Kubatbek TABALDİYEV

Article | 2021 | Journal of Field Archaeology47 ( 1 )

From the earliest archaeological investigations along Central Asia's Tien Shan range, researchers have noted the diversity of highland communities and their participation in complex subsistence, exchange, and political systems. However, landscape archaeological approaches that might address socio-economic integrations have been limited by discontinuous, sometimes skewed datasets. Here, we present the results of UAV-based survey at Kok-Sai, an upland alluvial slope in the Kochkor Valley of north-central Kyrgyzstan, in which we identified more than 900 archaeological features in a 380 ha study area. Burials comprise roughly half of th . . .e identified features; stone structures, water catchments, irrigation channels, and terraces make up the other half. In an iterative interpretive process, we examine this busy landscape against high-resolution topographic and hydrological models, identifying repeated investment in the local physical and cultural infrastructure. Beyond the creation of a denser archaeological map for the area, the details of long-term, local landscape creation afforded by this study intersect with ongoing discussions of the organizational strategies and scales of highland agro-pastoralism More less

Kubatbek TABALDİYEV

Article | 2019 | Journal of Field Archaeology45 ( 1 )

The highlands of Central Asia posed considerable challenges to early agriculturalists, yet the processes of human subsistence strategies there remain poorly understood. In this paper, we present results from the excavation of the Chap in Kyrgyzstan. The recovery of a rich macrobotanical assemblage consisting of several crop species and crop processing debris, together with skeletal remains of pastoral livestock, indicate a localized agro-pastoral complex at 2000 masl dating to 1065-825 cal b.c. Aerial photogrammetry, magnetometry, and topographic modeling reveal local irrigation systems, while stone artifacts are linked with cultiva . . .tion and crop processing. Furthermore, the ceramic assemblage reveals a local production tradition and stylistic similarities with communities of neighboring regions. Overall, data from Chap contribute to a new understanding of human ecology and agricultural development in the mountains of Central Asia, suggesting that domesticated plants and animals were integral for the intensive occupation of high-elevation valleys in Central Asia More less