Middle Palaeolithic human occupation of the high altitude region of Hovk-1, Armenia

Lithic assemblages of Azokh Cave (Nagorno Karabagh, Lesser Caucasus): Raw materials, technology and regional context

“…good presence of Levallois flakes, flakes with faceted platforms, low blade indices, dominance of side-scrapers within retouched pieces) with the Zagros-Mousterian group, although none of the diagnostic tools ("Taglar type" scrapers or "Yerevan type" points) have been found so far in the current assemblage of this unit. The new data from Hovq 1 cave (Pinhasi et al , 2011 in Northern Armenia, indicates similarities with our Unit II in age (especially Hovq 1 unit 8 dated to 104 ± 9.8 BP (Pinhasi et al 2011) and techno-typological characteristics (i.e. presence of Levallois technology -also in unit 8).…”

“…Located as it is in the middle of the African, Asian and European continents, the Caucasus region represents a geographic corridor for the expansion and migration of human and animal populations, although the high mountains and difficult passes of the region might have limited human mobility and expansion in this territory. Hominin presence in the Caucasus is attested by the rich paleontological, anthropological and cultural remains found throughout the Early to Upper Pleistocene and evidenced by Dmanisi (Georgia) dated to ~ 1.7 Myr ago (Gabunia et al 2001, Adler & Toushabramishvili 2004, Meignen & Tushabramishvili 2006 and by other Middle and Upper Palaeolithic sites such as Tsona, Kudaro I and III in South Ossetia, Myshtulagty Lagat in North Ossetia, Djruchula, Bronze Cave, Sakajia, Ortvala and Ortvale Klde in Georgia, Mezmaiskaya, Barakaevskaya and Monasheskaya in NW Caucasus (Golovanova et al 1999, Golovanova & Doronichev 2003, Adler et al 2006, Golovanova et al 2010, Pinhasi et al 2011), Dashtadem-3, Hovq 1, Kalavan-2 in northern Armenia (Gasparyan 2010, Ghukasyan et al 2011, Kolpakov 2009, Yerevan-1 and Lusakert-1 and 2 in Hrazdan valley (Eritsian 1981, Ghukastan et al 2011, Adler et al 2012 and Angeghakot 1 in southern Armenia (Liagre et al 2006) (Figure 1). In this paper we discuss the Azokh Cave site located in the south-eastern part of the Lesser Caucasus in Nagorno Karabakh (39º 37.15N and 46º 59.32E) (Murray et al in press The cave is about 850 m a.s.l., and 200m above the nearby village of Azokh.…”

The diversity of Late Pleistocene and Holocene wild ungulates and kites structures in Armenia

“…The high frequency of carnivores in the assemblage of Hovk-1 is due to a probable activity of natural deposition, where animals could have fallen and died on site in the earlier layers of the cave. The remains of bezoar goats observed at Hovk-1 reflect natural attritional mortality (Pinhasi et al, 2011).…”

“…The animal remains attested from archaeological sites dating to the late of Pleistocene cover the Middle Paleolithic (250,000e39,000 BP; 3 sites), the Upper Paleolithic (39,000e12,000 BP; 2 sites) and the Mesolithic periods (12,000e9000 BP; 1 site). The transition Middle and Upper Paleolithic is debated between 36 and 34 ka BP (Adler et al, 2006) and 39 ka BP (Pinhasi et al, 2011). The Middle Paleolithic sites are seasonal campsites located at high altitudes (Hovk-1:2040 m, Kalavan-2:1640 m, and Lusarket: 1400 m) in the upper northwestern mountains of Armenia (Tavush district) and in the Hrazdan basalt (Aragatsotn district) ( Fig.…”

“…BC). From this period onwards, hunting was no longer the unique source of meat, inducing a change in hunting strategies towards a focus on various biotopes and a wider spectrum of animals: caprines (sheep and goat), gazelle, cervids, equids, and bovines (Mezhlumyan, 1972;Chataigner, 1995;Pinhasi et al, 2011;Wilkinson et al, 2012;Berthon, 2014). The direct influence of the landscape played an important role in directing the hunting strategies of inhabitants, through the procurement of available resources from steppe regions (Gazella sp., Equus spp.…”