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The article presents the results of an analysis of the shapes of ivory beads from the burials of a male and adolescent boys discovered in 1964 and 1969 by O.N. Bader at the Sungir site (Vladimir region, Russia), the habitation of which dates back to the end of the Early period (30–27 thousand BC) of the Upper Paleolithic. Beads are diverse in shape, small in size, extremely standardized products, which are one of the most mass and widespread categories of personal composite decorations at the Upper Paleolithic sites. Currently, the Sungir site is the only one where set decorations made of ivory beads, which retained their original position, were found in burials in large quantities (more than 10,000 units). These include an abundance of decoration sets such as bracelets and numerous rows of beads running across and along the body, around the waist, arms and legs, as well as the heads of the buried. The studied sample included 113 set of decorations made of beads (more than 4,000 units). The technical and morphological analysis of beads of such ornamental rows reveal that decorations were not formed randomly, but have a certain rhythmic patterns. In some cases, they were formed by the repeated alternation of groups of artifacts of different types, in others by the alternation of groups of items of the same type, but made on different blanks. The study of the complex rhythmic compositions of ivory beads revealed that there are four main independent types of beads at the site: rectangular in plan with notches on wide surfaces and a bidirectional hole in the center; rounded or oval in plan, with flattened proportions and a hole in the center; drop-shaped ("basket-shaped"); thin flat rectangular in plan, with a small hole in the center. Previously unknown beads of an individual shape were also identified — crescent-shaped and in the form of an asterisk. It is established that the dimensional characteristics of beads were an important factor for compositional constructions for ancient craftsmen. The diversity and the principle of consistency characterizing the composite Sungir jewelry indicate that they represent a unique archaeological source, the significance of which has yet to be evaluated.

The article presents the results of a technical and morphological study of a series of ivory finger rings discovered in 1969 by O. N. Bader during his excavations of a unique double burial of teenagers at the Sungir Upper Palaeolithic site (35—29 thousand years ago), situated at the eastern suburb of the city Vladimir in Vladimir province of Russia. The objects under study are nine artifacts in the shape of small rings made of mammoth ivory, including six intact finger rings found on the fingers of two buried teenager boys. The newly obtained technological and use-wear evidence makes it possible to better understand how the rings were produced and used. In particular, it suggests that both closed and disconnected rings were carved from short and massive ivory chips. Special attention was given not to the aesthetic of the outer surface but rather to the morphometric properties of the inner surface. The character of pitting on the ring surfaces, peculiarities of their position on the fingers, and the character of the archaeological context of these finds point to the possibility that they were probably not only personal ornaments of ancient hunters, but had also some strictly utilitarian function associated with the use (throwing) of projectiles.

This article presents the results of recent archaeological and geochemical studies at the Late Palaeolithic site of Yudinivo. The reported research was focused on the area with dwelling No. 5, a large pit with mammoth bones on its bottom and an ash damp. The micro-stratigraphy of the cultural layer makes it possible to identify a number of stages in the life history of large household constructions. It has been established that an ash damp was formed first, while dwelling of mammoth bones was erected somewhat later and simultaneously a large pit was dug with large mammoth bones laid on its bottom. The pit and the dwelling appear to have been constructed at the same time and used synchronously with the ash damp. The geochemical analysis of the deposits above the ash damp and the pit, as well as in the filling of the latter, show that the cultural layer formed during an extremely long period of time with long intervals. One can distinguish at least four episodes corresponding to different climatic conditions. Two of these episodes are characterized by a high anthropogenic load, indicating that the site occupation was particularly active 17100—15000 cal. BP and 14000—13200 cal. BP.

Two fundamentally different phases of social development in archaic Scandinavia can be identified. Judging by the fact that the long house of frame construction of the patrilocal extended family, who had been keeping an oðal for generations, emerged in the early Scandinavian Bronze Age around 1800 BC and existed for three millennia, including the so-called "Viking Age", it is possible to assume that the traditional Scandinavian society of bonds had existed all this time until 1179–1180 in Denmark. The odel system had developed; this land was inherited by males and passed down from generation to generation. Often three generations of relatives — the head of the oðal with his wife and his adult sons with their wives and children as well as numerous household members and house slaves — lived under the same roof in a long house with central rectangular hearths along the axis. The king had the right to call out militia of bonds, which under the leadership of its leaders — strong and wealthy bonds — was quite capable of resisting the king's not large squad and often dictated terms to it. The kings were chosen at þings — assemblies of armed men of districts where legal issues were settled. The formation of early medieval states in Denmark took place in the last quarter of the 12th century. The king Valdemar and Bishop Absalon after a period of the so-called "civil wars" supported by professional heavy cavalry defeated the militia and disarmed bonds, who were now assigned only agriculture work, taxes to the crown and the church and service to the new feudal lords.

The Late Upper Palaeolithic of Kostёnki and adjacent territories (~21—12 ka uncal BP/~27—14 ka cal BP) remains the period least well-documented with absolute dating evidence. During this study, 19 samples were collected from the cultural layers of ten sites and submitted to the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit (ORAU) for radiocarbon dating. The results obtained significantly advance our knowledge of these sites' ages and of the development of the Palaeolithic in and around Kostёnki. The new data suggest a unique refugium in Kostёnki during the peak of Late Glacial Maximum (~21—18 ka uncal BP/~27—22 ka cal BP), represented by sites of the Zamyatninskaya culture, which has a specific lithic industry. Sites for that period are extremely rare outside Kostёnki. Similar refugia during the LGM have been recorded in Central Europe in Moravia and the Carpathian Basin. At the time of deglaciation, in the period of ~15—16 ka uncal BP (~20—18 ka cal BP), Late/Typical Epigravettian sites appear on the Middle Don, which seems to be relatively synchronous across wide areas of Central and Eastern Europe. Also worthy of note are sites with a cultural attribution different from the Late Epigravettian (Byki 7, Samotoevka) in the period of ~18—16 ka uncal BP (~22—19 ka cal BP) in the Center of the Russian Plain.