The article describes the odontological material from excavations of the Byzantine church near Veseloe village (Imereti lowland, Krasnodar Territory) in morphology and pathology aspects. This architectural complex was investigated in 2010–2011 by the expedition of the Institute
of Archaeology RAS in the area of the Olympic Games constructions and it dates back to IX–XIII centuries. Dental morphology description of sample (23 individuals) from an underground crypt revealed its similarity with modern Abkhazians. Further investigation and comparison of
the studied sample with the one from the cemetery at the church and other synchronic series will clarify the anthropological type of the medieval population of Eastern Black Sea region and its origins.

The results of the dental morphology study of the Mesolithic
skulls from Murzak-Koba 1, Murzak-Koba 2 and Fatma-Koba
(Crimea), stored at the Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography “Kunstkamera” RAS (St. Petersburg, Russia) are presented.

В результате проведения спасательных работ в зоне строительства Олимпийских объектов
Сочинским отрядом ИА РАН в 2010–2011 гг. был исследован уникальный памятник византийской архитектуры IX–XI вв. – храм у с. Веселое. Антропологический источник представлен многочисленными погребениями кладбища и коллективного захоронения из подземного склепа. В работе представлены результаты комплексного антропологического исследования костных останков из склепа храма.

A comparative odontological research
has been carried out on findings of “classic”
Neanderthal forms, Heidelbergensis forms,
West Asian Neanderthaloids, Mousterians from
Palestina, late Pleistocene hominids from Altai,
upper Paleolithic species. The aim of the research
is to determine whether it is possible to unite classic
Neanderthals, mediterrian mikrodont findings and
West Asian Neanderthaloids into a taxon according
to odontological traits. The research shows, this
taxon can be to some extent associated with the
mentioned forms.

Статья посвящена проблеме происхождения татар и кряшен Среднего Поволжья по данным одонтологии. Представлены новые материалы в основном из северных райо- нов Республики Татарстан: казанские татары Елабужского и Арского районов, сборная выборка кряшен Елабужского, Мамадышского и Чистопольского районов. Все группы характеризуются как местные неграцильные и мозаичные по евразийскому масштабу варианты. Разнообразие и специфику локальных вариантов в Среднем Поволжье авторы анализируют в парадигме синтеза трех одонтологических комплексов — волго-камского, восточного и среднеевропейского. Расширение базы одонтологических данных выявило неоднородность татароязычного населения заволжской части республики. Восточный комплекс, связанный с тюркским влиянием, наиболее ярко проявляется в нижнекамских и приказанских популяциях, среднеевропейский — в северных казанскотатарских, а волго-камский во всех кряшенских, соседних финно-угорских и чувашской популяциях. Финно-угорский субстрат в Волго-Камье был неоднородным: в Приказанье он связан с марийцами, в северных районах — с удмуртами, в Закамье — с группами, вероятно, родственными мордве и чувашам.

The article deals with the origin of the Tatars and Kryashens of the Middle Volga region according to dental anthropology data. New materials mostly from the northern regions of the Republic of Tatarstan: Kazan Tatars of Elabuzhsky and Arskdistricts, total Kryashens series of Elabuzhsky and Mamadishsky, Chistopolsky district are presented. All groups are described as local nongracile and mosaic (Eurasian scale) variants. Authors analyze the diversity and speci city of dental local variants in the Middle Volga region through the paradigm of three dental complexes synthesis — Volga-Kama, Eastern and Middle European one. New odontology data revealed heterogeneity of Tatar-speaking population in Trans-Volga part of the republic. East complex is associated with the Turkic in uence and manifests intensely in lower Kama area and close to Kazan populations, Middle European complex expresses in the northern Kazan Tatars populations and the Volga-Kama dental complex reveals in all Kryashens, neighboring Finno-Ugric and Chuvash populations. Finno- Ugric substrate comprising the Tatars of the Volga-Kama region are heterogeneous: around Kazan it is obviously connected to Mari, in the northern regions — to Udmurts, in Trans-Kama — to the groups that are probably related to Mordovians and Chuvash.

The presented article deals with the problem of ethnogenesis of ancient Eskimos according to the data of physical anthropology. Previously, anthropological studies of the ancient Eskimos physical appearance was based mainly on the human remains from Uelen and Ekven burial grounds. New anthropological data given in the article broaden the notion of the physical type of representatives of the Ancient Bering and Punuk archaeological cultures. In 2006 and 2008 archaeological excavations were carried out at the ancient Eskimo settlement Kivak (Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia). During the digs, unique human remains (two lower jaws) were found. Stratigraphy shows that at Kivak settlement representatives of the Punuk culture successively replaced humans of the Ancient Bering culture. The adult's lower jaw was found in the layer of the dwelling, dated back 1850±40 BP and was referred to the Ancient Bering culture. The lower jaw of the child was found in the layer of the Punuk culture, dated 1120±40 BP. Ancient Eskimo human remains in the dwellings are sporadic, what makes revealed lower jaws particularly valuable for research. In order to determine the anthropologi- cal features of the ancient Eskimos, studies of the morphology of the two lower jaws were car- ried out according to the author's program and their teeth were examined according to the pro- gram of the Russian odontological school of A. Zubov. Morphological and odontological pro- grams included both non-metrical (descriptive) and metric (measurements) traits. The results showed that the lower jaws belong to Homo sapiens. Morphology of the mandible of an adult individual (representative of the Ancient Bering culture) demonstrates a number of archaic characteristics, such as a broad branch with a weakly pronounced articular notch. Dental morphology studies gave the conclusion that the combination of the «Eastern» component with the «Oceanic» one in the morphological complex of the teeth of the child's jaw from Kivak (a rep- resentative of the Punuk culture), along with manifestation of the «Caucasian» and some «Af- rican» traits bring the framework of the studied odontological type to the level of the undifferentiation or protomorphism with a distinct specificity of the «Eastern» odontological trunk. A comparative analysis of the sizes of the Kivak child's permanent teeth has shown an evolutionarily progressive tendency of reduction.

В статье представлено сравнительное морфологическое описание детской нижней челюсти верхнепалеолитического возраста со стоянки Лиственка (Красноярско-Канская лесостепь, юг Средней Сибири). Она была найдена в 1992 г. и впервые опубликована только спустя пять лет без указания условий и точного места обнаружения. Новое обращение к этой находке обусловлено целым рядом причин: усовершенствованием некоторых антропологических программ, пересмотром диагностической роли отдельных одонтологических признаков, применением новых методов и т.д. Немаловажными явились точная привязка находки к уровню культурного слоя 12г и получение трех хорошо согласующихся между собой дат в пределах 13 тыс. л.н. По результатам мультисрезовой компьютерной томографии примерный возраст ребенка, которому принадлежала челюсть, оценивается в 3,5–4,5 лет. Она имеет довольно крупные размеры в сравнении с современными детьми того же возраста, что, впрочем, характерно для всех ископаемых Homo sapiens fossilis. По ком- плексу морфологических и морфометрических характеристик было определено место находки среди других ювенильных форм верхнего палеолита. Для сравнения использовались данные о восьми верхнепалеолитических детских нижних челюстях. Одонтологический вариант находки со стоянки Лиственка характеризуется существенным преобладанием архаичных показателей, сбалансированностью набора европеоидных и восточных/монголоидных элементов, а также рядом эволюционно прогрессивных черт. Сравнительный анализ позволяет предварительно определить такой комплекс как верхнепалеолитический среднесибирский.

This article reports the results of odontoscopical and odonto-metrical analyses of Mesolithic remains from Mayak (burial 3): a mandible with permanent teeth of an individual aged 20-25 years, from a paired burial in the Samara region, near to the village of Sidelkino, brought to light by excavations conducted by archaeologist D.А. Stashenkov. The morphological characteristics of the teeth from Mayak 3 were categorized into archaic and progressive groups in order to define the evolutionary phase of these remains: archaic, interjacent or postarchaic. The ratio of various traits allowed us to describe the odontological variant from Mayak 3 as postarchaic. The samples from Mayak 3 predominantly had Western odontological trunk traits, reflecting characteristics of intraspecific differentiation within the given regions during the Mesolithic. With reference to odonto-metrical indicators, there was a tendency towards a reduction in the mandibular molar mesiodistal diameter in this subject, affecting to a lesser extent vestibulolingual parameters.

Since 2006 the Centre for Egyptological Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences has been working in the Theban tomb of Tjay (TT 23) and neighboring tombs. This paper provides general information on the tomb, its architectural features and decoration. The author gives an overview of history of the tomb's exploration in 19th-20th centuries and a progress report on the current research project.