Mediaeval walrus hunting in Iceland and Greenland—driven by Western European demand for ivory and walrus hide ropes—has been identified as an important pre-modern example of ecological globalization. By contrast, the main origin of walrus ivory destined for eastern European markets, and then onward trade to Asia, is assumed to have been Arctic Russia. Here, we investigate the geographical origin of nine twelfth-century CE walrus specimens discovered in Kyiv, Ukraine—combining archaeological typology (based on chaîne opératoire assessment), ancient DNA (aDNA) and stable isotope analysis. We show that five of seven specimens tested using aDNA can be genetically assigned to a western Greenland origin. Moreover, six of the Kyiv rostra had been sculpted in a way typical of Greenlandic imports to Western Europe, and seven are tentatively consistent with a Greenland origin based on stable isotope analysis. Our results suggest that demand for the products of Norse Greenland's walrus hunt stretched not only to Western Europe but included Ukraine and, by implication given linked trade routes, also Russia, Byzantium and Asia. These observations illuminate the surprising scale of mediaeval ecological globalization and help explain the pressure this process exerted on distant wildlife populations and those who harvested them.

The paper presents the results on archaeometric characterization of a test sample of building materials from the settlements of the Late Roman period Komariv and Buzovytsia-1 in the middle course of the Dniester river. The parameters of raw material and technology of bricks from the two sites are compared and the first reconstruction of features of operational chains are offered. Also, the first comparison of the Late Roman period materials with same-function artifacts of the Middle Ages (Old Rus’ Culture) has been made. The development of petrographic and geochemical classification of archaeological building ceramics from the sites of the Central and South-West Ukraine was started.

The Scientific Repository of the Institute of Archaeology of the NAS of Ukraine has three collections of archaeological finds coming from excavations on the St. Michael Golden-domed Monastery yard. These are the materials from the excavation of 1940 led by Mikhail Karger, the survey of 1944 led by David Blifeld and observations over the earthworks of Volodymyr Diadenko in 1967. The excavations of 1940 revealed two Old Rus dwellings and several pits on the site between St. Michael Cathedral and the Refectory, as well as the previously unknown Old Rus temple of the 11th century, associated with the St. Dmitro Cathedral. The field inventory books stored in the Scientific Archive of the Institute of Archaeology allow to clarify the locations of excavated sections where the works were carried out, as well as to compile a list of finds with a preserved collection that is about much smaller than the total amount found during excavations. A significant part of it is building remains such as fragments of frescos (some with graffiti), bricks, floor tiles, tiles, acoustic jars, molten lead roof sheets. The collection contains also household items such as fragmented ceramic dishes, amphora containers, grinding stones, and remains of manufacture: a fragment of an iron bloom and the glassware production refuse. In addition, there are some artefacts from graves: fabric, leather shoe details. The finds dated to a wide chronological range from the 10th—11th to the 18th—19th centuries and display the life in the monastery during all this time, without chronological lacunae. The survey of David Blifeld in 1944 was caused by construction of a vegetable store on the courtyard of the former monastery, and the works of Volodymyr Diadenko in 1967 were apparently related to the supervision over earthworks in the Upper city of Kyiv. There are neither publication, no archive data about the last two stages of research, so collections of archaeological finds are the only source of information about these studies. Both collections are small. The collection of the year 1944 contains the 18th century pottery, as well as three fragments of vessels of the 12th—13th centuries from cultural layer. The collection is incomplete because of significant gaps of inventory numbers. Observations of Volodymyr Diadenko in 1967 revealed the dwelling of Old-Rus time, which can be dated to the 12th — early 13th century by the available materials (fragments of pots and a big pottery container). The collection also included a half of brick of the 17th—18th centuries and a sherd of acoustic jar that may indicate the location of the site close to any architectural object.

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