The topography of the Zolotoe 1 settlement — a newly discovered Late-Bronze site in the Tobol-Ishim interfluve

This paper is aimed at presenting the preliminary results of a study carried out in the Zolotoe 1 settlement in 2018. This territory was inhabited twice in the late Bronze Age, first by the representatives of the Alakul culture and then by those of the Alekseevka-Sargary culture. The focus of this research was on the topographic features of the site. An additional objective consisted in the description and interpretation of newly discovered archaeological materials and buildings. The Zolotoe 1 settlement is located on the shores of Lake Zolotinskoe near the Zolotoe village, the Polovinsky district of the Kurgan region. This place attracted our research interest because of its specific location. In contrast to the currently known sites featuring similar artefacts, which are located along the high banks of the Tobol and Ishim rivers and, less frequently, in the floodplain, this settlement is situated along the shores of the lake system in the Tobol-Ishim interfluve. A depressed land area in the north-eastern part of the settlement located at a distance from the village was selected for the study. Prior to excavation, an electromagnetic scanning of the site surface was performed with the purpose of refining the parameters of the search area. It is established that the remains found in the site are likely to be associated with the Alakul period. These include the remains of a building (ostensibly, a shed, judging by the absence of a pit and the presence of a series of pillar holes) and those of a fireplace, (supposedly) wells, fragments of ceramics and tools. The latter are shown to be located towards the western and eastern parts of the discovered shed. The artefacts are similar to those discovered in other sites of the Alakul culture. The Alekseevsk-Sargarinsky building horizon is also represented by the remains of a ground construction, fireplace lenses, bronze items and the fragments of vessels. The characteristic ornamentation on the latter has enabled the attribution of this complex. Therefore, our study of the Zolotoe 1 settlement has provided additional information about the specifics of the settlement of the Alakul and Alekseevka-Sargary groups. It is established that the area of their economic activity included not only river lines, as has been previously thought, but also remote lake systems. The features of the discovered buildings may indicate the seasonal nature of the settlements. This assumption can be confirmed or refuted by a more detailed study of the collected material and further research in other parts of the site. The continuation of exploratory studies along the coastline of numerous lakes in the Tobol-Ishim interfluve seems to be a promising research task