Prehistoric home builders living through the Ice Age from the bones of giant beasts became extinct?
Russian archaeologists have discovered an architectural structure built with the bones of mammoth - an extinct prehistoric animal.
According to CNN, about 25,000 years ago, prehistoric humans used the bones of about 60 mammoths to build a large circular structure in Russia. This is not the first "mammoth house" found in Russia, but it is the oldest and largest building, with a width of up to 12 m. Upon discovering this work, archaeologists still could not understand the true purpose of the construction.
In the 1960s and 1970s, researchers found 2 smaller "mammoth houses". One is 500 km south of Moscow, the other belongs to the Kostenki region. The latest work was also found in Kostenki, which led to the decision to establish a prehistoric archaeological museum in the area.
Dozens of mammoth skeletons have been found
So far, researchers have completely re-assembled the skeleton of 51 mammoths. Fourteen boxes of this animal were also found during the excavation.
Alexander Pryor, head of the archeology team, said: "The whole team felt a shiver when they first saw this architecture. It was larger than any similar structure ever discovered. Around the area were also found. big mammoth traps. Imagine this, a mammoth was killed by traps, while their bones were assembled into an architecture nearby. "
Based on previous discoveries, the researchers believe that this type of architecture was built by prehistoric Palaeolithic people with the purpose of providing refuge in the harsh winter of the Ice Age.
Mammoths and prehistoric humans both lived in the harsh cold period of the Ice Age.
However, the "mammoth house" architecture in Kostenki left researchers with a headache. Building a gigantic structure from hundreds of mammoth bones, which are extremely heavy in weight, will take a lot of effort.
In addition, studies also show that the number of prehistoric people living in Kostenki is quite small, only a few groups. Moreover, the habit of hunter-gatherer always motivated prehistoric people to find new lands. So who stayed behind in Kostenki to build such monumental works?
Another surprising thing, Kostenki's "mammoth house" shows no signs of ever being inhabited by humans. Therefore, the purpose of construction of this work has not been clarified.
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