Results of the 2018 Archaeological Investigation at the Burial Ground of Maksimovka I in the Forest-steppe Volga Region

Introduction. This is a report on the results of archaeological excavations at Maksimovka I, the subterranean burial ground located in the forest-steppe Volga region. The site is unique because it contains burial complexes of different epochs. The purpose of the paper is to introduce the materials found during the 2018 excavations for the attention of the academic community. In particular, the paper focuses on the description and characterization of the archaeological complexes under investigation, and, also, on their cultural-chronological attribution. Data. The cultural layer was not particularly rich but contained fragments of Neolithic, Eneolithic, and Bronze Age ceramics, stone tools, and waste left after stone processing. Three burials were examined in the excavation area. The first burial comprised the skeleton of a deceased person in a supine position; the head oriented to the north-northeast; the grave goods included iron items (a fragment of a boiler and of a bit, rod-shaped items, and a firesteel), grindstones, and flints. The second buried person was found in the seated position, leg bones bent at the knee joint, head oriented to northeast; the finds included a nonferrous metal ring, a bone pendant, a silicon wafer, and tubular beads. The third buried person was also in a seated position, head oriented to the northeast; no grave goods were found in the third burial. Also, two other burial constructions recovered on the site were partially examined.  Results. The first burial was attributed to the Golden Horde period in the Middle Ages (the second half of the 13th or the 14th c.). The second burial has a number of parallels to burial complexes of mid-late Eneolithic era of the forest-steppe Volga region. The third burial was left unidentified in terms of its cultural-chronological attribution, granted the non-standard position of the skeletal remains in the grave and the absence of goods. Conclusions. The examination of the subterranean burial ground Maksimovka I has allowed to introduce the archaeological material of different periods, such as Neolithic, Eneolithic, Bronze, and Middle Ages.

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