Prehistoric Mongolian Archaeology in the Early 21st Century: Developments in the Steppe and Beyond

Joshua Wright

doi:10.1007/s10814-020-09152-y

Abstract

There has been a great increase in archaeological research in Mongolia since 2000. Increasingly precise chronologies, regional studies, and the growth of development-driven archaeology are transforming our knowledge of this key region of northeastern Asia. This review summarizes recent work and provides a narrative of the prehistoric and medieval cultural sequences as presently understood. I focus on long-standing key topics: early human habitation, the adoption of food-producing economies, Bronze Age social transformations, and the emergence of central places and large polities. I argue that, on the one hand, Mongolia has unique data and new examples to offer the archaeological community and, on the other, that the prehistory of Mongolia and the steppe are not so different from the rest of the world in its history of research and key questions. This review provides general overviews covering the Upper Paleolithic, Epipaleolithic or Neolithic, and Bronze Age to the Xiongnu period; specific data related to each period provide jumping-off points for comparative analysis and further examination.

Highlights

Mongolia has seen an explosion of high-quality archaeological research and publication during the first decades of this century
I note the key developments of the last decade and half of research and what the future directions for Mongolian archaeology might be
Though I have focused on Mongolia, in particular, the work summarized here serves as a template for others working in sparsely occupied landscapes

Summary

Introduction

Mongolia has seen an explosion of high-quality archaeological research and publication during the first decades of this century. Whatever the pastoral tactics of Bronze Age Mongolians, evidence from burials, perimortuary monuments, purpose-built monuments for animals’ remains, and rock art imagery (Jacobson-Tepfer 2012; Jacobson-Tepfer et al 2006) show new human–animal relationships The ceramics of this period include distinctive open-mouthed vessels with thick walls, many inclusions‚ and idiosyncratic decorations and appliqué elements on their bodies and rims. The earlier Bronze Age is the temporal frontier of monumentality in Mongolia The archaeology of this period is dominated by the advent and development of the first widespread monumental forms and a presumed transformation in human–animal relations with the adoption of pastoralism evidenced through faunal remains, geoarchaeology, and land-use patterns. Rulers seem to have followed the mobile political system pioneered by the Xiongnu, but, as time passed, they become more urban based and presented their power in a style similar to the other medieval states of eastern Eurasia (Mackerras 1973: Rogers et al 2005; Sinor 2000)

Conclusions

Bibliography of Recent Literature