The Soy Habzak trenches in Tajikistan's Zeravshan Valley are the remains of several Paleolithic occupation phases rich in stone tools, fauna, and charcoal remains.
The Soi Habzak Caves are one of the few multi-layered Paleolithic ruins in Central Asia. Image credit: Yossi Zaidner & Sharof Kurbanov, doi: 10.15184/aqy.2024.149.
Soy Habzak is a small tributary of the Zeravshan River approximately 10 km north of Panjikent in northern Tajikistan.
The Soi Havzak ruins are rock shelters/overhangs carved into the cliff face approximately 40 meters above the river.
Professor Yossi Zeidner of the Hebrew University, Dr. Sharov Kurbanov of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan and colleagues excavated three areas of the site, revealing layers of human activity.
Archaeologists have discovered a wealth of Paleolithic stone tools, animal bones, and plants.
The finds date back to various periods between 150,000 and 20,000 years ago.
These provide important evidence that Central Asia played an important role in early human migration and development.
“It turns out that the Zeravshan Valley, which in the Middle Ages was primarily known as the route of the Silk Road, was an important route for human expansion long before that, from 20,000 to 150,000 years ago,” said Zeidner. the professor said.
“This region may have served as a migratory route for several human species that may have coexisted in this region, including modern Homo sapiens, Neanderthals, and Denisovans, and our The aim of the study is to determine who the humans were who lived in this region and the nature of their interactions.
Paleolithic stone tools discovered in the Soi Habzak cave complex in Tajikistan. Image credit: Yossi Zaidner & Sharof Kurbanov, doi: 10.15184/aqy.2024.149.
The well-preserved finds at Soi Habzak not only provide valuable clues about the ancient climate and environment, but also the possibility of discovering hominin artifacts that could identify the species of humans that lived in the area. also brings.
“The state of preservation of not only the bones but also the organic matter, such as the remains of burnt wood, is amazing,” said Professor Zeidner.
“This allows us to reconstruct the region's ancient climate and provides hope that further excavations may reveal clues about the region's human biology.”
“This is critical to understanding the development of human population and behavior in Central Asia.”
This research has broader implications for the study of human evolution and migration, particularly for understanding how ancient human populations interacted.
The Soi Habzak site in the mountain corridor of Central Asia may have served as an important transition point for human populations, allowing early humans to spread across vast areas.
“We hope that ongoing research at this site will provide new insights into how different human groups, including modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans, interacted in this region. '' said Professor Zeidner.
“This discovery is an important step towards understanding the history of ancient humans in Central Asia and demonstrates important collaboration between international scientific teams.”
a paper A description of the discovery was published in a magazine ancient.
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Yossi Zeidner & Sharov Kurbanov. Soii Havzak: A new Paleolithic site in the Zeravshan Valley in central Tajikistan. ancientpublished online on November 4, 2024. doi: 10.15184/aqy.2024.149
Source: www.sci.news
