Изучение позднескифского поселенческого и агрохозяйственного комплекса Борут-Хане в Предгорном Крыму естественнонаучными методами
Study of the Late Scythian Settlement and Agricultural-Residential Complex of Borut-Khane in the Piedmont Crimea by Natural Science Methods

Summary/Abstract: For the first time, the internal structure of the uniquely-preserved Late-Scythian fortress of Borut-Khane was determined. This study also revealed the adjacent settlement with “long fields”. This multidisciplinary research was carried out with remote sensing (satellite images and aerial photography), precision geodesic (differential GPS receiver), geophysical (magnetic survey) and soil-genetic methods. As a result of these studies, as well as research in the vicinity of the settlement of Zayache, it has been shown that the economy and daily life of the Late-Scythians was based in their settlements, while the nearby fort was mainly a refuge in time of danger. The area of the settlements was several times larger than the fortresses; these settlements were located in open and unprotected areas next to the fortifications. The agricultural orientation of the late Scythian settlements is shown by their grain storage pits and their “long fields”. These fields are characterized by their alternating ridges and ditches of soil; this topographic pattern, possibly, is caused by an asymmetric plow that shifts soil to only one side.

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