extended abstracts - Geomorphic Processes and Geoarchaeology

Geomorphic processes and geoarchaeology
DUNINO LANDSCAPE-ARCHEOLOGICAL COMPLEX
Nizovtsev V.A.
Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia,
nizov2118@yandex.ru
Among the cultural landscapes of Russia the historical-landscape complexes
integrating archeological monuments and their natural environment are of particular
importance. Within Central Russia a most significant category of such monuments are
sites of ancient settlements of the Iron Age, having age of 1.5-2.5 thousand years.
The unique well-preserved Porechyevsky complex of archeological monuments of
the Iron Age and the Old Russian time (X-XIII centuries) is located 17 km to the west of
Moscow on the forested bank of the Moskva River, between the Porechye country estate
(nowadays the Porechye sanatorium of the Russian Academy of Science) and the Dunino
village with the memorial estate of M.M. Prishvin. The site of the ancient settlement
Dunino has an impressive well-developed system of fortifications with three walls and
ditches. In its vicinity there are 5 sites of unfortified ancient settlements of the Early Iron
Age and several plots on the valley outwash with the signs of ancient cultivation and
cattle breeding that make them very promising for archeological surveys. Besides three
sites of unfortified ancient settlements of the Old Russian period and three areas with
totally 122 barrows were found.
Landscape features of the «Dunino landscape-archeological complex» stem from
its location within a section of the Moskva River valley on its high right bank and the
adjacent part of the interfluve plain. Therefore in spite of its rather small territory there
are landscape complexes which differ both in their size and properties. Within the small
territory there are practically all principal genetic types of landscape complexes of the
Moscow suburbs: from moraine and lacustrine-fluvioglacial to valley and valley outwash
ones. Many of them are environment-forming, resource-protection and, even,
reference territories.
The western part of the complex (to the 3-rd site of unfortified ancient settlement)
is a system of river terraces adjoining the high valley outwash. To the east of the path
going from the central building of Porechye sanatorium to the river, the landscape
structure changes sharply. The steep bank of the Moskva River is much more complicated
due to landslide processes there. Thus the valley becomes bowl-shaped with landslide
remnants alternating with landslide troughs and gullies. It is in the valley sheltered by the
steep slopes that the most part of archeological monuments of the Early Iron Age is
located, including the site of the ancient settlement Dunino itself. To the east the valley
lenses out at the foothills of the «Witch Mountain». The main bank (high valley outwash)
recedes from the channel of the Moskva River there and the character of landscape
changes sharply again. The unique natural diversity of the Dunino landslide valley had
attracted the settlers during the Early Iron Age because it met the requirements of the
cultural-economic type of the Diakov culture population.
In total more than 150 natural complexes (urotshistshes and sub-urotshistshes) of
24 groups have been identified within the area of the complex and its closest vicinity. The
following predominant urotshistshes form the base of the landscape structure of the
territory. At present the geological structure, water regime and other features of many
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