In
1970 the searching works began at the huge mammoth's cemetery near the stream Berelekh in
Yakutia. The expedition was headed by known palaeontologier professor N. Vereschagin from
the Leningrad Zoological Institute. Scientists for a long time received the messages about
the powerful layer of bones in the valley of Berelekh, and arrived to the place for the
first time they were amazed with its sizes. Accumulations of bones were extended on 180
meters along a coastal steep bank. The thickness of the bones layer reached 2 meters. Scientists
began to work. However it was not simply to collect the bones.
The ground in polar tundra freezes on some meters, and for short summer thaws only
on some centimeters. It is difficult to separate bones from the frozen ground, even they
lay on the surface. And the large part of fossil remains, mixing up with sticky silt and
water, has turned for long years to an ice impenetrable mass. The digging out of bones by
a shovel or breakage became too hard. The scientists were ready for work in such
conditions and have brought the pump themselves , approximately such as firemen use. The
powerful jet of water washed away ice and ground, cleaning the bones. But even with such
equipment the work went slowly, it was possible to wash out only a few ten centimeters of
ground per day. But the rezults were obtained stunning. 8,5 thousands of bones from 140
mammoths were cleared and prepared to transportation after some weeks of work, the tests
of grounds and vegetation for laboratory analyses were taken. But mainly in 200 meters
from mines of bones stone tools of ancient hunters were found.
Already in Leningrad it was turned out after the studying of expedition materials
that this mammoths cemetery formed in the end of the last Glacial Epoch, about 12 thousand
years ago. In this place bodies and bones of animals were brought by movement of the
ancient stream Berelekh . For years they were accumulated here, and gradually covered by
layers of silt and froze in the ground.
Further it was understood the palaeolithic stand located near the cemetery. Ancient
inhabitants of these places came to the stream bank for searching more fresh meat, they
fished out the lost mammoths and killed wounded ones. At the place of the stand the
numerous stone tools and ornaments from jade were found, and professor Vereschagin
detected in the bones layer the tip of spear from splitted mammoth tusk.
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