Рекогносцирањa налазишта из доњег и средњег палеолита на североисточним обронцима Гоча

Abstract

This paper describes several Palaeolithic open air sites found while surveying the northeastern slopes of Goč Mountain in Central Serbia. These sites were found in close proximity to primary deposits of flint, opal and chalcedony on the slopes of Rudno Brdo and Grot. These hills are located in an area of volcanic-sediments in the village of Dublje and on the second Pleistocene terrace (t2) of the Zapadna Morava River in the village of Ruđinci near Vrnjačka Banja. Survey was conducted using transects with 5m spacing while artifact concentrations were recorded using a hand-held GPS unit. In order to reduce the possibility of collecting geofacts (Wisniewski et al. 2014), only materials clearly identifiable as artifacts were collected. Artifacts from open air sites near the raw material deposits (Slatinski Potok, Crnobarac, Nišan) as well as from the village of Dublje (Gvozdenac), largely consisted of Lower Palaeolithic materials (unipolar, alternate and centripetal cores, scrapers and denticulate tools on irregular flakes), although some possible Middle Palaeolithic pieces were present. Slatinski Potok and Nišan had massive bifacially flaked artifacts, while artifacts from Slatinski Potok included one typical cleaver. On the other hand, Middle Palaeolithic artifacts are clearly present in Ruđinci. While some of the material from the survey resembles Acheulean lithic technology, such hypotheses must be confirmed by finding these artifacts in open air sites with preserved stratigraphy.