This sparseness is partly practical: northeastern Siberia is an extremely difficult environment for archaeological research.

Access is challenging.

The permafrost that preserves organic material also makes excavation difficult.

The sites that do exist are often in remote locations accessible only seasonally.

Funding for major archaeological projects in the region is limited.

But the sparseness also reflects the nature of what was preserved.

Not every site preserves human remains.

The Yana site is exceptional in yielding human material at all — and what it yielded was two small teeth, not a rich burial assemblage.