A General Revision of the Chronology of the Tagisken North Burial Ground

Abstract

Abstract The burial ground of Tagisken North, characterised by seven monumental mausolea and other adjoining structures made of mud brick and rammed earth, was excavated and studied by members of the “Khorezm Expedition” (KhAEE) in the 60’s and dated to the beginning of the 1st millennium BC (9th-8th centuries BC). This cemetery boasts a significant amount of artefacts pertaining to the Late Andronovo period. In light of new archaeological findings and recent chronological refinements, and thanks to improved scientific cooperation within the academic world, greater accuracy in determining the chronology of steppe cultures through abundant radiocarbon dating and better research standards, the time has now come for a general revision of the chronology of this burial ground. The radiocarbon sequence for the Andronovo culture is notably a subject of heated debate, due to the wide range of absolute dating. The differences between the chronological frames of Central Asia proposed by Russian-Central Asian and foreign archaeologists are considerable. Calibrated dates have, of course, extended the traditional periodization leading to alternative “high” chronologies, i.e. 300-500 years earlier than the traditional chronologies based on cross-cultural analogies and formal comparisons. Steppe and Pre-Aral materials may now be unquestionably linked to artefacts from Middle Asia. In the best of circumstances, the latter may in turn be linked to historical chronologies established for the Ancient Near and Middle East. In light of this evidence, this paper proposes that the northern part of the Tagisken plateau was used as a burial ground as far back as the mid-2nd millennium BC, if not earlier, and continued to be used as such until the 13th century BC.