Abstract
<jats:p>Historically, unlike figurative art objects, small artifacts made of bone and mammoth tusk, including beads, have received little attention from researchers of Upper Paleolithic sites. To date, there is no comprehensive catalog of mammoth tusk beads nor unified criteria for their description. The abundance and in situ preservation of the beads, buttons, tubular beads, and other ornaments allow for a detailed study of not only individual elements, but also composite decorations. This enables researchers to identify the sequence in which beads of various shapes and sizes were used, reconstruct the appearance of garments, and discern patterns of stylistic and cultural features specific to the Upper Paleolithic. This research involved a comprehensive effort to systematize and study mammoth ivory ornaments from the Upper Paleolithic period of the central Russian Plain. Published materials and museum collections from 18 archaeological sites located in the Vladimir, Voronezh, Kursk, Lipetsk, Bryansk, and Chernihiv regions were processed. As a result of this work, 19,081 mammoth ivory ornaments, both complete and fragmented, were documented. The compiled database allows us to proceed on to the main objective: the creation of a corpus of composite ornament elements made from mammoth tusk, varying in shape and size, from Upper Paleolithic sites in the central Russian Plain. The results of the work serve as a foundation for further, more in-depth study of this category of archaeological sources and pave the way for prospective typological, technological and traceological studies. An overview of the collected materials is presented in this article.</jats:p>