The article is devoted to preliminary results of comprehensive research of the Early Paleolithic site of Bairaki, which was discovered in 2010 and investigated in 2011-2012. The work was conducted by a team of specialists from Russia and Republic of Moldova, including archaeologists (IHMC RAS, St. Petersburg; Institute of Cultural Heritage, ASM), geologists and paleogeographers (Institute of Geography and Geology RAS, Moscow). In the site there were found several layers of archaeological and paleontological finds associated with ancient deposits of the high 7th terrace above the flood plain of the Dniester.

According to the stratigraphy, there were two complexes - the early and the late. The first is associated with alluvial deposits, and the second - with the overlying ancient fossil soils. A few finds of the late complex are comparable to the stone artifacts of the "Dubăsari industry", the variety of regional Acheulian (500-700 thousands years old). More numerous finds of the early complex date back to the Late Eopleistocene (0.8-1.2 million years old), corre- sponding to the developed or classic Oldowan of Africa and Eurasia.

List of illustrations:

Fig. 1. A schematic map of the location of sites in the Lower Transnistria in the vicinity of Dubăsari: 1 - Bairaki; 2 - Bolshoy Fontan; 3 - Kretseshty.

Fig. 2. Section and plans of excavations in the Bairaki site. The section of the northeastern wall of the excavation.

Legend: 1 - Holocene layers; 2 - yellowish-brown loess loam; 3 - brown fossil soil; 4 - red-colored fossil soil; 5 - hydromorphic fossil soil; 6 - floodplain alluvium; 7 - oxbow deposits; 8 - deposits of channel alluvium; 9 - conglomerate. Plans of excavations in 2010, 2011 and 2012. The plan of the lower layer (excavation in 2012).

Fig. 3. 1 - General view of the ravine and site of Bairaki from the south; 2 - general view of the excavation from the opposite (western) slope of the gorge.

Fig. 4. Stone products of the late complex: 1 - flint pebble chopper (middle horizon); 2 - core with frost damage (upper horizon); 3 - slightly rounded scraper (upper horizon); 4 - Quina type retouched scraper on a fragment of flint (upper horizon); 5 - jasper pebble chopper (lower horizon).

Fig. 5. Stone products of the late complex: 1 - flint flake (middle horizon); 2 - retouched flint flake (middle horizon); 3 - core-like fragment scraper (middle horizon); 4 - lanceolate worked pebble (lower horizon); 5 - core with scraper working edge (upper horizon).

Fig. 6. Stone products of the early (Oldowan) complex: 1 - Cosăuți sandstone rounded lanceolate worked pebble; 2 - Cosăuți sandstone chopper with alternating treatment of the working edge; 3 - Devonian sandstone chopper with alternating treatment of the working edge; 4 - Cosăuți sandstone chopper with notched working edge.

Fig. 7. Stone products of the early (Oldowan) complex: 1-11 - flint flakes; 12 - a flake of quartz sandstone; 13-16 - nuclei and nucleoid forms (13 - with a scraping edge).

Fig. 8. Stone products of the early (Oldowan) complex: 1-4 - flake scrapers; 5-7 - flake borers; 8 - massive lanceolate proto-biface; 9, 10 - backed knives (9 - partially retouched, 10 - natural); 11, 12 - scrapers (11 - pointed).

Fig. 9. Stone products of the early (Oldowan) complex: 1-5 - beaked burins (3 - combined with scraper); 6 - rounded and heavily crazed flint beaked point; 7 - almost rectangular scraper on a flint blade; 8 - beaked point on a Cosăuți sandstone pebble.