New Stone Age Sites to the North of Lake Ladoga in Karelia, Russia

Authors

• Hannu Takala
• Mark M. Shakhnovich
• Anssi Malinen
• Aleksey Yu. Tarasov

Abstract

In 2012, the Museum of Lahti and the Museum of Petrozavodsk completed a joint archaeological field project, begun in 2008, in present-day Russian Karelia for the purpose of studying the oldest postglacial settlement of the area between Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega.

During the five field seasons, altogether 19 new Stone Age sites were found. Test excavations were carried out at five sites. The finds consisted mostly of burned bone and flakes of quartz and other lithics. The oldest site was found in Harlu at the mouth of the Jänisjoki River, with a dating of ca. 7760 calBC.