Mammoth camp, better known as the Mezhirich site, located in Mezhirich, Ukraine, was discovered in 1965. A farmer discovered the site when digging to expand his cellar. He struck a large bone that later proved to be the massive lower jaw of a mammoth.
Upon further excavation four oval-shaped dwellings were found made from at least 149 bones. The dwellings, which are now believed to be some of the oldest known houses in the world, date back to 15,000 years ago. The houses were formed by interlocking jaws making the solid base of a roughly circular hut four or five meters across. The roof's support was made up of about three-dozen curved mammoth tusks, some of which were still in their sockets in the skulls during their discovery. It is speculated that these bone huts were covered with hides to complete the shelter. The mammoth bones were used for the framework and foundation of these huts when wood was scarce and there were no available caves.
There were several artifacts found within the various huts. One of great importance is that of a map, which not only dates the site to approximately 12,000 B.C., but also appears to be the earliest possible map. The map is scratched into a bone and apparently shows the countryside around the settlement of mammoth huts. Additional artifacts were found within, such as: fossil shells, amber ornaments and the remains of one of the earliest possible “drums” ever found. The instrument was made of a mammoth skull placed at the entrance and decorated with a pattern of red ochre dots and lines. Long bones were found that had damage on their ends, which correspond with the depressions in the mammoth skull drum. It is speculated that the building in which the drum was found could have served as some communal function or ritual at which the drum would have been beaten.
Not much is known about the people that lived in these mammoth houses. The extensive amount of mammoth bones could lead to the speculations that these people were skilled hunters. Yet the bones showed signs of gnawing marks of carnivores, which suggests many of them were scavenged. However the task of dragging the giant skulls and bones across country does not diminish the feat, as a small skull could weigh as much as one hundred kilograms. In addition storage pits and hearths were found that were filled with remains of burnt mammoth bones. The bones were used as firewood because of the lack of lumber in surrounding areas.
References:
“Don's Maps.” Resources for the study of the Paleolithic (3 Jan. 2003) <http://www.hominids.com/donsmaps/mammothcamp.html> 23 Jan. 2003
“Early Modern Human Culture.” (7 Jan. 2003) <http://anthro.palomar.edu/homo2/sapiens_culture.htm> 23 Jan. 2003
“UI professor trying to dispel common historical stereotype of how early man lived.” Understanding Stone Age Life <http://www.anthro.uiuc.edu/Department/OLGA.html> 26 January 2003
Written by Ashley Christenson, 2003
