Lomonosov Journal of Antropology. 2026. 3.

Introduction. The formation of a stable hierarchical structure in primate groups leads to a decrease in problematic social aggression. Network analysis of dynamic relationships allows for a deeper understanding of the mechanisms of formation and maintenance of dominance-subordination hierarchies in communities. The aim is to trace the dynamics of affiliation and agonistic networks in a group of unrelated rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) from the moment of unification until reaching reproductive age.

Materials and methods. Longitudinal observations of a community of 9 unrelated macaques were performed using the group scanning method and focal observations of each pair of interacting individuals with the construction of agonistic and affiliation network matrices in three sections: after the unification of macaques at the age of 14-18 months, after six months and after a year and a half of cohabitation. The main network indicators were evaluated and significant changes in social behavior were revealed as individuals grew up.

Results and discussion. Affiliation networks revealed temporal dynamics in the relationship between older and younger individuals, with a significant increase in the second slice and a significant decrease in friendly contacts between them in the third slice. Agonistic networks clearly reflected the hierarchy of dominance and subordination directed from the elders to the younger within the same sex in all three time slices, however, in the second period there was a significant increase in intersex aggression from the two youngest females to males close in age, and in the third period a medium-ranking female-male pair with a significant increase in bilateral aggression between them was revealed.

Conclusion. The dynamics of adolescent relationships revealed instability between the sexes at the level of low- and medium-ranked young individuals, which led to outbreaks of collective aggression and trauma in younger females. The results allow us to assess the impact of the dominance-subordination hierarchy in a community of unrelated monkeys on the health, survival and reproductive success and are of interest for understanding the foundations of human sociality.

Acknowledgements. The authors would like to thank the staff of laboratory for their help in conducting daily observations of macaques.

Funding. The research was carried out at the expense of a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (project № 25-28-02525).

Introduction. The degree of comparability of body composition assessment results using bioimpedance analysis and anthropometry, their combined use, and their interchangeability remain controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationships, level of bias, and consistency of time courses of body composition indices obtained repeatedly using bioimpedance analysis and anthropometry in elite athletes.

Materials and Methods. Study participants included 18 athletes (12 males, 6 females) aged 19–23 years, specializing in fire and rescue sports. The following were used: an ABC-01 Medass body water sector analyzer (Russia); an anthropometer, medical scales, a measuring tape, and a Lange caliper (Cambridge, Maryland). Muscle and fat mass were calculated using the ABC-03612 basic body composition assessment program and the Matiegka scheme (1921). Five repeated measurements were taken at intervals of 35–40 days; absolute and relative muscle and fat mass were estimated. The paired Wilcoxon test, Spearman's rank coefficients, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC2), Bland–Altman analysis for levels and interassay changes, and linear mixed-effects models (LMM) were used.

Results and discussion. In the athlete group, BIA muscle mass values were systematically lower and fat mass values were systematically higher compared to anthropometric results. Differences were significant at all points (p = 0.002 in male, p = 0.028 in female). A strong correlation (0.63–0.93) was found between absolute values; ICC2, which takes into account systematic bias and intermethod variance, was significantly lower (0.05–0.65). Proportional and significant systematic bias was found for most parameters. The methods consistently reflect group time trends; their interchangeability is limited in individual longitudinal monitoring.

Conclusion. The results highlight the need to assess intermethod agreement by taking into account intermethod bias, its robustness, the possible proportional component, and differences between group and individual levels of analysis.

Funding. The study was carried out within the framework of the state assignment of the Federal Scientific Center of Physical Culture No. 777-00021-26 (topic No. 001-25/3).

Introduction. The limited quantity of Phanagorian burial complexes from the Classical period, examined by contemporary scientific methods, stands in stark contrast to the abundant resources from the Hellenistic and Roman periods. This distinction imparts significant importance to the burial complexes of Phanagoria from the 4th century BC, particularly those featuring notable archaeological artefacts and well-preserved anthropological materials.

Materials and methods. Materials from two graves found beneath mound 288 in the Alley of Mounds on the Southern Necropolis of the Asian Bosporus metropolis were the subject of the study. They were analysed using isotopic and paleogenetic (genomic sequencing, principal component analysis, admixture, and f3 statistics) methods.

Results. A radiocarbon date was obtained for one sample, allowing comparison with the archaeological date. The results of paleogenomics studies indicated that women buried under the same mound had a second-degree maternal relationship. For the first time, we identify the presence of descendants of Mediterranean immigrants among the Phanagoria polis's population based on resources from the Northern Black Sea region of the Classical era.

Discussion. According to the results of the aDNA study, we for the first time demonstrated the presence of Greek immigrants (or their descendants) among Phanagoria's population of the Classical period. Moreover, we provided evidence of their admixture with the autochthonous "barbarian" populations.

Funding. This work was supported by a grant from the state program "Sirius" Federal Territory "Scientific and Technological Development of the Sirius; Federal Territory", Agreement № 18-03 dated September 10th, 2024 (G.M.S., M.A.D., R.EV.)

Supplementary files are available here

Introduction. During archaeological excavations at the multilayered settlement Chekups-2 in the Krymsky District of Krasnodar Krai, which spans a broad chronological range from the Bronze Age to the Middle Ages, a storage pit was discovered containing
34 skulls exhibiting trauma and signs of scalping. Archaeological dating of the find proved difficult, as did attribution of the deceased to any archeological culture.

Materials and Methods. The best-preserved skulls from sixteen individuals were selected for analysis. Ancient DNA (aDNA) was extracted from the petrous part of the temporal bones, fragment libraries were prepared, and whole-genome sequencing was performed followed by bioinformatic analysis.

Results. Direct radiocarbon dating established that the burial dates to the Classical/Antiquity period. Genome sequencing showed that all analyzed skulls belonged to male individuals. Analysis of autosomal genetic markers as well as mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome haplogroups revealed no close kinship (1st–3rd degree) among the examined individuals, nor kinship along exclusively paternal or maternal lines. The mitochondrial sequences of the individuals belong to different haplogroups (U1b2d, U1b2d1, U1a1a1b, U5a1b1, T2d2a1a, T2l, W1i2, N1b1b, I1, X4a3a, X4a3, H, H4, H80, H55, HV4b1). Y-chromosome haplogroups were determined for ten samples: seven individuals belong to haplogroup J2a1 and three to haplogroup G2a2.

Conclusion. For the first time, data have been obtained that clarify the historical period of this burial. Uniparental marker results demonstrate continuity between the studied individuals and populations of the Scythian period, opening new prospects for further testing hypotheses about the origin of these people and the historical reasons for their death.

Funding. This work was supported by a grant from the state program "Sirius" Federal Territory "Scientific and Technological Development of the Sirius; Federal Territory", Agreement № 18-03 dated September 10th, 2024 (G.M.S., M.A.D., R.E.V.)

Supplementary files are available here

Introduction. Temporal dynamics of peak height velocity and sexual height dimorphism are under discussion.

Materials and methods. The study embraces data of growth studies from million-plus cities of Russia – Novosibirsk, Samara (Kuybishev), St. Petersburg (Leningrad) through the historical interval 1950s–2010s. The number of each age/sex group is not less than 100 persons. To fix the age (in years) and intensity (in cm) of peak height velocity the patterns of height year increments were smoothed using least square method. To estimate the value of sexual height dimorphism Kullback divergence was used. Correlations of somatic parameters under discussion with the year of study were calculated using additional data of growth studies from the block of industrial cities of Russia and former USSR (literary data).

Results. The age at peak height velocity through half century interval as compared to the samples of 1950s–1960s decrease: Novosibirsk boys 14,25–13,88, girls 12,70–11,74 years; Samara boys 14,45–11,79, girls 12,64–11,61 years. The intensity of peak height velocity has the opposite tendency to increase: Novosibirsk boys 5,75–7,00 cm, girls 5,55–6,3/6,05 cm; St-Petersburg boys 5,94–6,85 cm, girls 6,04–6,5 cm. The least values of sexual height dimorphism in Novosibirsk and St Petersburg belong to the samples of 1950s–1960s, the highest – to the samples of «manifest» accelerators of 1970s in all regions under discussion. The year of study reveals high positive correlations with the height of 17-year-old boys (0,74), height of 17-year-old girls (0,61) and standardized sexual height dimorphism (0,64). No associations of age and intensity of peak height velocity with the years of study were fixed.

Conclusion. The most delayed and less intensive peak height velocity of samples, examined in 1950s-1960s, may be connected with the long-term consequences of Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945 years. High positive correlations of height of 17-year-old boys and girls and sexual height dimorphism with the year of study reflect the continuity of the phenomenon of the secular increase of height, having suprapopulation character. The absence of correlations of the age and intensity of peak height velocity with the year of study witness to the great «tactical» local variability in the mechanisms of adaptation of population. Peak height velocity and sexual height dimorphism are significant indicators of secular trends in population monitoring through the ascending period of ontogenesis.

Acknowledgements. The study was conducted under the state assignment of Lomonosov Moscow State University

Introduction. Child overweight demonstrates a catastrophic spread across all economically developed countries of the world, despite global efforts for its prevention. The aim of this research paper was to analyze predictors of overweight, the consequences of its development, and approaches to its prevention in children.

Materials and Methods. To analyze the current state of knowledge on excess weight in children aged 3-12 years, materials from 168 literature sources from the PubMed database were used. The inclusion criteria for a source were representative samples and the availability of quantitative data for children in the age range from 3 to 12 years, characterizing one or another aspect of the problem of excess weight. The information search was conducted in the following areas: "preschool and primary school children", "overweight and/or obesity", "diet", "screen time", "sedentary lifestyle", "sleep quality", "physical (muscular) performance", "physical fitness", "physical (motor) activity", "environmental influence".

Results and Discussion. Message 3 systematizes information on the role of screen time, sleep disturbances, the child's environment (including food landscapes), the family's socio-economic status, as well as the relationship between the physical activity domain and overweight (OW)—encompassing sports participation, changes in physical fitness, and the use of physical activity in OW prevention. Based on an analysis of the key factors leading to the development of OW, directions for preventive work with children are proposed, aimed at preventing overweight and metabolic syndrome.

Conclusion. The analysis of publications on the problem of overweight in children and the significant factors causing metabolic disorders allows for the identification of directions for preventive work that consider the current state of research. This comprehensive work must be conducted simultaneously in several directions and at different levels: individual, family, school, and at the level of society and the state.

Acknowledgments. The research was carried out within the framework of State Task No. 073-00070-25-03 of Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution "Institute of Child Development, Health and Adaptation" of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation.

Funding. The research was funded under State Task No. 073-00070-25-03 of Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution "Institute of Child Development, Health and Adaptation" of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation.

Introduction. This article examines the terminology and theoretical-methodological foundations of archaeoparasitology.

Materials and methods. The study is based on an analysis of Russian and international scholarship in paleoparasitology, archaeoparasitology, paleopathology, pathoecology, and anthropology. It includes a critical assessment of the key concepts and theoretical-methodological foundations of archaeoparasitology.

Results. The study demonstrates that the term paleoparasitology is most appropriately applied to the study of parasites from paleontological contexts and to the biological and evolutionary aspects of the parasite-host system, whereas archaeoparasitology is more suitable for research on parasites recovered from archaeological material associated with humans and human activity. It is further argued that archaeoparasitology occupies an interdisciplinary position at the intersection of archaeology, parasitology, bioarchaeology, and paleopathology, while also possessing its own specific objects of study, diagnostic logic, and reconstructive framework.

Conclusion. Archaeoparasitology should be regarded as an independent interdisciplinary field aimed at reconstructing parasitic diseases, ways of life, and the economic and cultural environment of ancient populations. Its most productive theoretical foundation is proposed to be the combination of the pathoecological approach with the concept of anthropogeocenosis.

Funding. The work was carried out within the framework of the state assignment «Study of human paleopopulations in the context of the analysis of natural and anthropogenic ecosystems of Western Siberia and adjacent territories (ZWRZ-2026-0029) № 126022618022-2».

Introduction. The subject of this study is the mortality rate and causes of female students in closed girls’ boarding schools in the capital cities of the Russian Empire in the first half of the 19th century. This topic has not previously been the subject of specialized historiography.

Materials and methods. The primary source for this study was data from parish registers, introduced into scientific circulation for the first time for this purpose.

Results and discussion. The registers recorded deaths of female students at the girls’ boarding schools. At the beginning of the 19th century, causes of death were not specified, and only later, beginning in the 1810s, did the priest record the illness that caused death. In very rare cases, the registers included references to diagnoses made by the institute physician. The chosen chronological period is explained by the fact that only beginning in the 1860s were female students permitted to leave their schools for vacations, and later for holidays and even weekends, meaning that the registration of deaths in the registers of the institute churches became increasingly incomplete. The processed data is analyzed using the principles of historicism and objectivity.

Conclusion. Infant mortality in the Russian Empire remained consistently high. Even as early as the 1760s, when the first of the institutes, Smolny, was established, everyday life was based on the strictest rules of sanitation and hygiene, constant medical supervision, and the organization of proper quarantines in the event of epidemics. Records from the registers of births allow for relatively accurate calculations of the number of deaths among female students at the institutes and an analysis of quantitative data on the diseases that led to death, given the inaccuracy of diagnostics in the first half of the 19th century. The most common cause of death among adolescents at closed girls’ boarding schools was tuberculosis. It is noteworthy that, overall, the number of deaths due to epidemics at this colleges was insignificant.

Acknowledgements. The study was conducted under the state assignment of Lomonosov Moscow State University.

Introduction. The publication aims to introduce new craniological materials into scientific circulation and to conduct their comparative analysis with previously published series in order to determine the place of the studied samples within the system of craniological variability of the population of the Alanian culture of the North Caucasus.

Materials and methods. The study is based on paleoanthropological collections from the cemeteries of Kari Tsagat (9th–12th centuries CE, North Ossetia–Alania) and Sultan‑Gora‑4 (3rd–5th centuries CE, Stavropol Krai). The anthropological material from the Kari Tsagat cemetery comprises 44 skulls: 21 male, 16 female, and 7 of undetermined sex. The material from the Sultan‑Gora‑4 cemetery includes 5 skulls: 3 male and 2 female. For intergroup comparison, the method of canonical discriminant analysis was applied, implemented using the MultiCan software package. Statistical processing of craniological data was performed in Statistica 10. Published data on ten Alanian series were used as comparative material.

Results and discussion. Craniometric analysis of male and female skulls from the Kari Tsagat cemetery revealed predominantly medium-sized neurocranial and facial parts, accompanied by high individual variability (ranging from small to very large values). Male skulls are mesocranial, while female skulls are dolichocranial. The series of male skulls from the Sultan‑Gora‑4 cemetery is also characterised by average parameters, mesocrania, a medium-wide face, and narrow and low orbits. Intergroup canonical discriminant analysis (accounting for 63 % of intergroup variability) showed that the main differentiation of the studied Alanian groups (11 collections; the Sultan‑Gora‑4 series was not included in the analysis due to its small size) is driven by features of the facial part – including orbital width and height, facial height, and nasal height – in combination with the proportions of the neurocranial box.

The Kari Tsagat sample occupies a central position in the space of the first two canonical variables.

Conclusion. The early medieval population of the Central Caucasus was characterised by a mosaic anthropological structure formed in a zone of active migrations and admixture processes. It is suggested that the series from the Kari Tsagat cemetery, which demonstrates high individual variability and morphological similarity with Western Alanian groups, reflects the multicomponent formation of Alanian populations. We do not rule out the possibility that, using the Sultan‑Gora‑4 series as an example, we can assume the preservation of anthropological identity in the mountain‑foothill zone, despite cultural integration into the Alanian area, this group retained its own morphological characteristics.

Acknowledgements: The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Research Institute and the Museum of Anthropology of Lomonosov Moscow State University for providing access to anthropological material.

Funding: The study was supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation (project No. 25‑18‑00322).

Introduction. The purpose of the article is to determine the character of variability of the phenofund of the population of Staraya Russa during the 14^th–16^th centuries. Fr om a paleoanthropological point of view, Staraya Russa remained almost unexplored until recently. The question of the genesis of the medieval city's population is very important. This paper publishes the first dental anthropological data on the urban population of Staraya Russa and an attempt has been made to generalize all currently available paleoanthropological samples.

Materials and methods. The sample consists of 135 individuals, formed fr om 3 groups representing the nearby cemeteries of Staraya Russa. The first group belongs to St. George’s Church and dates back to the second half of the 14^th century (42 individuals). The second group belongs to the Saint Mina Church, dating from the 16^th–17^th centuries (71 individuals). The third group belongs to the St. Nicholas Church (22 individuals), it is synchronous with the St. Mina Church. The Novgorod State University (by E.V. Toropova) carried out archaeological excavations of the necropolis in 2006-2009. The research program is based on the methodological developments of A.A. Zoubov.

Results. The population of Staraya Russa has the traits of the northern gracile complex (type) of the western dental trunk. When comparing the samples, the stability of the morphological traits of the population of Staraya Russa during the 14^th–16^th centuries is observed. This happened according to a local and chronological criterion (the sum of groups of the 16^th–17^th centuries). There were no statistically significant discrepancies between the frequencies (except for the case, which was explained by a small number of observations). We do not observe such homology, for example, in Pskov, wh ere several different morphological variants are represented. In an comparison, the morphological traits of the population of Staraya Russa are similar to the total sample of Krivichi (by R.U. Gravere). Possible participation of the Baltic-Finnish populations in the formation of the morphological complex of Staraya Russa.

Discussion. The main conclusion is the phenotypic continuity of the population of Staraya Russa at different historical periods. This suggests that the process of joining Staraya Russa to Moscovy did not have an impact on the phenofund, which was most likely formed on the basis of Krivichi (with the inclusion of the Baltic-Finnish component). Similar population processes occurred in some other non-urban settlements of the North-West of Russia, wh ere a similar dental anthropological complex was found to a large extent.

Acknowledgements. Before writing the article, the author made a report «Nonmetric dental of the population of Staraya Russa in the second half of the XIV–XVII centuries» at the XL scientific conference «Novgorod and the Novgorod land. History and Archeology» (29.01.2026). The author expresses his gratitude to the organizers of the conference for the opportunity to speak and discuss the results. The author thanks the Novgorod State University team of archaeologists, in particular E.V. Toropova (the head of the archaeological excavations in Staraya Russa) for the opportunity to work with the collection and the staff of the Institute and Museum of Anthropology (Moscow State University) for providing access to the collections. The author thanks N.A. Leibova for providing unpublished data and advice during the writing of the article and O.M. Leibova for assistance in data visualization.

Introduction. This article examines a trepanation hole identified during the study of a collection of skulls of Early Nomads from the Southern Urals housed in the craniological repository of the Research Institute and Museum of Anthropology, Lomonosov Moscow State University. The skull comes from kurgan 20 of the Novyi Kumak burial ground located in the Orenburg Region. The burial dates to the 4th century BC and belongs to the Early Sarmatian period. The aim of this study is to introduce into scholarly circulation a new case of trepanation and to determine the circumstances and possible reasons for the intervention recorded on the skull of an Early Nomad.

Materials and methods. The article considers the archaeological context in which the trepanned skull was discovered at the Novyi Kumak burial ground. Sex and age were assessed on the basis of the morphological features of the skull. A description of the skull and the dentition is provided. The trepanation was described according to the method proposed by M.B. Mednikova. Differential diagnosis was based on macroscopic examination and photographic documentation.

Results and discussion. It was established that an antemortem trauma was present on the skull of a male over 55 years of age, and that a perimortem or postmortem trepanation was later performed at the site of this trauma. In the search for possible reasons for such interventions, various interpretations of trepanations recorded on the skulls of ancient populations of the Early Iron Age in Central and Middle Asia, as well as Southern and Western Siberia, were considered.

Conclusion. The burial from the Novyi Kumak burial ground may be characterized as that of representatives of the nomadic elite. The trepanation in this case appears to have been associated with postmortem manipulations carried out during the preparation of the body for burial. This practice may reflect the influence of traditions that reached the Southern Ural steppes from the east, which is also supported by archaeological data.

Acknowledgements. The authors would like to express their gratitude to the director of the Research Institute and the Museum of Anthropology of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences Dr. A.P. Buzhilova for the opportunity to study a series of skulls of early nomads of the Southern Urals, as well as to the fellows of the Research Institute and the Museum of Anthropology of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Ph.D. N.Ya. Berezina and Ph.D. D.V. Pezhemsky for their valuable advice and recommendations.

Research was carried out under partial support of the MSU Shared Research Equipment Center «Technologies for obtaining new nanostructured materials and their complex study», National Project «Science» and the MSU Program of Development.

Funding. The study was funded by the Russian Science Foundation Grant No. 25-28-20201, Professional specialization in the Early Iron Age nomadic societies of the Southern Urals during the 7th-3rd centuries BC, https://rscf.ru/project/25-28-20201/

Introduction. Extensive damage to skeletal remains recovered from burial grounds in southern Russia necessitates a move away from classical craniometric approaches and toward new methods for the study of craniological series. The way to examine poorly preserved samples at the intergroup level is the system of cranial nonmetric traits. An important aspect of work with this system is the possibility of assessing the taxonomic significance and frequencies of particular traits characteristic of the study area. Therefore, in order to obtain reference frequencies for this territory, mean values were calculated for the Early Iron Age populations of the Kuban region and the Northeastern Black Sea region.

Materials and methods. To achieve this aim, cranial nonmetric traits were recorded on skulls originating from a number of burial sites in Krasnodar region. These included the burial ground of Starokorsunskoye settlement No. 2 (99 crania), dated to the 6th century BC–3rd century AD; the burial ground of the Volna-1 settlement (73 crania), dated to the 6th–2nd centuries BC; the burial ground of the Spornoe settlement (47 crania), dated to the 4th century BC–3rd century AD; and the Prikubansky burial ground, dated to the 4th–early 3rd centuries BC, from which 22 crania have been studied to date. The present study includes only those traits developed by the Moscow school of craniofenetics.

Results and discussion. A number of cranial nonmetric traits observed in crania from the Early Iron Age population of Krasnodar region not only exceed the maximum frequencies calculated by A.A. Movsesyan for samples from Southern Europe and the Caucasus, but often have no counterparts at the global level. A distinctive feature of the studied series is the high frequency of frontal foramina and parietal foramina, wormian (sutural) bones in the lambdoid and coronal sutures and in the area of the mastoid fontanelle, as well as the palatine torus and a number of other traits.

Conclusion. The present study makes it possible to assess the frequencies of cranial nonmetric traits in series originating not only from Krasnodar region, but also from other areas that fell within the sphere of influence of the Meotian archaeological community, as well as from cultures that interacted with the Meotians during the Early Iron Age.

Funding. The paper was prepared as a part of the Russian Science Foundation project No. 22-18-00108 "The North Caucasus in the Late Bronze and Early Iron ages: people, horses, metal".

Introduction. Until recently, a series of skulls from the Zemlyanoye Gorodishche of Staraya Ladoga was the only sample characterizing the population of this medieval city. This work is devoted to the study of a new Ladoga craniological series from a medieval burial ground on the Zaklyuka River discovered in 2022.

Materials and methods. The research material consisted of 21 skulls (9 male and 12 female) from the necropolis, most of which were subject to restoration (the sample included only three complete skulls). The series was examined using the craniometric method adopted in Russian paleoanthropology as revised by G.F. Debets and V.P. Alekseev. The analysis included a comparison of the series with another Staraya Ladoga group from the Zemlyanoe Gorodishche using Student's paired t-test for individual traits and principal component analysis. Furthermore, the studied sample was considered against a broad comparative background of medieval groups from the Russian Northwest using canonical discriminant analysis.

Results and discussion. The male sample is characterized by average dimensions and proportions of the neurocranium and facial skeleton, a broad forehead, pronounced horizontal facial profiling, and relatively broad nasal area. Morphologically, it is close to the appearance of a wide range of Slavic groups. The female series from the cemetery, while having similar facial dimensions and proportions, differs from the male group by displaying dolichocephalic and a high cranial vault. The series from the cemetery on the Zalyuklya River differs from the earlier group from the Zemlyanoe Gorodishche in traits that distinguish between «German» and «Slavic» morphological complexes (according to T.I. Alekseeva). In comparison with medieval groups of the Russian Northwest, the studied series shows affinities with the Ancient Russian inhabitants of Pskov, the average samples from the Upper Volga region, and the population of Ancient Russian pogosts associated with Slavic groups.

Conclusion. The conducted study has made it possible to connect the inhabitants of medieval Ladoga with Slavic groups of the Northwest and the Upper Volga region, as well as to integrate this one into the general paleoanthropological framework of the populations associated with the spread of Ancient Russian culture.

Acknowledgements. The author expresses profound gratitude to the excavation director, M.S. Pavlova, for the opportunity to work with the skeletal remains from Staraya Ladoga, for consultations on the archaeological context, and for her valuable comments on the text of this work, as well as to A.I. Ivanova for the high-quality laboratory processing and preservation of the material.

Funding. This work was carried out within the framework of the state assignment for the Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography (Kunstkamera), Russian Academy of Sciences, titled «Centers of Ethno- and Cultural Genesis and Contact Zones in Eurasia and America during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene (based on data from physical anthropology, archaeology, and ethnology)».

Introduction. Naturalistic funerary portraits in the form of sculpted images of the deceased (plaster masks) appeared in the Egyptian mortuary cult during the Roman period of Ancient Egypt testifying to the synthesis of religious and cultural traditions in the multiethnic Roman society. The aim of this study was a preliminary anthropological assessment of the figurative material – polychrome plaster funerary masks.

Materials and methods. Materials were collected from digitized museum collections, as well as using a catalog (Müller, 2021b). A total of 206 male masks were examined, with the sample being analyzed across three gradations of "portrait" and "age." The study utilized an anthroposcopic method, using the actual color of the paint or inlay to describe pigmentation. Univariate statistics and univariate analysis of variance (F-test) were used for data analysis; the significance of differences in feature occurrence was assessed (chi-square).

Results and discussion. Of the numerous plaster masks, only a small fraction could represent a portrait of a specific individual. Most masks are typical, but polymorphic in their depiction of facial morphology. A smile is depicted on masks as an element of idealization (42%). The number of anthropologically descriptive features in the three "portrait" groups differed significantly, with the highest level of facial detail in the masks being found in the mature sample. A comparison of the mean scores for the development of descriptive features and their frequencies revealed significant differences for several features: prominence of the cheekbones (for both "portrait" and age groups), width of the eye slit and eye color (for "portrait" groups only), and nature of the hair (for age groups only). Hair color on masks is shown only in brown (29,5%) and black (70,5%), while light and mixed eye pigmentation (12,7%) is most often depicted through inlay. The frequency of straight hair and "light" eyes changes with increasing portraiture of the masks and the age of the depicted character.

Conclusion. The male sample of plaster masks demonstrates within-group variability and a generally similar pattern of variation in most descriptive facial features, regardless of the mask's degree of portraiture. Further anthropological research on plaster masks requires sample adjustments and an increase in the number of masks with the most portrait-like features.

Acknowledgements. The study was conducted under the state assignment of Lomonosov Moscow State University

Introduction. This article examines archaeoacoustic evidence as a source for the anthropological interpretation of ritual space in ancient societies. It explores how the acoustic properties of caves, megalithic structures, hypogea, and other sites may have contributed to the sacralization of space, the organization of ritual action, and the formation of collective experience.

Materials and methods. The study is based on published works in archaeoacoustics, the anthropology of ritual, psychoacoustics, and sensory archaeology dealing with ancient ritual spaces characterized by echo, reverberation, and resonance. Methodologically, the article is a comparative analytical review. The analysis considers the acoustic characteristics of the sites, their archaeological and spatial context, and their potential for anthropological interpretation.

Results and discussion. A review of published studies shows that in Palaeolithic caves, megaliths, hypogea, and some open sacred landscapes, acoustic properties often coincide with zones of ritual activity, imagery, inner chambers, and areas of collective presence. This suggests that sound was significant not as a random background effect, but as part of a sensorially and spatially organized ritual experience. The acoustic environment may have reinforced the distinctiveness of ritual space and shaped perception, bodily involvement, and collective action. More cautiously, ritual sound practices may also have contributed to cultural cohesion through recurring forms of shared experience. At the same time, archaeoacoustic evidence does not justify direct inferences about ethnogenesis or the content of religious beliefs outside a broader context.

Conclusion. Archaeoacoustics expands the anthropological understanding of ritual space by allowing its sonic organization to be considered alongside visual and architectural features. It helps analyze how the acoustic environment was incorporated into sacred experience, the spatial organization of ritual, and collective action. In this sense, archaeoacoustics forms an important element of a broader anthropological reconstruction of ancient rituals.

Acknowledgements. The study was conducted under the state assignment of Lomonosov Moscow State University.

On August 11, 2026, the Research Institute and Museum of Anthropology celebrated the anniversary of Elena Zinovievna Godina, Chief Researcher, Professor, and Doctor of Biological Sciences.

Elena Zinovievna is known for her scientific achievements not only in our country but also abroad. E. Z. Godina’s main scientific interests are focused on the study of human growth processes. Thanks to her many years of effort, the Laboratory of Auxology was established at the Institute of Anthropology in 2009 – the only such laboratory in our country. Based on extensive materials obtained during anthropological surveys (over 20 expeditions), E.Z. Godina and her students, along with their colleagues, studied the characteristics of the somatic development of children and adolescents in various regions of Russia and identified the main trends in the variability of morphofunctional indicators and secular shifts. Over the past 10 years, under the leadership of E.Z. Godina, innovative research in sports anthropology and genetics has been successfully carried out. She has published over 380 scientific works in leading domestic and foreign publications. E.Z. Godina is the author and co‑author of a numerous textbooks for students. Under her supervision, 11 PhD dissertations were successfully defended.

E.Z. Godina has led and participated in many research projects, including international ones. She participated in the scientific program of the Institute of Humanity at Moscow State University, marking the 300th anniversary of M. V. Lomonosov; she organized and led an expedition to conduct a comprehensive anthropological study of the population of the Arkhangelsk Region; she is a participant in the “Depository” and “Leading Scientific Schools of Moscow State University” programs, and a co‑author of the project “Development of Methodology for Population‑Based Screening of Physical Development, Health Status, and Nutrition of the Russian Population Using Big Data Analytics.”

For nearly seven decades, Elena Zinovievna’s life has been closely tied to Moscow University. In 1963, she graduated from the Faculty of Biology and Soil Science at Moscow State University, majoring in anthropology. In 1980, she successfully defended her PhD dissertation entitled “Morphological Features and Some Patterns of Growth Processes in Children and Adolescents in the High‑Altitude Regions of Kyrgyzstan,” and later her doctoral dissertation on the topic “Dynamics of Human Growth and Development: Spatial and Temporal Aspects” (2001). In 2003, she received the title of senior researcher at the Moscow State University Research Institute and Museum of Anthropology, and then the title of professor (2005). E.Z. Godina is an Honorary worker of higher professional education of the Russian Federation, Honorary Doctor of the Mongolian National Institute of Physical Culture, member of the Academic Council of the Moscow State University Research Institute and Museum of Anthropology, member of the Dissertation Council of Moscow State University.031.1 in the specialty 3.3.1 "Anatomy and Anthropology (biological sciences)", Deputy editor-in-chief of the journal "Lomonosov Journal of Anthropology”, member of the editorial board of a number of domestic and foreign periodicals.

Since the early 1980s, E.Z. Godina has successfully taught specialized courses not only at the Department of Anthropology of the Faculty of Biology, but also in other departments of Moscow State University. She taught courses in anthropology at the Faculty of Fundamental Medicine, the Faculty of Psychology, and the Faculty of Regional Studies for students of the Russian‑American College “MSU – University of Denver” in English, including “Human Auxology” and “Age and Population Anthropology” (in English), as well as at the MSU‑PPI University in Shenzhen.

E.Z. Godina has awards and certificates from the Ministry of Education and Moscow University such as Distinguished Researcher at Moscow State University (2009), Honorary Worker of Higher Professional Education of the Russian Federation. She awarded the Friendship Medal of the Republic of Mongolia and the Pyotr Lesgaft Medal by the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation as well. For her active scientific, pedagogical and public activities, and in connection with her anniversary, the rector of Moscow University expressed gratitude to Elena Zinovievna Godina, wishing her good health and new large‑scale projects.

Anthropologists at Moscow University congratulate Elena Zinovievna on her anniversary! Dear Elena Zinovievna! You are an example of how the wisdom of a scientist and the charm of a beautiful woman can be harmoniously combined. Your lectures and presentations are memorable for their depth and originality, and your demeanor is marked by grace and dignity. You know how to be demanding in your approach to science and gentle with people. We sincerely wish you that the sparkle in your eyes never fades, that spring reigns in your soul, and that your health remains strong.