Yana Rhinoceros Horn Site
| Location | Sakha, Russia |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 70°43′25″N 135°25′47″E / 70.72361°N 135.42972°E |
| Area | 3,500 m2 (38,000 sq ft) |
| History | |
| Founded | Upper Paleolithic, c. 32,000 BP |
The Yana Rhinoceros Horn Site (Yana RHS) is an Upper Palaeolithic archaeological site situated near the lower Yana River in northeastern Siberia, Russia, north of the Arctic Circle in the far west of Beringia. Discovered in 2001 after thawing and erosion exposed animal bones and artifacts, the site features a well-preserved cultural layer due to the cold conditions. It includes hundreds of animal bones, ivory pieces, and artifacts, indicating sustained settlement and a relatively advanced level of technological development. Dating to around 32,000 calibrated years before present (cal BP), the site provides the earliest archaeological evidence for human settlement north of the Arctic Circle. The inhabitants survived extreme conditions and hunted a wide range of fauna, and the site provides perhaps the earliest unambiguous evidence of mammoth hunting by humans.
A 2019 genetic study found that the remains of two young male humans discovered at the site, dating to c. 31.6 ka BP, represent a distinct archaeogenetic lineage, named Ancient North Siberians (ANS).
The Yana RHS site is preceded in Siberia by a few Initial Upper Paleolithic archaeological sites such as Ust-Ishim (with modern human remains, 45,000 years BP), or Kara-Bom (dating to 46,620 +/-1,750 cal years BP), Kara-Tenesh, Kandabaevo, and Podzvonskaya.