Prehistoric Megastructure Uncovered in Ukraine

News September 26, 2019

(CRC 1266)
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Ukraine Prehistoric Megastructure
(CRC 1266)

KIEL, GERMANY—Live Science reports that excavation of a 2,000-square-foot Stone Age megastructure at the Tripolye site of Maidanetske in Ukraine uncovered pottery, animal bone, a polishing stone, a whetstone, and a loom weight, indicating the building was used for everyday activities such as food preparation, eating, and storage. The Tripolye culture, also known as the Cucuteni-Tripyllia culture, occupied the area from the Carpathian Mountains to the Dnieper River from about 4100 to 3600 B.C. The rectangular building, made of clay-covered split wood and logs, had a roofed-off section with a fireplace, a walled courtyard, and was one of 3,000 individual homes arranged in concentric rings at Maidanetske, although the researchers, led by Robert Hofmann of Christian-Albrechts University, are not sure how many of the structures existed at the same time. Other prehistoric megastructures measuring up to 18,000 square feet have been found in Eastern Europe through geophysical surveys, but without excavation, researchers did not know how such structures were used. Hofmann explained that the placement of megastructures in Tripolye settlements in the region suggests they may have provided assembly spaces for different segments of society. The researchers now plan to analyze and compare the contents of trash pits located near megastructures and normal, smaller dwellings. For more on the Tripolye culture, go to "Ancient Tattoos: Ceramic Female Figurine."

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