High-Altitude Agro-Pastoralism in the Kyrgyz Tien Shan: New Excavations of the Chap Farmstead (1065–825 cal b.c.)

Matuzevičiūtė, Giedrė Motuzaitė; Tabaldiev, Kubatbek; Hermes, Taylor; Ananyevskaya, Elina; Grikpėdis, Mindaugas; Luneau, Élise; Merkytė, Inga; Rouse, Lynne M.

doi:10.1080/00934690.2019.1672128

Cited by 40 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 48 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Modelled radiocarbon dates measured on wheat barley grains from Chap II in relation to the occupational period of Chap I previously reported by Motuzaite Matuzeviciute et al [24]. …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…It was surprising that no remains of East Asian crops were recovered from the flotation samples, such as broomcorn or foxtails millet, which were present at Chap I [24]. Interestingly, 34 carbonized food fragments, up to 9.5 mm in size, were also identified.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three cereal caryopses collected from flotation samples were selected for direct dating: two wheat grains from pit 1 and one barley grain from pit 2. Radiocarbon determinations were calibrated using IntCal13 calibration curve [28], which were modelled in OxCal v. 4.3 [29] according to their stratigraphic positions relative to previously identified occupational layers yielding 14 C dates of domesticated grains recovered from Chap I previously reported by Motuzaite Matuzeviciute et al [24].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The site is situated inside the inundation of a small loess hill that protrudes from the foothills into the southeastern part of the 80-km long Kochkor valley (Fig 1). The archaeological remains of Chap II were recovered through excavation of the Chap I farmstead (1065-825 cal BCE), which was occupied during the transitional period from the Late Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age [24]. In previous years, a small 6.5×6.5 m trench was excavated that yielded a diverse assemblage of ceramic sherds, crop processing tools, domestic animal skeletal remains, carbonized remains of domesticated grains and chaff, which together reflect extensive agricultural and pastoralist activities by the inhabitants of the Chap I site [24].…”

Section: The Chap II Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

A biodiverse package of southwest Asian grain crops facilitated high-elevation agriculture in the central Tien Shan during the mid-third millennium BCE

Matuzevičiūtė

Hermes

Mir-Makhamad

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We report the earliest and the most abundant archaeobotanical assemblage of southwest Asian grain crops from Early Bronze Age Central Asia, recovered from the Chap II site in Kyrgyzstan. The archaeobotanical remains consist of thousands of cultivated grains dating to the mid-late 3rd millennium BCE. The recovery of cereal chaff, which is rare in archaeobotanical samples from Central Asia, allows for the identification of some crops to species and indicates local cultivation at 2000 m.a.s.l., as crop first spread to the mountains of Central Asia. The site’s inhabitants cultivated two types of free-threshing wheats, glume wheats, and hulled and naked barleys. Highly compact morphotypes of wheat and barley grains represent a special variety of cereals adopted to highland environments. Moreover, glume wheats recovered at Chap II represent their most eastern distribution in Central Asia so far identified. Based on the presence of weed species, we argue that the past environment of Chap II was characterized by an open mountain landscape, where animal grazing likely took place, which may have been further modified by people irrigating agricultural fields. This research suggests that early farmers in the mountains of Central Asia cultivated a high diversity of southwest Asian crops during the initial eastward dispersal of agricultural technologies, which likely played a critical role in shaping montane adaptations and dynamic interaction networks between farming societies across highland and lowland cultivation zones.

show abstract

“…Modelled radiocarbon dates measured on wheat barley grains from Chap II in relation to the occupational period of Chap I previously reported by Motuzaite Matuzeviciute et al [24]. …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 95%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Chap II Sitementioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

A biodiverse package of southwest Asian grain crops facilitated high-elevation agriculture in the central Tien Shan during the mid-third millennium BCE

Matuzevičiūtė

Hermes

Mir-Makhamad

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Human paleogenetic research suggests that the IAMC in the second millennium BC was a distinct conduit for the northward human gene flow from agro-pastoralist communities from the region of Turan, roughly spanning present-day Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan [31]. In subsequent millennia, pastoralist interactions throughout the IAMC are associated with vibrant cultural exchanges, linking economies and cultures across Eurasia, which scholars commonly refer to as the ancient Silk Roads [45,[49][50][51][52][53][54].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

High mitochondrial diversity of domesticated goats persisted among Bronze and Iron Age pastoralists in the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor

Hermes

Frachetti

Voyakin³

et al. 2020

PLoS ONE

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Specialized wool production economy of prehistoric farmstead of Chap I in the highlands of Central Tian Shan (Kyrgyzstan)

Ananyevskaya

Buckley

Chowdhury

et al. 2020

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Agro‐pastoral economies of prehistoric populations of Central Tian Shan highlands (2,000 masl and higher) have been poorly studied to date. Currently, we lack a general understanding of mobility and seasonality patterns of livestock herding and also lack knowledge about management strategies for particular productive goals in these high mountain valleys. In this paper, we report the results of the first systematic zooarchaeological analysis from the Final Bronze Age–Early Iron Age settlement Chap I located in Central Tian Shan highlands and discuss the data in relation to zooarchaeological evidence from contemporaneous sites in Central Asia. Our research has shown that Chap I was dominated by four domesticated herbivores: cattle, horses, sheep and goats. Data from Chap I demonstrate a strong focus on the exploitation of sheep and goats for meat and secondary products. Analysis of collagen peptides (ZooMS) from sheep/goats indicated that sheep were kept in greater numbers than goats. Sheep/goat mortality profiles and material evidence point to wool as an important product of highland pastoralism in the Central Tian Shan.

show abstract

High-Altitude Agro-Pastoralism in the Kyrgyz Tien Shan: New Excavations of the Chap Farmstead (1065–825 cal b.c.)

Cited by 40 publications

References 48 publications

A biodiverse package of southwest Asian grain crops facilitated high-elevation agriculture in the central Tien Shan during the mid-third millennium BCE

A biodiverse package of southwest Asian grain crops facilitated high-elevation agriculture in the central Tien Shan during the mid-third millennium BCE

High mitochondrial diversity of domesticated goats persisted among Bronze and Iron Age pastoralists in the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor

Specialized wool production economy of prehistoric farmstead of Chap I in the highlands of Central Tian Shan (Kyrgyzstan)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About