Excavations of the Botai settlement

The North Kazakhstan expedition of the Petropavlovsk Pedagogical Institute continued excavations of the Eneolithic settlement Botai in the Volodar district of the Kokchetav region. Four excavations carried out the research. Excavation III (720 sq. m) was a continuation of excavation I in 1980 in the collapsing promontory of the site, where dwellings 8–10 and eight more housing structures (22-29) were cleared. Excavation IV (176 sq. m.) on the eastern outskirts unearthed dwellings 19 and 20.

Excavation V (400 sq. m.) at the site of dwelling depressions in the central part revealed four (14-17) semi-dugouts of irregularly round shape with an area of ​​40-65 sq. m with a hearth in the center (on the floor) and utility pits and utility pits outside buildings. The dwellings had clay walls and hipped floors. Excavation VI (124 sq. m.) was laid in the northeastern part of the site, where farm buildings were concentrated, particularly for keeping livestock.

The excavation depth of one of the utility rooms reached 2 m from the surface. It contained two accumulations of horse bones. The collection of the monument includes more than 58 thousand objects made of stone, bone and clay. Significant osteological material was collected, including the bones of 523 horses.