Piese de harnașament din Bronzul târziu. Despre două psalii de corn din Moldova

The study area is located about 110 km east of Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. Kurgans (barrows) that belong to the 6th–7th century Oghuz-Kipchak settlements were found in the Bronze Age and Iron Age necropolis and acropolis areas that lie within the limits of the Buyratau National Park, which is located in the Ereymentau District of the Akmola Province, in the vicinity of the Kumay Valley, along the foothills of Buyratau, to the left side of Kumay River (which has given the area its name). The district was introduced for the first time to the scientific community by the academicians and researchers of the Nazarbayev Center with the “International Kazakh-Turkish Project on the Constitution of the Kumay Archeology and Ethnography Open Air Museum” as a Bronze and Early Iron Age Turkic period and ethnography. The statues at the Kumay Archeological and Etnographic Complex (Turkic fences with Kos Bat?r statues, Bronze Age structure, Karagayl? 1 Turkic fence with statue, Karagayl? 2 Turkic fence with statue, Bronze Age Karagayl? 4 burial ground, Karagayl? 3 Turkic fence with statue, Barrows, Barrows with Mustache, Settlement-Stone statue, Karagayl? 5 Turkic fences, Karagayl? 2 Turkic fence with statue, Burial Henge, Bal?kt? 1 Barrow cluster, Bronze Age Karagayl? 3 burial ground, and Bronze Age Karagayl? 2 burial ground) are new discoveries of the common Turkic heritage exemplifying the cultural layers of different periods in Kazakhstan. Bronze Age structures represented by three types of statues, which, in terms of style, regarded as hundreds of different structures, fences, and barrows, cover the entire Bronze Age. A geophysical (GPR) project was jointly planned by the Nazarbayev Center of the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Republic of Turkey Prime Ministry Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (T?KA) in order to investigate the development of the cultural heritage during different periods in Kazakhstan through a contemporaneous and comprehensive study of the areas where above ground or partially buried structures, included in the the Karagayl? 2, 3, and 4 statue groups, are mainly localized to determine whether there are any buried structures in these localities. It was aimed that the buried statues, burial sites and settlements would be revealed using geophysical measurements by means of subsurface monitoring of the Kumay Valley statues and the nearby necropolis and acropolis areas. For subsurface monitoring in the region, two and three-dimensional images were obtained using Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) measurements using a DGPS-supported 250 MHz shield antenna. Based on GPR measurements a new kurgan and ceremony site complex were located and suggested for further archeological excavation.

Et monumentalt midtsulehus ved Nørre Holsted i Sydjylland

Grave Matters: Mediating Corporeal Objects and Subjects through Mortuary Practices

During recent archaeological excavations in the alpine valley of Montafon, western Austria, a Bronze and early Iron Age settlement cluster located at about 1,000 m a.s.l. was excavated. The human impact on the woodland resulting from these prehistoric settlement activities has been evaluated by the analysis of charred plant macro remains from cultural layers from a hilltop settlement site and two other close-by settlements, all of them encompassing the Early and Middle Bronze Age (19th to 15th century cal. b.c.) and early Iron Age (6th/5th century cal. b.c.). Charred seeds and fruits have provided information on the supply of foodstuff while charcoal (anthracological) analyses of firewood have revealed the use of wood and consequently the changes in local woods. The latter analyses suggest that the spruce-fir woodland (Piceeto-Abietetum) was gradually cleared from the Early Bronze Age. During the Middle Bronze Age large amounts of Pinus sylvestris (pine), Betula (birch), Corylus avellana (hazel) and Sorbus (rowan) with some Picea abies (spruce) characterized the woods, and early succession stages indicate clearings. These anthracological studies are corroborated by pollen studies disclosing clearings in the woods since the Early Bronze Age, which gradually expanded during the Middle Bronze Age. Furthermore, several charcoals from a Middle Bronze Age hearth seem to be of the same age, and the pattern of their annual growth-rings suggests the pollarding of broadleaved trees.

The paper deals with the results of excavations carried out in recent years in the Early Bronze Age kurgans in the mountainous part of the south-eastern region of Azerbaijan. It has been determined that there are several types of burial customs of this period in these small kurgans located on the Komani plateau between Kurekchi and Arvana villages of Yardimly district, on the Azerbaijan - Iran border. Although the Early Bronze Age Telmankend kurgans were excavated in the foothills of the region in the 1960s, such monuments were not excavated or even registered in the highlands. at these grave monuments, which were first discovered by us in the summer pastures in 2014, archaeological excavations began in 2018, and four kurgans were excavated here.
 Komani kurgans, built at an altitude of 2000 m above sea level, are important in terms of studying the burial customs of the Early Bronze Age semi-nomadic cattle-breeding population. Excavations of Komani kurgans have revealed that the high mountainous area of the south-eastern region of Azerbaijan had been used by the cattle-breeding population since the Early Bronze Age, where they were engaged in seasonal farming and carried out their burials. The lack of grave goods during the burial is explained by their temporary residence in the summer pastures. Undoubtedly, the presence of short-term settlements of cattle-breeding tribes near the kurgans is no exception. Building of Early Bronze Age Komani kurgans in the afore-said area from the chronological viewpoint is distinguished due to their small size. As for the later stages of the Bronze Age, dozens of big kurgans can be found here. However, no archeological excavations have been carried out in any of them so far. Similar burial customs and materials of Komani kurgans are mostly found in the Early Bronze Age monuments of Nakhchivan. Similar burials can be found in other coeval grave monuments of Azerbaijan and in the north-eastern provinces of Iran.

Summary - The earliest evidence of occupation of the area of Polesine during the Bronze Age has been recorded at Canar and in some other surface deposits dated to the middle Bronze Age. More recently, new sites have been discovered in the eastern area of Polesine, among which Larda di Gavello (RO) and Campestrin di Grignano Polesine (RO) can be referred to an older phase than those documented at Frattesina. These two sites are located few kilometres south of Rovigo and are dated between the middle and the “recent” Bronze Age according to the typology of the pottery. Excavations have been carried out by the Soprintendenza Archeologica del Veneto (Dr . L. Salzani) and with the collaboration of the Museo dei Grandi Fiumi of Rovigo. The animal assemblages from both sites are dominated by the domestic animals; wild species are also present although poorly represented. Butchery marks are well documented and several modifications are related to animal hard tissues manufacturing. In particular at Campestrin the presence of several deer antlers with chop marks at their bases testifies that these were collected as raw materials; finished artefacts employed for carrying out different activities at the site are also well documented.

Potential and limitations of LiDAR altimetry in archaeological survey. Copper Age and Bronze Age settlements in southern Iberia

The Minusinsk Basin has been attracting attention of the researchers of antiquities for several centuries. Over the past century, hundreds of archaeological sites of various eras and cultures have been discovered and studied. In the historical annals of this territory, one of the most eventful and material abundant periods is the Bronze Age. As with sources from other historical periods, burial complexes prevail among the sites of the Bronze Age. In this regard, at present, studies analyzing finds from sites and settlement complexes on this territory are of particular relevance. The purpose of this work is to introduce into the scientific circulation a set of the Bronze Age objects, which was unearthed at the Yugachi-2 site during archaeological excavations. In order to get that done, we provide a description and a comparative range of analogies for this category of finds. The main body of cultural remains at the Yugachi-2 site belongs to the Tagar, Tesinsky and Tashtyk cultural and chronological stages in the history of this territory. In terms of its spatial context and appearance, set of objects from the Bronze Age is in a league of its own. The analyzed set of objects includes a pointed bottom ornamented vessel, a pestle, and two sinkers. By a number of analogies, the vessel belongs to the Afanasyevo culture, the sites of which are also known in the area of study. Pestle and sinkers represent a characteristic component of the settlement complexes of the Late Bronze Age. Based on the information received, with the exception of pestle and sinkers other objects found in a spatial context similar to the analyzed ones were attributed to the Bronze Age and are related to the carriers of the Afanasyev culture. The results of the present study allow us to extend current ideas about the economic practices of the inhabitants of the Askiz River valley in the Bronze Age.

The article discusses the results of archaeological exploration carried out at the multilayered settlement of Khudutepe, located in the Mugan steppe in the southeast of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The site was discovered in the 1990s by an archaeologist F. Makhmudov and preliminary dated to the Chalcolithic era. However, archaeological excavations have not been carried out here. Due to long-term economic activity on this territory, the site was gradually destroyed. Numerous archaeological finds discovered as a result of these destructions (pottery, weapons, jewelry, numismatic material, etc.) were handed over by the local population to the regional museum of local history. As a result of the work carried out, a settlement was found in the southern and southwestern parts of the hill, and a necropolis of the early Iron Age was located in the northern and northeastern parts. In 2021, the expedition of the Institute of Archeology, Ethnography and Anthropology of ANAS at the Khudutepe settlement carried out archaeological excavations, both of the necropolis and the settlement itself. During the study of the necropolis, three earthen burials were examined. The materials of the Khudutepe settlement obtained during the excavations testify to its multilayered nature and the intensive nature of the settlement of this area in different historical periods. Exploratory excavations at this site revealed cultural layers of the Late Chalcolithic, Early Bronze Age, Late Bronze Age – Early Iron Age and the medieval period. Favorable natural and climatic conditions contributed to the development here in the indicated historical periods of an integrated agricultural and cattle breeding economy, the formation of a local culture of the ancient population of the Mugan steppe. The northern and northeastern side of the hill is an Iron Age necropolis, and the southern and southwestern part is a residential area. During the investigations of 2021, major archaeological excavations were started both in the residential area and in the necropolis of Khudutepe, and a large number of material culture samples were discovered. At the same time, three earthen graves were discovered during excavations in the necropolis part of the monument. The archaeological excavations conducted in Khudutepe, the richness of the cultural layer proves that there was an intensive and continuous life here. The main reason for the existence of the monument, which includes all historical stages from the Chalcolithic period to the late Middle Ages, is the mild and favorable natural climate of this place. The presence of ancient river valleys with abundant water resources for sedentary agriculture and vast pastures created the foundation for the ancient population of Mughan steppe to create a rich culture here.

This paper attempts to consider the social dimensions of metalworking during the Beaker period and Bronze Age in southern England. However, any attempt to discuss the social context of metalworking in these periods, i.e. who was working metals and where these activities occurred, is confronted with an extremely low evidence base of excavated archaeological sites where metalworking is known to have taken place. This lack of data and subsequent understanding of metalworking locations stands in stark contrast to the thousands of Beaker and Bronze Age metal artefacts housed in museum archives across Britain. These metal artefacts bear witness to the ability of people in Beaker and Bronze Age societies in Britain, and particularly southern England, to obtain, transform and use metals since the introduction of copper at c.2450 BC. Such metal artefacts have been subject to detailed analytical programmes, which have revealed information on the supply and recycling of metals. Likewise, there have also been significant advances in our understanding of the prehistoric mining of metals across the British Isles, with Beaker and Bronze Age mines identified in locations such as Ross Island (Ireland), the Great Orme (UK) and Alderley Edge (UK). Consequently, there is detailed archaeological knowledge about the two ends of the metalworking spectrum: the obtaining of the metal ores from the ground and the finished artefacts. However, the evidence for who was working metals and where is almost completely lacking. This paper discusses the archaeological evidence of the location of metalworking areas in these periods and dissects the reasons why so few have been found within archaeological excavation, with the evidence for early metallurgy likely to be slight and ambiguous, and possibly not identifiable as metalworking remains during excavation. Suggestions are made as to where such metalworking activities could have taken place in the Beaker period and Bronze Age, and what techniques can be applied to discover some of this evidence of metalworking activity, to allow access to the social dimensions of early metalworking and metalworkers.

A paint-decorated pottery tradition is observed in Inner Southwest Anatolia from the early 16th century B.C. to the 11th century B.C. These pottery items, which are characterised by red, brown or black paint decorations over gold wash ware, were first discovered at Beycesultan Hoyuk and Aphrodisias followed by a significant recent discovery at Laodikeia Asopos Tepesi excavations and included in the Late Bronze Age repertory. This group of wares preserved its general characteristics during the Late Bronze Age as a conservative craft tradition. During both the early and the late phases of the Late Bronze Age the pottery is represented at all three centres with goldwashed wares decorated with similar motifs. The Local Painted Pottery Tradition, which is important for the to-be-revised 2nd millennium B.C. chronology since it was observed during a specific time period, might be accepted as one of the factors that characterizes the Late Bronze age in Inland Western Anatolia.

Քուչակ-2 ամրոց-բնակատեղին գտնվում է Արագածոտնի մարզի Քուչակ գյուղի հյուսիսարևելյան կողմում, շրջապատի նկատմամբ գերիշխող դիրք ունեցող բլրի վրա: Բլրի արևելյան մասի ստորոտում պեղված ոչ մեծ տարածքում հայտնաբերված խեցեղենն ու քարե գործիքների հարուստ հավաքածուն ցույց են տալիս, որ կյանքն այստեղ սկսվել է առնվազն մ.թ.ա. IV հազ. կեսերին: Ամրոց-բնակատեղիի տարածքում հայտնաբերված նյութերը թույլ են տալիս եզրակացնել, որ այն հիմնադրվել է վաղ երկաթի դարաշրջանում: Դամբանադաշտում պեղված երկու սալարկղային դամբարաններից մեկը թվագրվում է ուշ բրոնզի, իսկ մյուսը` Վանի թագավորության դարաշրջաններով: Գյուղի հարավարևելյան հատվածում ժամանակին պատահականորեն բացված դամբարանի նյութերն էլ իրենց կայուն զուգահեռներն են գտնում միջինբրոնզեդարյան կարմիրբերդյան մշակույթի համալիրներում: Ինչպես նորահայտ, այնպես էլ արդեն հայտնի նյութերի առկայությունը վկայում է Քուչակ-2-ի և հարակից տարածքի բնակվածության փուլերի մասին, որոնք ժամանա-կագրական առումով ներառում են մ.թ.ա. IV հազ. կեսերից մինչև մ.թ.ա. I հազարմյակի առաջին կեսը: Գործնականում, Քուչակ գյուղի վարչական սահմաններում իրականացված ուսումնասիրության արդյունքները ցույց են տալիս, որ այդ բնակավայրում դրսևորվել են նյութական մշակույթի զարգացման միևնույն օրինաչափությունները, որպիսիք առկա են Ապարանի գոգավորության տարածքում և Հայկական լեռնաշխարհի հյուսիսարևելյան հատվածում: Крепость-поселение Кучак-2 расположена на холме к северовостоку от одноименного села марза Арагацотн. В результате раскопок на восточном склоне холма была обнаружена богатая коллекция керамики и каменных орудий, датируемая серединой IV тыс. до н.э. Археологические материалы, выявленные во время разведывательных работ на территории крепости-поселения, позволяют заключить, что оно было основано в эпоху раннего железа. Раскопки двух погребений в виде каменных ящиков указывают на то, что последние относятся к эпохе поздней бронзы Ванского царства. В свою очередь, материалы из случйно обнаруженного погребения на юговосточной окраине села имеют свои параллели в комплексах среднебронзовой кармирбердской культуры и могут быть датированы второй половиной II тыс. в. до н.э. Наличие как нововыявленных, так и уже известных материалов позволяет судить об этапах заселения крепости-поселения Кучак-2 и прилегающих территорий, которые относятся к середине IV тыс. до н.э. – первой половине I тыс. до н.э. Практически, результаты археологических изысканий в административных границах села Кучак явствуют о том, что данная территория имела те же закономерности развития материальной культуры, которые наличествуют как в Апаранской котловине, так и в северовосточной части Армянского нагорья. The fortress-settlement Kuchak-2 is situated on the north-eastern side of the village of Kuchak of the Aragatsotn Province atop a natural hill dominating the area. In a limited area on the eastern slope of the hill occupied by the fortress the excavations uncovered ceramic complex and a rich collection of stone tools, which allows to conclude that the habitation in this area starts at least from the second half of the 4th mill. BC. Additionally, archaeological materials uncovered from the test trenches implemented in the area of the fortress-settlement allow to conclude, that it was founded during the Early Iron Age. Meanwhile, two stone-box type burials which were excavated in the necropolis of the fortress, belong to the time periods of the Late Bronze Age and the functioning of the Van Kingdom correspondingly. At the same time, archaeological materials from the grave uncovered by chance on the southeastern part of the village distribute their strong parallels with the complexes known from the Karmirberd culture of the Middle Bronze Age and can be attributed to the second half of the II mill. BC. The newly discovered as well as the previously known materials are highlighting the occupational phases of the area of Kuchak-2 and the surrounding territories during the Bronze and Iron Ages, which spans between the time range of the second half of the IV mill. to the first half of the I mill. BC. In practice, the archaeological investigations in the administrative boundaries of the village of Kuchak shows, that it distributes the same patterns of development of the material culture typical for the area of the Aparan Depression and the southeastern part of the Armenian Highland.

VIRVELINĖS KERAMIKOS KULTŪRA LIETUVOJE 2800–2400 cal BC

Shortepe situated near Shatirli village of Barda in Garabagh region of Azerbaijan Republic. Archaeological excavations gave us an opportunity to research antique and early medieval period of the city. Shortepe is one of the biggest antique and early medieval settlements of Azerbaijan. The settlement situated near Shatirli village in Barda region. There situated Bronze Age settlement Balatepe which were one of the important centers of Kura-Araxes (proto-albanians) tribes, Bronze Age kurgans and Shortepe archaeological complex in Shatirli village. As a result of the research, four cultural strata were discovered. The first layer belongs to the Kur-Araz culture. In this layer, hearth-shaped and horseshoe-shaped hearths were found. In the second layer, painted and simple vessels typical of the Middle Bronze Age were found, and in the third layer, stone box-type tombs and long-necked clay vessels were found. The fourth layer is located at a depth of 0.3-0.9 m. Earthen graves belonging to children and the elderly were found in this layer. There are considerable information about Barda city and a region where it is situated in the works of authors of Antic and Early Middle Ages. Archeologists C.Morqan, N.Silosani, İ.Babayev, R.Goyushov, A.Nuriyev, H.Jafarov, F.Osmanov, A.Mammadov, M.Huseynov had been researched in Barda. According to professor A.M.Mammadov, Shortepe monument is remains of ancient Barda that called “Harum” in the works of Nizami Ganjavi. The article was dedicated to antique and early medieval fortified settlement Shortepe, which researchers prove that the settlement was an ancient Barda town. We can localize it with Anariaka antique Caucasian Albanian settlement. Archaeological excavations were continued in 2006-2016 years regularly. Archaeological excavations had been led in Shortepe in 2014. Scientific researches had been continued in the size of 10x10 m and the area had been divided 4 square. In the result of the archaeological excavations has been got the material examples which dedicated to the antique and early medieval period. In 2015 year archaeological excavations continued. Fortified part of settlement and pit graves was unearthed during digs. Scientific investigations show that Shortepe was ancient city of Garabagh region of Azerbaijan.

Agerbruget i enkeltgravskultur – Senneolitikum og ældre bronzealder i Jylland belyst ud fra plantemakrofossil