Chronology of the Pleistocene Finds of Homo Remains in Siberia: Results and Problems (A Short Overview)

This overview article contains a brief critical analysis of the chronology of Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene finds of Homo remains in Siberia. Direct dating of the Homo bones and teeth, as well as the isolation and analysis of the ancient human DNA, has now become firmly established in the practice of paleoanthropological research. About 62% of the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene Siberian Homo remains have information on ancient DNA and direct dates of the bones and teeth. Particular attention is given to the assessment of the reliability of ages determined by the radiocarbon dating method. Information on the taphonomy (conditions and process of burial and fossilization) of Homo remains in the caves of the Mountain Altai is also of great importance. At present, three species of Pleistocene Homo are known in Siberia: Denisovans, Neanderthals, and anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens). For the DenisovanNeanderthal hybrid, there is a direct date obtained by the Uranium series method, which shows the age of 67,500 cal BP. The age of other Denisovan fossils cannot be precisely determined due to the significant mixing of layers in Denisova Cave. The timing of the Denisovans in Siberia can be preliminarily determined at 130,000–44,000 cal BP (the upper limit is very approximate). The age of Siberian Neanderthals is greater than 50,000 cal BP; it is difficult to be more precise due to the widespread disturbance of the Altai caves’ stratigraphy by the burrowing activity of animals, primarily cave hyenas. Early Homo sapiens inhabited Siberia from 45,000 cal BP to the Early Holocene. No clear correspondence can be observed between climate changes in the second half of the Late Pleistocene (45,000–12,000 cal BP) and the chronology of Homo sapiens in Siberia. The age of some Homo sapiens fossils (Baigara, Solovyinaya Luka, and Sibiryachikha 6) after direct dating turned out to be much younger than initially expected. The taxonomic status of some Siberian Homo (Tuyana; an individual from the Okladnikov Cave with a date of 28,300 cal BP) has not yet been reliably identified. Obviously, it is necessary to increase the number of direct dates for Siberian hominins.