An Ice Age Blueprint
On the frozen plains of modern Russia, Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherers engineered remarkable structures from the remains of woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius). At the Kostenki 11 archaeological site, a circular dwelling dating to about 25,000 years ago shows this Ice Age architecture. This particular structure is one of the largest and oldest of its kind, with a diameter of about 12.5 meters (41 feet). Its foundation is a continuous ring of bones from at least 60 mammoths. The builders used 64 mammoth skulls and 51 mandibles to form the base, a level of effort that suggests an important purpose.
The people who built these structures belonged to the Gravettian culture, which flourished across Europe between 33,000 and 22,000 years ago. In the wood-scarce environment of the last glacial period, mammoth bone was a primary building material. The builders arranged the heavy skulls and jaws to create a sturdy, low wall. Interlocking tusks likely formed a domed roof, which would then have been covered with animal hides to create a shelter against the severe climate. The discovery of these dwellings confirms that people could survive, and even settle, in these harsh northern latitudes.
Life by the Mammoth Hearth
Inside the bone circles, archaeologists have found evidence of human activity. The inhabitants left behind hundreds of tiny flint chips, the debris from knapping stone nodules into sharp tools for butchering animals and scraping hides. Hearths containing charred wood and bone show that the occupants burned both materials for fuel. The presence of wood charcoal, with its narrow tree rings, indicates that some trees struggled to survive in the cold, arid landscape, making bone a necessary fuel source.
The sites were shelters. Pits dug near the structures contained large mammoth bones and may have been used for food storage. Analysis of the soil has revealed the remains of soft, non-woody plants and charred seeds, suggesting the residents foraged for edible roots and tubers, possibly similar to modern carrots or parsnips. In addition to mammoth remains, archaeologists have found bones from reindeer, horse, bear, wolf, and fox. These discoveries show a resourceful community adapting to a challenging environment. The entire Kostenki-Borshchevo area contains more than 20 distinct Paleolithic sites, showing a long history of human occupation in the region.