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Mobility, Exchange Networks and Technocultural Transfers in Southern Central Asia During the Bronze Age

Applicant Dr. Elise Luneau
Subject Area Prehistory and World Archaeology
Term from 2018 to 2022
Project identifier Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 392943887
 
Final Report Year 2025

Final Report Abstract

The Bronze Age in Central Asia was characterized by multiculturalism driven by the movement and interaction of diverse groups, such as the Oxus Civilization, Andronovo, and Vakhsh cultures, leading to significant influences, particularly from northern populations, intricate exchanges and profound sociocultural transformations. The project focused on conducting new field surveys in two regions of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, aiming to uncover previously unknown archaeological sites – especially those of the northern populations – and to deepen our understanding of the sociocultural history of Bronze Age Central Asia. The Nuratau Mountains in Uzbekistan had remained largely unexplored until now. Among a variety of features spanning from the Palaeolithic to modern times, surveys revealed a dense Bronze Age occupation, predominantly dated to the mid-second millennium BCE. Our findings have provided a clearer understanding of the region’s role as a bridge between the 'steppe' and 'urban' worlds during this period. The discovery of Bronze Age burial complexes, including stone cists, provides valuable insights into funerary practices associated with the Fedorovo and Begazy-Dandybaj cultural variants. In addition, the identification of standing stones and modern campsites (reflecting local nomadic life prior to the sedentarization imposed by Russian and Soviet authorities) attest to long-term and permanent landscape use, practices and territorial organization in the region. This research has generated new perspectives into settlement systems in mountainous regions and the role of ancient non-urban populations in shaping the diversity of human groups and developmental models in past Central Eurasia. In the Hissar Valley of Tajikistan, newly discovered Bronze Age sites contributed to fill chronological gaps in the regional human settlement record, particularly during the 2nd half of the third millennium BCE and the mid-second millennium BCE. In this area, where contacts between Oxus and ‘steppe’ groups are particularly significant, new ceramic evidence indicates active intercultural dynamics through technological and stylistic appropriations among the various Bronze Age groups. Complementary advanced archaeometric pottery analysis applied to Uzbek and Tajik Bronze Age collections has revealed significant diversity in Bronze Age wares and highlighted potential pottery workshops associated with the Oxus Civilization. Provenance studies of the ceramics have further identified local/regional raw material sources for both Oxus and ‘steppe’ potteries, besides very limited imports. The pottery analysis has demonstrated the fluidity of cultural boundaries through techno-stylistic hybridization and the possible sharing of clay sources between Oxus and ‘steppe’ potters in southern Uzbekistan and Tajikistan during the end of the Bronze Age.

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