначено, що скіфську стелу, знайдену поблизу с. Великомихайлівка Покровського району Дніпропетровської обла-сті, було виготовлено з ендербіту. За мінеральним складом порода відповідає тоналіту, темно-колірні мінерали якого представлені біотитом, клінопіроксеном, роговою обманкою та орто-піроксеном. Було проведено порівняльний аналіз петрографічних особливостей дослідженого зразка та порід ендербітових комплексів й інших піроксенвмісних гранітоїдів Українського щита. В результаті аналізу геологічних матеріалів було зроблено висновок, що найбільш імо-вірним джерелом походження сировини кам'яної стели були ендербіти токмацького компле-ксу Приазовського мегаблоку Українського щита. У Західному Приазов'ї дані породи відсло-нюються по річках Токмак і Каїнкулак, а у деяких авторів відзначається їх поширення в ба-сейнах річок Конки та Вовчої. Вони мають ідентичний мінеральний склад із сировиною дос-ліджуваної стели, крім того, на відміну від більшості ендербітів Українського щита, в зазначе-них породах токмацького комплексу, як і в досліджуваному зразку, клінопіроксен переважає ортопіроксен за об'ємним вмістом. Наукова новизна. Вперше проведено петрографічне вивчення зразка скіфської кам'яної скульптури Полтавського краєзнавчого музею ім. Василя Кричевського. Встановлено факт ви-користання в давнині ендербітів Українського щита для виготовлення кам'яних виробів, зок-рема, скіфських антропоморфних кам'яних статуй. Доповнено новими фактами історію вико-ристання кам'яної сировини України у ранньому залізному віці. Практичне значення. Результати дослідження будуть використані у екскурсійній діяль-ності Полтавського краєзнавчого музею ім. Василя Кричевського, а також при публікації му-зейних і виставкових каталогів. Також отримана інформація може бути використана при на-писанні підручників та наукових праць з історії, археології, історії гірничої справи тощо. Ключові слова: кам'яна сировина, скіфи, кам'яна скульптура, археологічна петрографія, стародавня гірнича справа, Полтавський краєзнавчий музей.
ВІСНИК Київського національного університету імені Тараса Шевченка. Геологія, Jun 2020
The present article is devoted to the mineralogical and petrographic research of raw materials of... more The present article is devoted to the mineralogical and petrographic research of raw materials of the collection of casting molds of the Bronze Age, found by the expedition of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D.I. Yavornytskyi during the excavations of the archaeological monument of Tokivske-1, located near the village Tokivske of Apostolove Rayon, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The finding of casting molds is of great importance since it can be the evidence of bronze foundry production existence in the territory of the monument, which until now was regarded only as a megalithic place of worship. Provenance determination of the raw materials of casting molds can help to identify the role of Tokivske-1 in the system of metalworking cells of the Sabatynivska culture time (XVI–XIII centuries BC) and to establish its links with the ancient centers of mining of stone raw materials. According to previous petrographic studies, it is known that stone molds were made mainly of talc-chlorite-tremolite schists, since this material was easily processed and could withstand more castings than clay molds. Because of this, stone casting molds were highly valued, as well as bronze wares and ingots, and were transported over long distances. The purpose of the study was to establish links between the archaeological monument of Tokivske-1 and known mining and metallurgical centers of the Bronze Age, on the basis of mineralogical and petrographic research of raw materials of casting molds. As a result of the study of samples in thin sections and by X-ray diffraction analysis, it was established that the stone molds were mainly made of tremolite-chlorite-anthophyllite meta-ultrabazites. The determination of the origin of the rocks from which the casting molds were made was carried out by comparing their mineralogical and petrographic features with the features of similar rocks that form natural outcrops, as described in geological survey reports and literary data, and as observed by us in rock samples from natural outcrops in the Middle Dnipro and the Azov Sea areas. It was ascertained that the rocks from which all the casting molds of the collection were made do not form natural outcrops in the Middle Dnipro area and are not characteristic of the Kryvyi Rih area, which is considered to be the main center of raw materials extraction for the stone foundry forms of the Late Bronze Age on the territory of Ukraine. It was established that such rocks are more characteristic of the Western Azov Sea area, but one can not exclude another source of raw materials of the mold collection, in particular the Southern Urals, where bronze metallurgy was significantly developed and similar stone matrices were used. The obtained results suggest a revision of established ideas on sources of supply of stone raw materials during the late Bronze Age.
Journal of Geology, Geography and Geoecology, 2019
The purpose of the work was to determine the provenance of the raw materials of ancient stone pro... more The purpose of the work was to determine the provenance of the raw materials of ancient stone products, found during the excavations of the Bronze-Early Iron Age monument Tokivske-1, with the aim to establish connections of the ancient population of the area with residents of other regions. The archaeological monument Tokivske-1, located in the northern outskirts of the village Tokivske, Apostolove Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, has been explored by the expedition of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D.I. Yavornytskyi since 2012. The authors of this article already carried out petrographic study of stone artefacts from this monument, which had been found during the first five years of excavations. However, over the past two years, a number of stone and other items were found that could expand our knowledge of the links of Tokivske-1 with ancient industrial centers of other regions. To carry out the petrographic analysis, six artefacts were taken, mainly those made from macroscopically different rocks. Most of them can be related to metalworking. The analyzed samples are represented by an amphibolite hammer for forging jewels or peening sheet copper, a dolerite anvil-prop for a specified hammer, a fragment of an abrasive stone made of ferruginous quartzite, a quartz tile, which is a fragment of an altar, and fragments of an anvil and a scepter-pestle made of sandstone. Petrographic analysis of artefacts allowed determining the probable provenance of their raw materials. Amphibolites are quite common in the territory of the Middle Dnipro area, but by the color of the hornblende, the predominance of epidotization processes over sericitization and macrostructural features, the studied rock is more similar to the amphibolites from the middle stream of the Bazavluk River. Dolerites, similar to the raw material of the anvil-prop, are also common in the area of excavations, and by the presence of the micropegmatite in its composition, its origin can be localized in the middle stream of the river Bazavluk or in the valley of the river Mokra Sura. Magnetite quartzite-the raw material of the abrasive stone-most likely comes from the territory of the city of Kryvyi Rih. Quartz tile-a fragment of an altar-is a quartz vein, similar to those that intersect granites of the Tokivskyi massif directly near the village Tokivske. Sandstones, from which the anvil and the scepter-pestle were produced, appeared to be very similar in their petrographic features. They are represented by quartz sandstones with fragments of rocks and polymineral cement with the predominance of quartz regenerative and porous sericite cement. Also, the relic chalcedony and, more rarely, clay cement are present in the pores. In the territory of Ukraine, the most similar to them, according to petrographic characteristics, are the sandstones of the Carboniferous system, which crop out in the Donbas. Thus, the obtained data testifies to the connection of the Tokivske-1 archaeological complex with other parts of the Middle Dnipro area, such as the middle stream of the Bazavluk River and the Kryvyi Rih area, as well as with more distant regions such as the Donbas. It should be noted that scepter-pestles, similar to the one studied by us, are associated with metalworking, and the Donetsk basin, where the raw material of the indicated tool originates from, was the copper production center of the Late Bronze Age.
Геолого-мінералогічний вісник Криворізького національного університету, 2018
Наведені результати петрографічного вивчення матеріалу половецьких кам’яних баб Полтавського крає... more Наведені результати петрографічного вивчення матеріалу половецьких кам’яних баб Полтавського краєзнавчого музею ім. В.Кричевського. Визначені гірські породи, з яких виготовлені статуї та вірогідні регіони походження порід. Доповнені й уточнені дані попередніх петрографічних досліджень половецьких кам’яних баб музею. Зокрема, визначений матеріал, який до цього часу не був описаний, скореговані дані про походження сировини, з якої були виготовлені деякі статуї.
Purpose. Determination of the stone raw materials resource base used by the populations of variou... more Purpose. Determination of the stone raw materials resource base used by the populations of various historical epochs, who left their monuments in the territory of the stationary megalithic cult site in the village of Tokivske, Apostolove Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine. Methodology. The research was performed using the method of comparative petrographic analysis of stone artefacts and rocks from natural exposures in thin sections. Findings. Twelve artefacts were analyzed: eight of the Bronze Age, one of the Early Iron Age (Scythian Culture) and one of the 17th–18th centuries, as well as two undated artefacts. As a result of petrographic analysis, they were divided into groups according to the stone materials from which they were produced: granites, metabasites, quartzites and quartz, schists, metasandstones and sandstones. Among the Bronze Age artefacts seven have local provenance from the village of Tokivske and the neighboring village of Sholokhove where a stone-processing workshop might have existed. The one imported tool is an amphibolite grinder, most likely brought from the middle section of the river Bazavluk. Concerning stone items of other epochs, a metasandstone plummet, dated to the 17th–18th centuries, apparently originated from Kryvyi Rih. The provenances of the remaining artefacts are somewhat ambiguous. Originality. For the first time the archaeological finds from the megalithic stationary cult site Tokivske-1 were studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis, and the probable sites of the stone mining for their production were determined. Practical value. The obtained data indicates sites where ancient stone-processing workshops existed, being useful information for archaeological exploration. Also, the gathered information can be used for writing general works on archaeology and the history of mining.
Анотація. Встановлюється походження сировини кам'яних стел доби енеоліту-бро-нзи (IV – II тис. до... more Анотація. Встановлюється походження сировини кам'яних стел доби енеоліту-бро-нзи (IV – II тис. до н. е.) з Полтавського краєзнавчого музею імені Василя Кричев-ського. Досліджено п'ять статуй, серед яких найвідоміша кам'яна стела музею, що датується зазначеним періодом, – так званий Федорівський ідол, знайдений на те-риторії Карлівського району, дві стели з Кобеляцького та одна статуя з Кременчу-цького району Полтавської області. Походження однієї стели докладно не відоме. За результатами вивчення зразків гірських порід установлено, що сировиною Федорівського ідола є кварцовий пісковик, що містить уламки кременю і вулканічної по-роди, а також має поровий глинисто-кременистий цемент. Матеріал решти стел визначено як плагіограніт. Один зразок є окварцований, решта представлена біотитовим плагіогранітом. За результатами порівняння сировини досліджених стел зі шліфами гірських порід із Середнього Подніпров'я і Донбасу, сировиною інших пам'яток, що датуються тим самим часом, а також за літературними даними встановлено, що гранітні стели, найвірогідніше, мають місцеве походження, а саме з району м. Кременчук, де за доби енеоліту-бронзи розроблялися аналогічні породи. Сировина Федорівського ідола виявилася привіз-ною і, найвірогідніше, була видобута на території центрального Донбасу, де існують відслонення аналогічних пісковиків. Важливий факт – те, що гірська порода, з якої виготовлено Федорівський ідол, відповідає сировині відомого Керносівського ідола, який датується тим самим часом і був знайдений на території Дніпропетровської області. Ключові слова: археологічна петрографія, кам'яні стели, доба енеоліту-бронзи, Полтава Astract. The purpose of the article was to define the material provenance of stone stelae dated to the Eneolithic and the Bronze Age (4 th – 2 nd millennia BCE) from Poltava Museum of Local Lore named after Vasyl Krichevsky. Moreover, the aim was to ascertain possible areas of stone mining. The research was performed using mineralogical and petrographic methods. The study of rocks was carried out in thin sections using a polarizing microscope. To obtain more accurate data about clayey cement of sandstone, an XRD analysis of extracted and precipitated cement material was conducted. The provenance of the stone materials was established by comparison of determined petrographic features of rocks with characteristics of similar rocks from outcrops and modern mining sites, as well as data from geological survey reports and the petrographic literature. A comparison with thin sections of stone stelae dated to the same epoch from Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D. I. Yavornytskyi and Horishni Plavni Museum of Local History was also performed. There were five statues studied, among which three were found in the southwest of Poltava Oblast (Kobeliaky and Kremenchuk Raion), one in the southeast of the Oblast (Karlivka Raion) and one with unknown place of finding. Petrographic research established that the statues from the southwest of Poltava Oblast, as well as the stele with unknown origin, were made from plagiogranite (biotite trondhjemite). The statue from the southeast of Poltava Oblast, the so-called Fedorivskyi Idol, was produced from sandstone (quartz arenite with argillaceous and siliceous cement). The granites have very similar petrographic features and could have originated from the same area. The area in the southwest of Poltava Oblast, the Dnieper River valley in the vicinity of the city Kremenchuk, belongs to the zone of the Ukrainian Shield, where similar Precambrian plagiogranites are exposed. The material of the studied statues is also similar to the granites of stone stelae from Horishni Plavni museum that were discovered in the same area.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/arcm.12382
Petrographic research into the mediev... more https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/arcm.12382 Petrographic research into the medieval stone stelae (babas) of the Dnipropetrovsk Historical Museum collection was carried out. Most of the items belonged to the medieval nomadic Polovtsians (Cumans, Kipchaks). The probable areas of stone mining were established. It was reaffirmed that the raw materials of the vast majority of the collection of statues are sandstones from the Donets Ridge territory and limestones from the Lower Dnipro area of Ukraine. Granitoids and sandstones from the Middle Dnipro area were also used. Thus, the Polovtsians could both deliver statues or blocks from Donets Ridge to the Dnipro area and use local stone materials.
Based on the research of all available for the study stone artefacts of the Bronze Age, found on ... more Based on the research of all available for the study stone artefacts of the Bronze Age, found on the territory of Kryvyi Rih region, the history of production and use of the stone input of this region during the period under the study has been supplemented with new facts. The list of local and imported rocks has been widened correspondingly from 13 to 46 and from 2 to 16 items. It has been determined, that for some articles (half-hatchets, grain-grinders, casting forms, etc.) the material was chosen not randomly. Besides, not just rocks, but often their certain sorts with the peculiar quantitative mineral composition, granules size of the rockforming minerals, etc. were chosen. Taking into account significant imports of stone work materials from various regions, it was concluded that during the existence of Catacomb culture Kryvyi Rih region was a part of a wide mining province where the work materials for production of stone half-hatchers and other tools were mined. The region under study specialized in rocks with porphyritic inclusions (metabasites and dolerites (diabases)). In the Late Bronze Age, as it was supposed before, a role of Kryvyi Rih region increased to a separate centre of extraction of talc shists.
На основе исследования всех доступных для изучения каменных артефактов эпохи бронзы, найденных на территории Криворожья, дополнена новыми фактами история добычи и применения каменного сырья данного района на протя- жении исследуемого периода. Расширен перечень используемых местных и привозных горных пород соответственно с 13 до 46 и с 2 до 16 позиций. Установлено, что для ряда изделий (топоры-молоты, зернотерки, литейные формы и др.) материал выбирался не случайно. При этом избирались не просто определенные породы, а часто их специфические разновидности с особым количественным минеральным составом, размером зерен породообразующих минералов и пр. Исходя из наличия значительного импорта каменного сырья из различных районов, сделан вывод о том, что во времена существования катакомбной культуры Криворожье было частью обширной горной провинции по добыче сырья для изготовления каменных топоров-молотов и других орудий. Исследуемый район специализировался на по- родах, имеющих порфировые включения: метабазитах и долеритах (диабазах). В эпоху поздней бронзы, как и счита- лось ранее, роль Криворожья возросла до отдельного центра по добыче тальковых сланцев.
A petrographic study of the raw stone materials used for the
Eneolithic-Bronze Age (mid-VI millen... more A petrographic study of the raw stone materials used for the Eneolithic-Bronze Age (mid-VI millennium BCE – IX century BCE) steles from the collection of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D.I. Yavornitsky was carried out. The places of probable origin of the raw stone materials were determined.
Проведено петрографическое исследование сырья каменных стел эпохи энеолита-бронзы (середина VІ тыс. до н. э. – ІХ в. до н. э.) из собрания Днепропетровского национального историчес- кого музея им. Д.И. Яворницкого. Определены вероятные места происхождения каменного сырья.
Досліджені зразки були представлені частиною кам’яного знаряддя праці доби раннього модерну та дв... more Досліджені зразки були представлені частиною кам’яного знаряддя праці доби раннього модерну та двома фрагментами будівельного матеріалу з культурного горизонту доби пізньої бронзи. За результатами петрографічного аналізу було встановлено, що знаряддя козацької доби було виготовлене з роговообманкового діориту, а зразки, датовані бронзовою добою, були представлені пісковиками з кременистим та карбонатним цементом, відповідно. Стосовно походження сировини артефакту козацького часу, з’ясовано, що географічно найближчими до місця проведення розкопок є прояви діоритів в зоні Середньопридніпровського мегаблоку Українського щита. Пісковик з кременистим цементом є найбільш подібним до аналогічних порід олігоцен-міоценової полтавської серії, поширених у регіоні. Зразок пісковика з карбонатним цементом, найбільш вірогідно, утворився в зоні виходу на поверхню підземних вод, має четвертинний вік та цілком міг мати місцеве походження
Journal of Geology, Geography and Geoecology, Jun 29, 2024
The article is devoted to solving the question of the origin of the raw materials of stone artifa... more The article is devoted to solving the question of the origin of the raw materials of stone artifacts discovered during the study of the surface of the Lower Paleolithic localities near the settlement of Andriivka in the Kharkiv Region (Ukraine). The material of a significant part of artifacts was represented not by flint but by other rocks that are not typical for the area where the sites are located. Thus, an assumption was made about the likely mass use of remote stone raw materials in the Early Paleolithic, which is not typical for the territory of Ukraine. To confirm this fact, a petrographic study of the raw material of the artifacts was conducted based on 12 selected samples. Transparent thin sections had been produced from all the items, and the study using a polarizing microscope was performed. Research on the raw materials in the studied collection determined that it includes limestone, chalcedony rock (silicified limestone), sandstone, and two samples showing the contact between quartzites and schists. The studied limestones are represented by oolitic, coral, and chemogenic cryptocrystalline species. Also, the raw material of some of the products was identified as silicified limestone. All the mentioned rocks are characteristic of the occurrences of the Oxford stage of the Upper Jurassic, common in the Izium and Lozova Raions of the Kharkiv Region. The raw material of one item was identified as quartz sandstone with rock fragments and relict argillaceous-siliceous cement. Such rocks are typical for the deposits of the Carboniferous system of the Donets Coal Basin, they are found southeast of Andriivka, downstream of the Siverskyi Donets River, and also within the Open Donbas. Since in ancient times, only rocks exposed to the day surface could be mined, most likely, the sandstone got to the place of discovery from the territory of the modern Donetsk Region. Two of the studied products were made from contact rocks: one sample is identified as a contact of micaceous quartzite and sericite-quartz schist, and the other as a contact of microquartzite and quartz-biotite schist. The first rock, most likely, was formed as a result of recrystallization of siltstone, and the second-owing to quartzization of argillaceous limestone and carbonate-biotite schist. Siltstones are characteristic of Paleozoic deposits and may have the same origin as sandstone. The second sample may have the same provenance as the investigated limestones. Based on the results of the research, it was determined that all the samples from the locations near Andriivka come from the territories located mainly downstream of the Siverskyi Donets River, or in the southwestern direction in the territory of the modern Lozova Raion of the Kharkiv Region. The data provided by the sites in the Andriivka area testify to the relatively high mobility of the ancient population, as the identified rocks include samples from occurrences located at a distance of more than 60 km and some-more than 100 km. Thus, the distance between the deposits and the sites is greater than is usually recorded for the Lower Paleolithic archaeological sites of Ukraine. The obtained data indicate the origin of the purposeful collecting and supply of remote stone raw materials by man on the territory of Ukraine no later than 300 thousand years ago.
Purpose. To determine the rock composition and origin of raw materials of non-fl int stone produc... more Purpose. To determine the rock composition and origin of raw materials of non-fl int stone products found during the study on the Mira Upper Palaeolithic archaeological site in the Middle Dnipro area. Methodology. The research on the artefacts was carried out using the mineralogical and petrographic methods. The rocks were studied in transparent thin sections using a polarized microscope. To verify the accuracy of the petrographic analysis of some specimens, the XRD and XRF methods were applied. Establishing the provenance of the rocks was performed using comparative mineralogical and petrographic analysis, for which the specimens of samples from the outcrops were used, as well as geological survey and literary data. Findings. To conduct petrographic research, seven specimens of stones with traces of processing, found during archaeological excavations of the Upper Palaeolithic Mira site, were taken. As a result of the petrographic analysis, it was established that the stones with traces of processing are represented by the aplitoid two-feldspar granites, altered dolerite, quartz arenite, quartz rock, amphibolite and actinolitite. All the mentioned rocks are typical for the Middle Dnipro area. The specimens of the granites, dolerite, and arenite, by their petrographic features, have analogues among the rocks of the region and, more likely, are of the local provenance. Most likely, a quartz sample comes from the territory of the Ukrainian Shield. The types of amphibolite and actinolitite, which are analogues to the studied artefacts by their petrographic and chemical features, do not occur today among the rocks that form natural outcrops in the Middle Dnipro area. Thus, the specimens of the amphibolite and actinolitite may have both local and other origin. More accurate determination of the provenance of the amphibolite and actinolitite samples requires further study involving sample collections from other regions, wherefrom these rocks could have been carried. Originality. For the fi rst time, the Upper Palaeolithic Mira archaeological site stone artefacts were studied in thin sections and with the application of XRD and XRF analyses, which made it possible to make more precise fi ndings on their petrographic properties and origin. The studied samples are of great importance because, today, they are the earliest non-fl int stone artefacts from the Middle Dnipro area to be studied by means of petrography, particularly those made from crystalline rocks of the Ukrainian Shield. Practical value. The results obtained can be used in performing studies on archaeology and the history of mining, as well as in popular science works.
The types of rock that were used by the Scythian population of Transdnepria for stone sculpture p... more The types of rock that were used by the Scythian population of Transdnepria for stone sculpture production were determined. Conclusions were drawn about the raw stone materials used and the probable locations of their mining. An important issue for archeology and quaternary geology is to determine the origin of raw materials ancient stone sculptures. To solve similar tasks allows mineralogical and petrographic analysis of raw material artifacts. This article focuses on the mineralogical and petrographic research works Scythian stone sculpture of funds Dnipropetrovs’k National History Museum. Installed name rocks used Scythian people of the Middle Dnieper for making stone sculptures, as well as identify possible design space stone materials. It is concluded that the Scythian people of the Middle Dnieper for making stone sculptures, most likely used the local rocks outcrop near the places of production and further location data artifacts. The raw material for works of stone sculpture ...
The article presents the results of petrographic research of building stone that was used for the... more The article presents the results of petrographic research of building stone that was used for the construction of a cromlech, sanctuary, and the ceiling of the Eneolithic burials No. 20-22 from the kurgan No. 29 near Shakhtar village, Nikopol rayon, Dnipropetrovsk oblast. The purpose of this work was to establish a probable place for mining the stone blocks and rubble used in the construction. As a result of petrographic and X-ray fluorescence analysis, it was determined that the studied rocks can be divided into two groups, namely granitoids and limestones. The group of granitoids included tonalites, plagiogranites (trondhjemites), altered granite gneiss, and feldspar crystal from pegmatite. All the limestones were represented by spherical layered aggregates, which most likely belong to oncoids-carbonate structures that form as a result of cyanobacteria growth. The studied samples from the materials of the cromlech and the sanctuary of burial No. 22 were represented by plagiogranitoids, pegmatoid granite, and limestones. The first of them served as the main material for the construction of the cromlech. Carbonate aggregates together with the granites were also used as a backfilling when installing wooden pillars of the cult complex associated with the burial. The plates covering the burials No. 20 and 21 were made of tonalites. All the studied granitoids are typical rocks for the area where the excavations took place. In the Middle Dnipro Area, plagiogranitoids are represented by the rocks of the Dnipropetrovskyi, Surskyi, Saksahanskyi, and Inhuletskyi complexes of the Archaean. Plagiogranitoids of the Dnipropetrovskyi complex are the most common in the studied area. They occur here in the middle and upper reaches of the Solona River and along the rivers of Bazavluk and Bazavluchok upstream the Sholokhove Reservoir. The closest to the excavation site are the occurrences of plagiogranitoids, which are exposed on the right bank of the Solona River, opposite the village of Shakhtar. In this area, pegmatoid granites are found in the form of veins that intersect plagiogranitoids. In the area of excavations, carbonate oncoids are found in the Sarmatian limestones of the Neogene. Most often they are found as the uncemented specimens that spilled out of the limestones. Today, such structures occur on both banks of the Kakhovske Reservoir, located south of the village Shakhtar. However, in ancient times there may have been closer outcrops of these rocks, as the Sarmatian limestone occurrences are common in the immediate vicinity of the excavation site, namely between the rivers Bazavluk and Solona, near their confluence, and the middle and upper reaches of the Chortomlyk River. As a result of the research, it is proved that in the valley of the river Solona during the Eneolithic, there began the active extraction of stone raw materials for mound construction, which was continued in later epochs, particularly, in the Scythian time.
Збірник наукових праць Національного гірничого університету, 2022
Встановлено, що долерити і діабази у Середньому Придніпров’ї почали ви-користовуватися понад 30 т... more Встановлено, що долерити і діабази у Середньому Придніпров’ї почали ви-користовуватися понад 30 тис. років тому. Їх спеціалізована розробка проводилася за доби енеоліту-бронзи в зоні поширення порід Середньопридніпровського мегаблоку УЩ та Криво-різько-Кременчуцької шовної зони. Стародавньою людиною використовувалися долерити і ді-абази, видобуті з проявів по рр. Дніпро, Мокра Сура, Базавлук, Саксагань та Інгулець, проте могли застосовуватися породи і з інших дайок. Основним способом застосування дайкових порід основного складу в давнині було виготовлення шліфованих знарядь праці та зброї. Го-ловними петрографічними особливостями, що сприяли активному використанню долеритів і діабазів, була відносна м'якість їх головних породоутворюючих мінералів, масивна текстура, дрібнозерниста структура, а також міцність, обумовлена призматично-зернистою структурою. За доби раннього заліза використання даних порід практично припиняється та відновлюється лише з розвитком промислового виробництва, напевно, з початком активного будівництва на території колишніх земель Війська Запорізького наприкінці ХVIIІ ст. – поч. ХІХ ст.
Purpose. Determination of the rocks used for the building of the 4 th millennium BCE megalithic c... more Purpose. Determination of the rocks used for the building of the 4 th millennium BCE megalithic construction in Novooleksandrivka (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine) as well as establishing the places of their probable provenance.
Methodology. The study was performed using the method of comparative mineralogical and petrographic analysis in thin sections of the building stone and the rocks from the outcrops in the valleys of the rivers Mokra Sura and Dnipro. The chemical composition of the petrographically identical rocks was also compared using X-ray fl uorescence analysis.
Findings. Nine specimens of rocks that represent all the species of granitoids used for the cromlech-crepidoma construction of the Novooleksandrivka kurgan "Sura-Oba" were analyzed. As a result of the conducted research, it was ascertained that they are represented by plagiogranites (trondhjemites), tonalites, granite gneisses, migmatites and pegmatites. Besides, some granitoids comprise small xenoliths of biotite gneiss. All the indicated rocks are characteristic for the occurrences of the Surskyi and Dnipropetrovskyi plagiogranitoid complexes, widespread in the valley of the river Morka Sura-the right tributary of the river Dnipro, where the monument is directly located. Granitoids with the massive structure were most likely to be delivered from the occurrences located upstream of the river Mokra Sura in the village of Sursko-Lytovske. Migmatites and gneiss-like granites occur both downstream and upstream of the river from the village of Novooleksandrivka. Originality. For the fi rst time, the building stone of the megalithic construction, discovered during the excavations of the "Sura-Oba" kurgan in the village of Novooleksandrivka (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine) has been studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis; in addition, the probable places of its extraction were determined.
INTERDISCIPLINARIA ARCHAEOLOGICA. NATURAL SCIENCES IN ARCHAEOLOGY, 2022
Petrographic research was undertaken on the second casting moulds complex discovered in 2018 at t... more Petrographic research was undertaken on the second casting moulds complex discovered in 2018 at the archaeological monument Tokivske-1 in Ukraine. Metalworking of the Late Bronze Age in the Northern Black Sea region is known for its utilisation of stone moulds made from meta-ultrabasites (“talc schists”) by representatives of the Sabatynivka culture. Field investigations in the vicinity of Tokivske indicated the probable place of stone mining, from where a considerable part of the casting moulds under study were made. The discovery of the place of stone mining near Tokivske-1 and finds of similar moulds in other regions give grounds for considering the monument to be not only a centre of metalworking but also stone-processing. The obtained data are also the first geologically proved evidence that the Kryvyi Rih area, which was previously considered the main supplier of “talc schists”, was not the only place of mining of raw materials for the manufacturing of casting moulds in the Middle Dnipro area. Both complexes, the second and the previous one, found in 2017, contain matrices made of identical raw materials, namely, the samples made are untypical for the Middle Dnipro area species. This fact indicates the synchronicity of both complexes and a significant volume of casting production in Tokivske-1.
Проаналізовані результати петрографічного дослідження сировини кам'яних виробів, знайдених при ро... more Проаналізовані результати петрографічного дослідження сировини кам'яних виробів, знайдених при розкопках відомої каменеобробної майстерні доби бронзи на острові Стрільча Скеля на Дніпрі; визначені джерела надходження кам'яної сировини.
У результаті проведених археолого-перографічних досліджень визначено, що граніти і гранітоїди, як... more У результаті проведених археолого-перографічних досліджень визначено, що граніти і гранітоїди, які розроблялися у Середньому Подніпров'ї і використовувалися протягом всієї історії, належать до порід фастівського, дніпропетровського, сурського, мокромосковського, токівського, саксаганського та інгулецького комплексів. Напевно, також використовувалися породи демуринського і тетіївського комплексів гранітів. Історія використання гранітів і гранітоподібних порід Середнього Подніпров'я триває, починаючи від доби верхнього палеоліту. Граніти слугували матеріалом для виготовлення знарядь праці та головним будівельним каменем у зоні поширення порід Українського щита. Їх спеціалізована розробка із застосуванням гірничих прийомів зародилася разом із появою мегалітичних споруд та кам'яних стел, які створювалися у Середньому Подніпров'ї, включно до доби середньовіччя. За часів Київської Русі граніт стає одним з основних видів будівельного каміння, що застосовувався у кам'яній архітектурі. Можна стверджувати, що розробка багатьох родовищ, що експлуатуються зараз або експлуатувалися протягом ХХ ст., розпочалася близько тисячі років тому.
The analysis results of the amphibolite use in the Middle Dnipro area during different historical... more The analysis results of the amphibolite use in the Middle Dnipro area during different historical epochs are given. The first amphibolite articles found as a result of archaeological excavations in the study area date back to the Upper Palaeolithic. The active use of these rocks in antiquity was primarily due to the manufacture of polished tools applied by ancient people from the Neolithic to the Early Iron Age. The physical properties and prevalence of natural outcrops made amphibolites the most widely used material for the manufacture of stone axes, hammers, and other products, which were later, with the development of ancient metallurgy, replaced by metal analogues. It is determined that the period of the most active use of amphibolites was the Early-Middle Bronze Age, when there were numerous workshops in the Middle Dnipro area, which specialized in the manufacture of polished stone tools and provided these products not only to the local population but also supplied their goods to other regions. Also, amphibolites, starting from the Eneolithic era, have always been used as building stones along with other rocks. Based on the results of petrographic studies of archaeological monuments and rocks from natural outcrops, it is proved that the Konkska series rocks of the Surska, Verkhivtsivska, Sofiivska and Chortomlytska greenstone structures, Novorkyvorizka suite of Kryvorizka series as well as Aulska series, which forms xenoliths among the granitoids of the Dnipropetrovsk complex, served as a raw material base for the amphibolite extraction in the Middle Dnipro area in ancient times.
Мета. Отримання нових даних з історії використання різних видів гірських порід скіфами для вигото... more Мета. Отримання нових даних з історії використання різних видів гірських порід скіфами для виготовлення творів кам'яної скульптури. Методика дослідження полягає у проведенні мінералого-петрографічного аналізу сиро-вини стародавньої скіфської стели та порівнянні отриманих даних з петрографічними харак-теристиками подібних гірських порід з метою визначення походження матеріалу досліджува-ного артефакту. Результати дослідження. У результаті проведеного аналізу було визначено, що скіфську стелу, знайдену поблизу с. Великомихайлівка Покровського району Дніпропетровської обла-сті, було виготовлено з ендербіту. За мінеральним складом порода відповідає тоналіту, темно-колірні мінерали якого представлені біотитом, клінопіроксеном, роговою обманкою та орто-піроксеном. Було проведено порівняльний аналіз петрографічних особливостей дослідженого зразка та порід ендербітових комплексів й інших піроксенвмісних гранітоїдів Українського щита. В результаті аналізу геологічних матеріалів було зроблено висновок, що найбільш імо-вірним джерелом походження сировини кам'яної стели були ендербіти токмацького компле-ксу Приазовського мегаблоку Українського щита. У Західному Приазов'ї дані породи відсло-нюються по річках Токмак і Каїнкулак, а у деяких авторів відзначається їх поширення в ба-сейнах річок Конки та Вовчої. Вони мають ідентичний мінеральний склад із сировиною дос-ліджуваної стели, крім того, на відміну від більшості ендербітів Українського щита, в зазначе-них породах токмацького комплексу, як і в досліджуваному зразку, клінопіроксен переважає ортопіроксен за об'ємним вмістом. Наукова новизна. Вперше проведено петрографічне вивчення зразка скіфської кам'яної скульптури Полтавського краєзнавчого музею ім. Василя Кричевського. Встановлено факт ви-користання в давнині ендербітів Українського щита для виготовлення кам'яних виробів, зок-рема, скіфських антропоморфних кам'яних статуй. Доповнено новими фактами історію вико-ристання кам'яної сировини України у ранньому залізному віці. Практичне значення. Результати дослідження будуть використані у екскурсійній діяль-ності Полтавського краєзнавчого музею ім. Василя Кричевського, а також при публікації му-зейних і виставкових каталогів. Також отримана інформація може бути використана при на-писанні підручників та наукових праць з історії, археології, історії гірничої справи тощо. Ключові слова: кам'яна сировина, скіфи, кам'яна скульптура, археологічна петрографія, стародавня гірнича справа, Полтавський краєзнавчий музей.
ВІСНИК Київського національного університету імені Тараса Шевченка. Геологія, Jun 2020
The present article is devoted to the mineralogical and petrographic research of raw materials of... more The present article is devoted to the mineralogical and petrographic research of raw materials of the collection of casting molds of the Bronze Age, found by the expedition of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D.I. Yavornytskyi during the excavations of the archaeological monument of Tokivske-1, located near the village Tokivske of Apostolove Rayon, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The finding of casting molds is of great importance since it can be the evidence of bronze foundry production existence in the territory of the monument, which until now was regarded only as a megalithic place of worship. Provenance determination of the raw materials of casting molds can help to identify the role of Tokivske-1 in the system of metalworking cells of the Sabatynivska culture time (XVI–XIII centuries BC) and to establish its links with the ancient centers of mining of stone raw materials. According to previous petrographic studies, it is known that stone molds were made mainly of talc-chlorite-tremolite schists, since this material was easily processed and could withstand more castings than clay molds. Because of this, stone casting molds were highly valued, as well as bronze wares and ingots, and were transported over long distances. The purpose of the study was to establish links between the archaeological monument of Tokivske-1 and known mining and metallurgical centers of the Bronze Age, on the basis of mineralogical and petrographic research of raw materials of casting molds. As a result of the study of samples in thin sections and by X-ray diffraction analysis, it was established that the stone molds were mainly made of tremolite-chlorite-anthophyllite meta-ultrabazites. The determination of the origin of the rocks from which the casting molds were made was carried out by comparing their mineralogical and petrographic features with the features of similar rocks that form natural outcrops, as described in geological survey reports and literary data, and as observed by us in rock samples from natural outcrops in the Middle Dnipro and the Azov Sea areas. It was ascertained that the rocks from which all the casting molds of the collection were made do not form natural outcrops in the Middle Dnipro area and are not characteristic of the Kryvyi Rih area, which is considered to be the main center of raw materials extraction for the stone foundry forms of the Late Bronze Age on the territory of Ukraine. It was established that such rocks are more characteristic of the Western Azov Sea area, but one can not exclude another source of raw materials of the mold collection, in particular the Southern Urals, where bronze metallurgy was significantly developed and similar stone matrices were used. The obtained results suggest a revision of established ideas on sources of supply of stone raw materials during the late Bronze Age.
Journal of Geology, Geography and Geoecology, 2019
The purpose of the work was to determine the provenance of the raw materials of ancient stone pro... more The purpose of the work was to determine the provenance of the raw materials of ancient stone products, found during the excavations of the Bronze-Early Iron Age monument Tokivske-1, with the aim to establish connections of the ancient population of the area with residents of other regions. The archaeological monument Tokivske-1, located in the northern outskirts of the village Tokivske, Apostolove Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, has been explored by the expedition of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D.I. Yavornytskyi since 2012. The authors of this article already carried out petrographic study of stone artefacts from this monument, which had been found during the first five years of excavations. However, over the past two years, a number of stone and other items were found that could expand our knowledge of the links of Tokivske-1 with ancient industrial centers of other regions. To carry out the petrographic analysis, six artefacts were taken, mainly those made from macroscopically different rocks. Most of them can be related to metalworking. The analyzed samples are represented by an amphibolite hammer for forging jewels or peening sheet copper, a dolerite anvil-prop for a specified hammer, a fragment of an abrasive stone made of ferruginous quartzite, a quartz tile, which is a fragment of an altar, and fragments of an anvil and a scepter-pestle made of sandstone. Petrographic analysis of artefacts allowed determining the probable provenance of their raw materials. Amphibolites are quite common in the territory of the Middle Dnipro area, but by the color of the hornblende, the predominance of epidotization processes over sericitization and macrostructural features, the studied rock is more similar to the amphibolites from the middle stream of the Bazavluk River. Dolerites, similar to the raw material of the anvil-prop, are also common in the area of excavations, and by the presence of the micropegmatite in its composition, its origin can be localized in the middle stream of the river Bazavluk or in the valley of the river Mokra Sura. Magnetite quartzite-the raw material of the abrasive stone-most likely comes from the territory of the city of Kryvyi Rih. Quartz tile-a fragment of an altar-is a quartz vein, similar to those that intersect granites of the Tokivskyi massif directly near the village Tokivske. Sandstones, from which the anvil and the scepter-pestle were produced, appeared to be very similar in their petrographic features. They are represented by quartz sandstones with fragments of rocks and polymineral cement with the predominance of quartz regenerative and porous sericite cement. Also, the relic chalcedony and, more rarely, clay cement are present in the pores. In the territory of Ukraine, the most similar to them, according to petrographic characteristics, are the sandstones of the Carboniferous system, which crop out in the Donbas. Thus, the obtained data testifies to the connection of the Tokivske-1 archaeological complex with other parts of the Middle Dnipro area, such as the middle stream of the Bazavluk River and the Kryvyi Rih area, as well as with more distant regions such as the Donbas. It should be noted that scepter-pestles, similar to the one studied by us, are associated with metalworking, and the Donetsk basin, where the raw material of the indicated tool originates from, was the copper production center of the Late Bronze Age.
Геолого-мінералогічний вісник Криворізького національного університету, 2018
Наведені результати петрографічного вивчення матеріалу половецьких кам’яних баб Полтавського крає... more Наведені результати петрографічного вивчення матеріалу половецьких кам’яних баб Полтавського краєзнавчого музею ім. В.Кричевського. Визначені гірські породи, з яких виготовлені статуї та вірогідні регіони походження порід. Доповнені й уточнені дані попередніх петрографічних досліджень половецьких кам’яних баб музею. Зокрема, визначений матеріал, який до цього часу не був описаний, скореговані дані про походження сировини, з якої були виготовлені деякі статуї.
Purpose. Determination of the stone raw materials resource base used by the populations of variou... more Purpose. Determination of the stone raw materials resource base used by the populations of various historical epochs, who left their monuments in the territory of the stationary megalithic cult site in the village of Tokivske, Apostolove Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine. Methodology. The research was performed using the method of comparative petrographic analysis of stone artefacts and rocks from natural exposures in thin sections. Findings. Twelve artefacts were analyzed: eight of the Bronze Age, one of the Early Iron Age (Scythian Culture) and one of the 17th–18th centuries, as well as two undated artefacts. As a result of petrographic analysis, they were divided into groups according to the stone materials from which they were produced: granites, metabasites, quartzites and quartz, schists, metasandstones and sandstones. Among the Bronze Age artefacts seven have local provenance from the village of Tokivske and the neighboring village of Sholokhove where a stone-processing workshop might have existed. The one imported tool is an amphibolite grinder, most likely brought from the middle section of the river Bazavluk. Concerning stone items of other epochs, a metasandstone plummet, dated to the 17th–18th centuries, apparently originated from Kryvyi Rih. The provenances of the remaining artefacts are somewhat ambiguous. Originality. For the first time the archaeological finds from the megalithic stationary cult site Tokivske-1 were studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis, and the probable sites of the stone mining for their production were determined. Practical value. The obtained data indicates sites where ancient stone-processing workshops existed, being useful information for archaeological exploration. Also, the gathered information can be used for writing general works on archaeology and the history of mining.
Анотація. Встановлюється походження сировини кам'яних стел доби енеоліту-бро-нзи (IV – II тис. до... more Анотація. Встановлюється походження сировини кам'яних стел доби енеоліту-бро-нзи (IV – II тис. до н. е.) з Полтавського краєзнавчого музею імені Василя Кричев-ського. Досліджено п'ять статуй, серед яких найвідоміша кам'яна стела музею, що датується зазначеним періодом, – так званий Федорівський ідол, знайдений на те-риторії Карлівського району, дві стели з Кобеляцького та одна статуя з Кременчу-цького району Полтавської області. Походження однієї стели докладно не відоме. За результатами вивчення зразків гірських порід установлено, що сировиною Федорівського ідола є кварцовий пісковик, що містить уламки кременю і вулканічної по-роди, а також має поровий глинисто-кременистий цемент. Матеріал решти стел визначено як плагіограніт. Один зразок є окварцований, решта представлена біотитовим плагіогранітом. За результатами порівняння сировини досліджених стел зі шліфами гірських порід із Середнього Подніпров'я і Донбасу, сировиною інших пам'яток, що датуються тим самим часом, а також за літературними даними встановлено, що гранітні стели, найвірогідніше, мають місцеве походження, а саме з району м. Кременчук, де за доби енеоліту-бронзи розроблялися аналогічні породи. Сировина Федорівського ідола виявилася привіз-ною і, найвірогідніше, була видобута на території центрального Донбасу, де існують відслонення аналогічних пісковиків. Важливий факт – те, що гірська порода, з якої виготовлено Федорівський ідол, відповідає сировині відомого Керносівського ідола, який датується тим самим часом і був знайдений на території Дніпропетровської області. Ключові слова: археологічна петрографія, кам'яні стели, доба енеоліту-бронзи, Полтава Astract. The purpose of the article was to define the material provenance of stone stelae dated to the Eneolithic and the Bronze Age (4 th – 2 nd millennia BCE) from Poltava Museum of Local Lore named after Vasyl Krichevsky. Moreover, the aim was to ascertain possible areas of stone mining. The research was performed using mineralogical and petrographic methods. The study of rocks was carried out in thin sections using a polarizing microscope. To obtain more accurate data about clayey cement of sandstone, an XRD analysis of extracted and precipitated cement material was conducted. The provenance of the stone materials was established by comparison of determined petrographic features of rocks with characteristics of similar rocks from outcrops and modern mining sites, as well as data from geological survey reports and the petrographic literature. A comparison with thin sections of stone stelae dated to the same epoch from Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D. I. Yavornytskyi and Horishni Plavni Museum of Local History was also performed. There were five statues studied, among which three were found in the southwest of Poltava Oblast (Kobeliaky and Kremenchuk Raion), one in the southeast of the Oblast (Karlivka Raion) and one with unknown place of finding. Petrographic research established that the statues from the southwest of Poltava Oblast, as well as the stele with unknown origin, were made from plagiogranite (biotite trondhjemite). The statue from the southeast of Poltava Oblast, the so-called Fedorivskyi Idol, was produced from sandstone (quartz arenite with argillaceous and siliceous cement). The granites have very similar petrographic features and could have originated from the same area. The area in the southwest of Poltava Oblast, the Dnieper River valley in the vicinity of the city Kremenchuk, belongs to the zone of the Ukrainian Shield, where similar Precambrian plagiogranites are exposed. The material of the studied statues is also similar to the granites of stone stelae from Horishni Plavni museum that were discovered in the same area.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/arcm.12382
Petrographic research into the mediev... more https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/arcm.12382 Petrographic research into the medieval stone stelae (babas) of the Dnipropetrovsk Historical Museum collection was carried out. Most of the items belonged to the medieval nomadic Polovtsians (Cumans, Kipchaks). The probable areas of stone mining were established. It was reaffirmed that the raw materials of the vast majority of the collection of statues are sandstones from the Donets Ridge territory and limestones from the Lower Dnipro area of Ukraine. Granitoids and sandstones from the Middle Dnipro area were also used. Thus, the Polovtsians could both deliver statues or blocks from Donets Ridge to the Dnipro area and use local stone materials.
Based on the research of all available for the study stone artefacts of the Bronze Age, found on ... more Based on the research of all available for the study stone artefacts of the Bronze Age, found on the territory of Kryvyi Rih region, the history of production and use of the stone input of this region during the period under the study has been supplemented with new facts. The list of local and imported rocks has been widened correspondingly from 13 to 46 and from 2 to 16 items. It has been determined, that for some articles (half-hatchets, grain-grinders, casting forms, etc.) the material was chosen not randomly. Besides, not just rocks, but often their certain sorts with the peculiar quantitative mineral composition, granules size of the rockforming minerals, etc. were chosen. Taking into account significant imports of stone work materials from various regions, it was concluded that during the existence of Catacomb culture Kryvyi Rih region was a part of a wide mining province where the work materials for production of stone half-hatchers and other tools were mined. The region under study specialized in rocks with porphyritic inclusions (metabasites and dolerites (diabases)). In the Late Bronze Age, as it was supposed before, a role of Kryvyi Rih region increased to a separate centre of extraction of talc shists.
На основе исследования всех доступных для изучения каменных артефактов эпохи бронзы, найденных на территории Криворожья, дополнена новыми фактами история добычи и применения каменного сырья данного района на протя- жении исследуемого периода. Расширен перечень используемых местных и привозных горных пород соответственно с 13 до 46 и с 2 до 16 позиций. Установлено, что для ряда изделий (топоры-молоты, зернотерки, литейные формы и др.) материал выбирался не случайно. При этом избирались не просто определенные породы, а часто их специфические разновидности с особым количественным минеральным составом, размером зерен породообразующих минералов и пр. Исходя из наличия значительного импорта каменного сырья из различных районов, сделан вывод о том, что во времена существования катакомбной культуры Криворожье было частью обширной горной провинции по добыче сырья для изготовления каменных топоров-молотов и других орудий. Исследуемый район специализировался на по- родах, имеющих порфировые включения: метабазитах и долеритах (диабазах). В эпоху поздней бронзы, как и счита- лось ранее, роль Криворожья возросла до отдельного центра по добыче тальковых сланцев.
A petrographic study of the raw stone materials used for the
Eneolithic-Bronze Age (mid-VI millen... more A petrographic study of the raw stone materials used for the Eneolithic-Bronze Age (mid-VI millennium BCE – IX century BCE) steles from the collection of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical Museum named after D.I. Yavornitsky was carried out. The places of probable origin of the raw stone materials were determined.
Проведено петрографическое исследование сырья каменных стел эпохи энеолита-бронзы (середина VІ тыс. до н. э. – ІХ в. до н. э.) из собрания Днепропетровского национального историчес- кого музея им. Д.И. Яворницкого. Определены вероятные места происхождения каменного сырья.
На основі аналізу результатів мінералого-петрографічних досліджень стародавніх виробів та творів... more На основі аналізу результатів мінералого-петрографічних досліджень стародавніх виробів та творів крупної пластики, виготовлених з метакластолітів Криворізької структури, робляться висновки щодо використання даних гірських порід протягом історії. Визначаються петрографічні особливості метакластолітів, що бумовлювали способи їх застосування у давнину.
Базуючись на результатах мінералого-петрографічних досліджень кам’яної сировини робляться висновк... more Базуючись на результатах мінералого-петрографічних досліджень кам’яної сировини робляться висновки про особливості використання гірських порід у монументальній пластиці Середнього Придніпров’я у різні історичні періоди. Встановлюються відмінності у застосуванні різних видів кам’яної сировини, а також визначаються осередки їх видобутку за часів енеоліту-бронзи, скіфо-сарматського часу, середньовічних кочівників та запорізького козацтва.
Наводяться результати мінералого-петрографічного аналізу зразків вохри та метаультрабазиту з мате... more Наводяться результати мінералого-петрографічного аналізу зразків вохри та метаультрабазиту з матеріалів розкопок могильника золотоординського часу в Нікопольському районі Дніпропетровської області, які могли бути частиною крепіди й панцира кургану. Визначається можливе походження гірських порід.
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Papers by Ihor Nikitenko
Methodology. The study was performed using the method of comparative mineralogical and petrographic analysis in thin sections of the building stone and the rocks from the outcrops in the valleys of the rivers Mokra Sura and Dnipro. The chemical composition of the petrographically identical rocks was also compared using X-ray fl uorescence analysis.
Findings. Nine specimens of rocks that represent all the species of granitoids used for the cromlech-crepidoma construction of the Novooleksandrivka kurgan "Sura-Oba" were analyzed. As a result of the conducted research, it was ascertained that they are represented by plagiogranites (trondhjemites), tonalites, granite gneisses, migmatites and pegmatites. Besides, some granitoids comprise small xenoliths of biotite gneiss. All the indicated rocks are characteristic for the occurrences of the Surskyi and Dnipropetrovskyi plagiogranitoid complexes, widespread in the valley of the river Morka Sura-the right tributary of the river Dnipro, where the monument is directly located. Granitoids with the massive structure were most likely to be delivered from the occurrences located upstream of the river Mokra Sura in the village of Sursko-Lytovske. Migmatites and gneiss-like granites occur both downstream and upstream of the river from the village of Novooleksandrivka. Originality. For the fi rst time, the building stone of the megalithic construction, discovered during the excavations of the "Sura-Oba" kurgan in the village of Novooleksandrivka (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine) has been studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis; in addition, the probable places of its extraction were determined.
of similar moulds in other regions give grounds for considering the monument to be not only a centre of metalworking but also stone-processing. The obtained data are also the first geologically proved
evidence that the Kryvyi Rih area, which was previously considered the main supplier of “talc schists”, was not the only place of mining of raw materials for the manufacturing of casting moulds in the Middle Dnipro area. Both complexes, the second and the previous one, found in 2017, contain matrices made of identical raw materials, namely, the samples made are untypical for the Middle Dnipro area species. This fact indicates the synchronicity of both complexes and a significant volume of casting
production in Tokivske-1.
epochs, who left their monuments in the territory of the stationary megalithic cult site in the village of Tokivske,
Apostolove Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine.
Methodology. The research was performed using the method of comparative petrographic analysis of stone artefacts
and rocks from natural exposures in thin sections.
Findings. Twelve artefacts were analyzed: eight of the Bronze Age, one of the Early Iron Age (Scythian Culture)
and one of the 17th–18th centuries, as well as two undated artefacts. As a result of petrographic analysis, they were
divided into groups according to the stone materials from which they were produced: granites, metabasites, quartzites
and quartz, schists, metasandstones and sandstones. Among the Bronze Age artefacts seven have local provenance
from the village of Tokivske and the neighboring village of Sholokhove where a stone-processing workshop might
have existed. The one imported tool is an amphibolite grinder, most likely brought from the middle section of the
river Bazavluk. Concerning stone items of other epochs, a metasandstone plummet, dated to the 17th–18th centuries,
apparently originated from Kryvyi Rih. The provenances of the remaining artefacts are somewhat ambiguous.
Originality. For the first time the archaeological finds from the megalithic stationary cult site Tokivske-1 were
studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis, and the probable sites of the stone mining for their production
were determined.
Practical value. The obtained data indicates sites where ancient stone-processing workshops existed, being useful
information for archaeological exploration. Also, the gathered information can be used for writing general works on
archaeology and the history of mining.
Petrographic research into the medieval stone stelae (babas) of the Dnipropetrovsk Historical Museum collection was carried out. Most of the items belonged to the medieval nomadic Polovtsians (Cumans, Kipchaks). The probable areas of stone mining were established. It was reaffirmed that the raw materials of the vast majority of the collection of statues are sandstones from the Donets Ridge territory and limestones from the Lower Dnipro area of Ukraine. Granitoids and sandstones from the Middle Dnipro area were also used. Thus, the Polovtsians could both deliver statues or blocks from Donets Ridge to the Dnipro area and use local stone materials.
Rih region, the history of production and use of the stone input of this region during the period under the study has been
supplemented with new facts. The list of local and imported rocks has been widened correspondingly from 13 to 46 and
from 2 to 16 items. It has been determined, that for some articles (half-hatchets, grain-grinders, casting forms, etc.) the
material was chosen not randomly. Besides, not just rocks, but often their certain sorts with the peculiar quantitative mineral
composition, granules size of the rockforming minerals, etc. were chosen. Taking into account significant imports of stone
work materials from various regions, it was concluded that during the existence of Catacomb culture Kryvyi Rih region was
a part of a wide mining province where the work materials for production of stone half-hatchers and other tools were mined.
The region under study specialized in rocks with porphyritic inclusions (metabasites and dolerites (diabases)). In the Late
Bronze Age, as it was supposed before, a role of Kryvyi Rih region increased to a separate centre of extraction of talc shists.
На основе исследования всех доступных для изучения каменных артефактов эпохи бронзы, найденных на территории
Криворожья, дополнена новыми фактами история добычи и применения каменного сырья данного района на протя-
жении исследуемого периода. Расширен перечень используемых местных и привозных горных пород соответственно
с 13 до 46 и с 2 до 16 позиций. Установлено, что для ряда изделий (топоры-молоты, зернотерки, литейные формы и др.)
материал выбирался не случайно. При этом избирались не просто определенные породы, а часто их специфические
разновидности с особым количественным минеральным составом, размером зерен породообразующих минералов и
пр. Исходя из наличия значительного импорта каменного сырья из различных районов, сделан вывод о том, что во
времена существования катакомбной культуры Криворожье было частью обширной горной провинции по добыче
сырья для изготовления каменных топоров-молотов и других орудий. Исследуемый район специализировался на по-
родах, имеющих порфировые включения: метабазитах и долеритах (диабазах). В эпоху поздней бронзы, как и счита-
лось ранее, роль Криворожья возросла до отдельного центра по добыче тальковых сланцев.
Eneolithic-Bronze Age (mid-VI millennium BCE – IX century BCE)
steles from the collection of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical
Museum named after D.I. Yavornitsky was carried out. The places of
probable origin of the raw stone materials were determined.
Проведено петрографическое исследование сырья каменных
стел эпохи энеолита-бронзы (середина VІ тыс. до н. э. – ІХ в. до
н. э.) из собрания Днепропетровского национального историчес-
кого музея им. Д.И. Яворницкого. Определены вероятные места
происхождения каменного сырья.
Methodology. The study was performed using the method of comparative mineralogical and petrographic analysis in thin sections of the building stone and the rocks from the outcrops in the valleys of the rivers Mokra Sura and Dnipro. The chemical composition of the petrographically identical rocks was also compared using X-ray fl uorescence analysis.
Findings. Nine specimens of rocks that represent all the species of granitoids used for the cromlech-crepidoma construction of the Novooleksandrivka kurgan "Sura-Oba" were analyzed. As a result of the conducted research, it was ascertained that they are represented by plagiogranites (trondhjemites), tonalites, granite gneisses, migmatites and pegmatites. Besides, some granitoids comprise small xenoliths of biotite gneiss. All the indicated rocks are characteristic for the occurrences of the Surskyi and Dnipropetrovskyi plagiogranitoid complexes, widespread in the valley of the river Morka Sura-the right tributary of the river Dnipro, where the monument is directly located. Granitoids with the massive structure were most likely to be delivered from the occurrences located upstream of the river Mokra Sura in the village of Sursko-Lytovske. Migmatites and gneiss-like granites occur both downstream and upstream of the river from the village of Novooleksandrivka. Originality. For the fi rst time, the building stone of the megalithic construction, discovered during the excavations of the "Sura-Oba" kurgan in the village of Novooleksandrivka (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine) has been studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis; in addition, the probable places of its extraction were determined.
of similar moulds in other regions give grounds for considering the monument to be not only a centre of metalworking but also stone-processing. The obtained data are also the first geologically proved
evidence that the Kryvyi Rih area, which was previously considered the main supplier of “talc schists”, was not the only place of mining of raw materials for the manufacturing of casting moulds in the Middle Dnipro area. Both complexes, the second and the previous one, found in 2017, contain matrices made of identical raw materials, namely, the samples made are untypical for the Middle Dnipro area species. This fact indicates the synchronicity of both complexes and a significant volume of casting
production in Tokivske-1.
epochs, who left their monuments in the territory of the stationary megalithic cult site in the village of Tokivske,
Apostolove Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine.
Methodology. The research was performed using the method of comparative petrographic analysis of stone artefacts
and rocks from natural exposures in thin sections.
Findings. Twelve artefacts were analyzed: eight of the Bronze Age, one of the Early Iron Age (Scythian Culture)
and one of the 17th–18th centuries, as well as two undated artefacts. As a result of petrographic analysis, they were
divided into groups according to the stone materials from which they were produced: granites, metabasites, quartzites
and quartz, schists, metasandstones and sandstones. Among the Bronze Age artefacts seven have local provenance
from the village of Tokivske and the neighboring village of Sholokhove where a stone-processing workshop might
have existed. The one imported tool is an amphibolite grinder, most likely brought from the middle section of the
river Bazavluk. Concerning stone items of other epochs, a metasandstone plummet, dated to the 17th–18th centuries,
apparently originated from Kryvyi Rih. The provenances of the remaining artefacts are somewhat ambiguous.
Originality. For the first time the archaeological finds from the megalithic stationary cult site Tokivske-1 were
studied using mineralogical and petrographic analysis, and the probable sites of the stone mining for their production
were determined.
Practical value. The obtained data indicates sites where ancient stone-processing workshops existed, being useful
information for archaeological exploration. Also, the gathered information can be used for writing general works on
archaeology and the history of mining.
Petrographic research into the medieval stone stelae (babas) of the Dnipropetrovsk Historical Museum collection was carried out. Most of the items belonged to the medieval nomadic Polovtsians (Cumans, Kipchaks). The probable areas of stone mining were established. It was reaffirmed that the raw materials of the vast majority of the collection of statues are sandstones from the Donets Ridge territory and limestones from the Lower Dnipro area of Ukraine. Granitoids and sandstones from the Middle Dnipro area were also used. Thus, the Polovtsians could both deliver statues or blocks from Donets Ridge to the Dnipro area and use local stone materials.
Rih region, the history of production and use of the stone input of this region during the period under the study has been
supplemented with new facts. The list of local and imported rocks has been widened correspondingly from 13 to 46 and
from 2 to 16 items. It has been determined, that for some articles (half-hatchets, grain-grinders, casting forms, etc.) the
material was chosen not randomly. Besides, not just rocks, but often their certain sorts with the peculiar quantitative mineral
composition, granules size of the rockforming minerals, etc. were chosen. Taking into account significant imports of stone
work materials from various regions, it was concluded that during the existence of Catacomb culture Kryvyi Rih region was
a part of a wide mining province where the work materials for production of stone half-hatchers and other tools were mined.
The region under study specialized in rocks with porphyritic inclusions (metabasites and dolerites (diabases)). In the Late
Bronze Age, as it was supposed before, a role of Kryvyi Rih region increased to a separate centre of extraction of talc shists.
На основе исследования всех доступных для изучения каменных артефактов эпохи бронзы, найденных на территории
Криворожья, дополнена новыми фактами история добычи и применения каменного сырья данного района на протя-
жении исследуемого периода. Расширен перечень используемых местных и привозных горных пород соответственно
с 13 до 46 и с 2 до 16 позиций. Установлено, что для ряда изделий (топоры-молоты, зернотерки, литейные формы и др.)
материал выбирался не случайно. При этом избирались не просто определенные породы, а часто их специфические
разновидности с особым количественным минеральным составом, размером зерен породообразующих минералов и
пр. Исходя из наличия значительного импорта каменного сырья из различных районов, сделан вывод о том, что во
времена существования катакомбной культуры Криворожье было частью обширной горной провинции по добыче
сырья для изготовления каменных топоров-молотов и других орудий. Исследуемый район специализировался на по-
родах, имеющих порфировые включения: метабазитах и долеритах (диабазах). В эпоху поздней бронзы, как и счита-
лось ранее, роль Криворожья возросла до отдельного центра по добыче тальковых сланцев.
Eneolithic-Bronze Age (mid-VI millennium BCE – IX century BCE)
steles from the collection of Dnipropetrovsk National Historical
Museum named after D.I. Yavornitsky was carried out. The places of
probable origin of the raw stone materials were determined.
Проведено петрографическое исследование сырья каменных
стел эпохи энеолита-бронзы (середина VІ тыс. до н. э. – ІХ в. до
н. э.) из собрания Днепропетровского национального историчес-
кого музея им. Д.И. Яворницкого. Определены вероятные места
происхождения каменного сырья.
панцира кургану. Визначається можливе походження гірських порід.