In a major breakthrough for climate archaeology, receding permafrost in the Kytalyk region of Arctic Russia has exposed the remarkably preserved remains of 7,000-year-old reindeer-bone sledges. The discovery, made by an international team of researchers, provides the earliest evidence of sophisticated land transportation technology used by Mesolithic hunter-gatherer groups in the far north. The sledges were found with intact lashings made from sinew and birch-bark strips.
Researchers noted that the rapid thaw has created an urgent window for salvage archaeology, as organic materials that have been frozen for millennia are now vulnerable to biological decay. The construction of the sledges suggests a deep understanding of weight distribution and friction, allowing for the transport of heavy loads across the tundra. This find rewrites the timeline for the development of nomadic mobility in the Arctic circle.