Species composition of bone remains of animals from medieval Аspara and Sharuashylyk settlements (according to the results of the excavations of 2021)

Abstract

New data on the species composition of the late Middle Ages paleofauna (13-15 centuries) are published, obtained from excavation materials on hillforts of Aspara and Sharuashylyk in valleys of the Shu and Talas rivers. The hillfort of Aspara is located on the foothill plain north of the Kyrgyz Alatau, on the left bank of the river. Aspara is the left tributary of the Shu river. The hillfort of Sharuashylyk is located in the lower reaches of the river. Talas, in the semi-desert zone, at the southwestern outskirts of the sandy desert of Moyynkum. A comparative study of the paleofauna of late medieval settlements located in different landscapes of the Shu-Talas interfluve is carried out for the first time. 3047 mammalian bones were studied, 67.1% of which were determined up to the species. Almost all bone remains determined before the genus and species belong to pets (95.9%). Among the bones of mammals and birds from Sharuashylyk, the proportion of pets is 99.3%, and in the hillfort of Aspara - 96.6%. More than half of the sample (51.3%) are small cattle bones. The second place in terms of number belongs to the remains of cattle (30%), in third place – to horses (16.8%). Small numbers of camel bones and dogs are present. The obtained data make it possible to assess the degree of similarity and differences of paleozoological complexes of two simultaneous sites located in different natural and geographical zones.

Keywords: Shu-Talas interfluve, later Middle Ages, Aspara, Sharuashylyk, paleozoology, animal husbandry, hunting.