Shorin A.F.

Key words: Koksharovsky Kholm, Neolithic cult complex, sanctuary, indigenous peoples of the Urals.
The article considers the parallels between the Neolithic cult complex at Koksharovsky Kholm in the Middle Trans-Urals and the 19th- and 20th-century sanctuaries of the indigenous peoples of the Urals. The parallels are traced on the basis of the main structural components of cult complexes which can be identified at archaeological sites: topography, markers of sacred space and the cult attributes that were used in rituals. The parallels may be connected with the fundamental similarities in worldview which are shared by many archaic and traditional societies, especially in relation to mythology. The similarities are revealed in cult practices, especially in the societies which were based on a hunter-gatherer economy. However, it is possible to interpret these parallels as a manifestation of continuity between the cult traditions of the Neolithic population which left the site of Koksharovsky Kholm, and those of the contemporary peoples of the Urals.