Stable Isotopic and Radiocarbon Analysis of Neolithic and Bronze Age Fisher-Hunter Gatherers from Lake Baikal’s Little Sea, Upper Lena River, and Selenga River Regions

Summary

The diet of prehistoric hunter-gatherers in the Lake Baikal Region has been extensively studied using stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic analyses. This paper extends this work, reporting new carbon and nitrogen stable isotope and AMS radiocarbon dating results from the cemeteries of Verkholensk (n=45) in the Upper Lena micro-region; Ulan-Khada II–V (n=19) in the Little Sea micro-region; and Fofanovo (n=22) in the Selenga micro-region. The latter analyses represent the first stable isotopic data from the eastern side of Lake Baikal.

Our results revealed several interesting patterns: Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age individuals at Verkholensk were significantly different from each other in δ15N (n=41, df=39, p=0.000), suggesting a more terrestrial diet in the latter. Children to young adults differed significantly from mid to old adults at Ulan-Khada in δ15N (n=12, df=10, p=0.009), the latter showing depleted 15N values. The results from Fofanovo appear isotopically distinct from the other micro-regions as a result of heavy reliance on the Selenga River’s resources. At Fofanovo in particular, there were discrepancies between the radiocarbon results and expected archaeological datings. In the future, it will be necessary to establish appropriate freshwater reservoir corrections for sites along the Selenga.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Investigating the Hunter-Gatherers of Lake Baikal and Hokkaido: Integrating Individual Life Histories and High-Resolution Chronologies   •
• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 16182