The Provenance of Raw Materials of the Second Complex (2018) of Stone Casting Moulds from the Archaeological Monument of Tokivske-1 (Ukraine)

the archaeological monument Tokivske-1 in Ukraine. Metalworking of the Late Bronze Age in the
Northern Black Sea region is known for its utilisation of stone moulds made from meta-ultrabasites
(“talc schists”) by representatives of the Sabatynivka culture. Field investigations in the vicinity of
Tokivske indicated the probable place of stone mining, from where a considerable part of the casting
moulds under study were made. The discovery of the place of stone mining near Tokivske-1 and finds
of similar moulds in other regions give grounds for considering the monument to be not only a centre
of metalworking but also stone-processing. The obtained data are also the first geologically proved
evidence that the Kryvyi Rih area, which was previously considered the main supplier of “talc schists”,
was not the only place of mining of raw materials for the manufacturing of casting moulds in the
Middle Dnipro area. Both complexes, the second and the previous one, found in 2017, contain matrices
made of identical raw materials, namely, the samples made are untypical for the Middle Dnipro area
species. This fact indicates the synchronicity of both complexes and a significant volume of casting
production in Tokivske-1.