Diffuse Runoff from Agricultural Lands within a River Basin and Water Protection Measures

This paper is dedicated to the study of the pollutants coming from agricultural lands located within the catchment into the Yakhroma river, a third-order tributary of the Upper Volga. The area of the river catchment is 1437 km2. It is located in the north-eastern part of the Moscow region, which geographically belongs to the Klinsko-Dmitrov ridge (the upper part of the basin) and the Upper Volga Lowland. The slopes and floodplain included in the reclaimed lands (more than 9 th ha) are lined with cities, rural settlements, numerous kitchen gardens, and agricultural lands. Water quality, river profile from the source to the mouth, and sources of pollution within the reclaimed lands of the Yakhroma floodplain were studied from 2004 to the present. A geospatial intelligence system (GIS) was developed for the catchment area. Land areas are allocated according to the conditions of surface runoff formation, taking into account soil types and slopes. The studies of the river water quality, tributaries, and drainage network in the reclaimed lands showed biogenic pollution caused by insufficiently treated wastewater discharged from cities and agricultural land, especially within the reclaimed massif. The calculations of the removal of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium from surface and drainage waters revealed that the main role in the pollution of both surface and drainage waters is played by nitrogen and potassium compounds, and to a lesser extent by phosphorus compounds. For nitrogen, removal from surface runoff was 27.36 t/year; for phosphorus it was 6.06 t/year; for potassium it was 242.28 t/year; with drainage runoff, the removal of nitrogen was 98.88 t/year; the removal of phosphorus was 0.38 t/year; the removal of potassium was 37.04 t/year. To reduce the inflow of surface diffuse runoff and to purify collector and drainage waters from nitrogen and phosphorus compounds, including the creation of bioplateaus and biosorption structures, it was proposed to use a set of protective measures, which will significantly reduce the biogenic load on the river flow.

Temporal Decoration of the Female Head Gear of Upper Volga Region of 13th-15th Centuries

The author examines temporal decoration of the female head gear, revealed in the burial sites and on the settlements of the Upper Volga region of the 13th – 15th centuries. Throughout the 13th century the cast "imitation" jewelry was used, imitating pre-Mongolian precious attire with colts and temporal rings with grain and filigree beads. The most common decorations were the temporal rings with smooth beads, preserved in the attire until the end of the 14th century, and simple temporal rings of small and medium-diameter with entering ends and bent ends. The cast lunar false-woven rings were also revealed. In the 13th century the new forms of jewelry appeared. These are the temporal rings with a shaped blade, modifications of which used during the 13th –1th centuries. Probably the temporal rings were used in a combination with a rigid headgear and earrings, which became a part of the costume in the 14th century.

Ecological Parameters of Water Bodies in the Northern Part of the Upper Volga Region with River Flow Regulations

The regulation of river flow in the Volga basin has caused irreversible changes to aquatic ecosystems. The transformation of the Volga into a cascade of hydraulic structures with a non-flow regime has resulted in a decrease in depth and flow, and an increase in the temperature and concentration of chemical elements, which has induced the process of eutrophication. The change in the species diversity of aquatic organisms under conditions of intense eutrophication was studied on models of water bodies from the Volga basin; the Kostroma section of the Gorky reservoir (Kostroma spill and the middle river section), and lakes Galichskoe and Chukhlomskoe were studied. Rheophilic biocenosis was replaced by a limnophilic one, the migration paths of fish were disrupted, and population characteristics were changed. In accordance with environmental conditions, the level of primary production and the calculated Carlson trophic index (TSI) and Broth-proposed index (ITS) (1987), the water bodies of the northern part of the upper Volga region are classified as follows: the middle river section of the Gorky reservoir is mesotrophic-eutrophic (TSI = 55.2, ITS = 16.2); the Kostroma spill is eutrophic with a tendency to hypertrophy (TSI = 67.4, ITS = 6.8); Lake Galichskoe is eutrophic with a tendency to dystrophy (TSI = 63.2, ITS = 8.4), and Lake Chukhlomskoe is hypertrophic with a tendency to dystrophy (TSI = 77.4, ITS = 8.0). In addition, frequent fluctuations in water level, reaching 1 m, have had an adverse effect on inhabitants of the littoral zone including the spawning fish, which may lead to disappearance of some of the region’s most sensitive species.

Gun and Fire-Steel Flints, Gun Supplies of the 18th C. Annenskaya Fortress on the Lower Don

The Annenskaya fortress is a well-preserved star-shaped earthen bastion located on the right bank of the Don river near the Starocherkassk fortress. Near the Annenskaya fortress, there were unfortified Soldatskaya and Dolomanovskaya villages. The Annenskaya fortification mainly functioned from 1733 to 1760, while the pinnacle of its population (the garrison reached 9,000 people) fell at the Russian-Turkish war of 1735–1739. There were no archaeological excavations at the site, the picked-up findings were collected by various authors in 2000, 2003–2006. Among the findings, there are religious objects, military ammunition, household remains. Significant part of inventory amount gun and fire-steel flints, gun supplies (bullets). The analysis of these materials is the main purpose of the paper. The collection of gun flints includes intact samples (50 pcs) and fragments (22 pcs). Some of them (6 pcs) were preserved in lead clips. A significant part of the worn-out gun flints (22 pcs) were reused as tinderbox components to kindle a fire for domestic purposes. The most of gun and fire-steel flints are made of carboniferous flint raw materials (probably geological sources of the Upper Volga basin). The collection is complemented by lead bullets of two main calibers, i.e. of 8, 13–15 и 17–18 mm in diameter.

Final Palaeolithic of Zhytomyr Polissia

Final Palaeolithic (Terminal Palaeolithic) — the last, final phase of the Upper Palaeolithic of Europe, dating from 13.5—10 kyr and has numerous paleogeographic equivalents — Dryas period, Late glacier, Late or Final glacial, Tardiglacial period, reindeer age. In Zhytomyr Polissia there are two main groups of different Final Palaeolithic monuments with different cultural and chronological characteristics. At the beginning of the epoch, Еpigravettian mammoth hunters lived in the region. In particular, on the Ovruch ridge at the beginning of the Final Paleolithic a separate variant of the Еpigravettian developed. The extinction of mammoths about 13 kyr and the onset of the reindeer era caused a change in population. During the Allerod warming about 12 kyr reindeer hunters of the Lyngby culture advanced from the South-Western Baltic region to Polissia. The spread of Lyngbian cultural traditions at the end of Allerod in the outwash plains from Jutland to the Neman, Prypiat, Upper Dnipro and Upper Volga laid the groundwork for the emergence 11 000 years ago areas of related cultures with arrowheads on blades. In addition to Lyngby, it includes the following cultures: Ahrensburg in Northern Germany, Swiderian in the Vistula, Prypiat and Neman basins, and Krasnosillia in the Prypiat, Neman and Upper Dnipro basins. The specificity of their flint inventory is the leading role of various tanged arrowheads on blades, while the cultural marker of Epigravettian complexes are a variety of micro-inserts with a backed edge. Genetically descended from the Lyngby culture population, Krasnosillian and Swiderian hunter groupes lived in the cold forest-tundra, hunting for herds of seasonally migrating reindeers. The sharp warming 10 kyr led to the migration of Krasnosillian and Swidrian groupes following the reindeer to the north of Eastern Europe, which they settled during the VIII millennium BC. On the Swiderian basis, the post-Swiderian Mesolithic was formed. It is Butovo and similar Mesolithic cultures of the forest belt of Eastern Europe from the Baltics to the Northern Ural. The Mesolithic Pisochnyi Riv culture of the Middle Desna, the Grensk culture of the Upper Dnipro, and the Ienevo culture of the Upper Volga were formed on the Krasnosillian basis. These Mesolithic communities of northern Eastern Europe in ethno-cultural terms were probably distant ancestors of the Finnish peoples.

Revising the Chronology of Stanovoye 4 in the Upper Volga Region (Western Russia)

This paper examines the Stanovoye 4 site-chronology, which was developed through several radiocarbon dating efforts throughout the last two decades. Today, the dates indicate longterm cultural traditions at the site, lasting over 3000 years. The goal of this paper is to understand the site chronology holistically, which is done through a critical review of all available dates and sample characteristics. Additionally, the choice of sample materials, dating methods and preservation practices will be discussed. Furthermore, the dating of PVA-consolidated samples is discussed from an archaeological standpoint.