Stolniceni II – a new settlement with “ash lenses” discovered in the northern zone of the Republic of Moldova

The article publishes archaeological materials found on the surface of a settlement with the “ash lenses” of the Noua culture discovered during the investigation of the nearby large Cucuteni-Trypillia settlement by the village of Stolniceni in the Edinet District. The finds are represented both by characteristic pottery and by various crafts made of clay, stone, flint and horn, among which there is a fragment of the mold or part of the mace head. Along with the introduction of findings from the Stolniceni II site into scientific use, an attempt is made to illustrate its local and regional context by mapping the settlements of the Noua culture from the territory of Moldova and the subsequent GIS processing of data on their distribution. The use of some algorithms of spatial analysis made it possible to allocate about 20 clusters of sites, each of which includes 5-9 settlements and is located on an area of 25-70 sq. km. It seems that such a distribution of sites marks the presence of clearly delineated territorial entities that served as an arena for cyclical movements of specific cattle-breeding communities, and a consistent change in the grazing area.