The eastern part of the Taman Peninsula at its northern coast is known to host a uniquely rich large mammal site of Sinaya Balka with remains of many dozens of southern elephants and giant rhinos elasmotheres unearthed. This site is exposed in a displaced sedimentary block lacking a geological context. Studied by generations of researchers for over a century the site is still enigmatic in its origin, structural, and stratigraphic position. Recent field study (2017-2018) produced new data on geology and paleontology of this important area of Quaternary deposits. According to our model, the sedimentary sequence observed in the coastal cliff is a series of discontinuous blocks separated by faults frequently camouflaged by mud volcano clays. The blocks show differing facies structure. The sequence can be divided into three units. Two upper units overlie the lower unit 1 with angular unconformity. Units 2 and 3 shows a stratigraphic gap at their boundary. The strata of unit 1 in the NW block dip towards NW contrary to the SE block that dip into the opposite direction. The dip angle is increasing to the SE. The upper formations are nearly horizontal.

New paleomagnetic data showed that unit 1 with predominant reversed polarity and an interval of normal polarity can be correlated to Matuyama Chron immediately before the Olduvai Subchron. Records of small mammals (Allophaiomys deucalion, Lagurodon arankae, Mimomys cf. pliocaenicus, Pitymimomys pitymyoides, Ellobius kujalnikensis), molluscs (Teodoxus sp., Fagotia esperi, F. acicularis, Parafossarulus sp. (opercula), Bithynia sp. (opercula), Lithoglyphus sp., Viviparus sp., Limax sp., Dreissena polymorpha, Margaritifera arca, Bogatschevia ex gr. sturi, and a very important find of Apsheronia cf. propinqua) and palynology enable the correlation of this section with the late Gelasian – early Calabrian (1.8–2.1 Ma).

The base of the second unit shows normal polarity (?Jaramillo) capped by reversely magnetised sediments. The biostratigraphic content of this unit with large and small mammals (Allophaiomys ex gr. pliocenicus), freshwater molluscs, and palynology indicates a middle-late Calabrian (0.78–1.4 Ma) time interval. The dislocated Sinya Balka locality of large mammals we correlate to unit 2. The age of the unit 3 we estimate as middle Pleistocene.