Composite Slotted Tools from the Kazachka Site (Eastern Siberia)

Composite slotted tools made of bone and antler are a common element in the material culture of the Early Holocene communities across Eurasia, including Eastern Siberia. These tools were used for various purposes in hunting and everyday life. This article presents 16 slotted tools from layers 19 and 14–11 of the Kazachka site (10,800–8300 BP), discovered in the excavations in 1970s–80s, which have not yet been fully published. The majority of the slotted tools (10 items) were found in the layer 12, and most of them were singleslotted. The artifacts vary in size and shape, ranging from large, wide slots (fragments 10–13 mm wide) to narrow and long slots (120–140 mm long and 6–8 mm wide). The variety of forms could be explained by functionality of the tools (elongated narrow slots with pointed ends as projectile points; wide, flat tools as knives or daggers). The slotted tool from layer 11 was significantly smaller (29 × 11 × 5 mm) than those from the lower layers. All slotted bases were made of bone, which was likely associated with specific aspects of the life support system at the site. The artifacts show traces of the manufacturing process, such as grinding and linear marks. Some notches and geometric ornamentation were found on five tools. Elongated slotted tools or needle-like projectile points manifest some similarities with the Mesolithic assemblages from Eleneva cave, the Zhokhovksaya site (Eastern Siberia), as well as evidence from Trail Creek cave in Alaska. Further research may reveal the functional and technological aspects of the use of slotted tools.