On the peculiarities of marine fisheries of the Eneolithic population of the northwestern part of the White Sea (according to the study of bone remains and stone tools)

The article presents the results of an archaeozoological analysis of osteological collections obtained from two Eneolithic sites located on the western shore of the Kandalaksha Bay. The aim of the study is to obtain data on the strategy of hunting seals in the northwestern part of the White Sea coast in the Eneolithic. The research results demonstrate the high importance of the ringed seal and the Greenland seal in hunting prey among the inhabitants of the studied sites. The vast majority of the stone tools found at the sites are associated with the fishing of marine animals: tips of throwing weapons made of slate and flint; angular slate knives, apparently for skinning; quartzite hammers with grooves (for binding to the handle), most likely for killing young pinnipeds. Seals were the main suppliers of meat, skin and fat for the inhabitants of the Eneolithic sites of the Northern White Sea.