The Black Sea and the Early Civilizations of Europe, the Near East and Asia

The Black Sea Lies At The Junction Of Three Major Cultural Areas: Europe, Central Asia, And The Near East. It Plays A Crucial Role In Enduring Discussions About The Impact Of Complex Near Eastern Societies On European Societies, And The Repercussions Of Early Urbanization Across Eurasia. This Book Presents The First Comprehensive Overview Of The Black Sea Region In The Prehistoric Period. It Penetrates Artificial Boundaries Imposed By Traditions, Politics, And Language To Encompass Both The European And Asiatic Coasts And Both Eastern European And Western Scholarly Literature. With A Critical Compilation And Synthesis Of Archaeological Data, This Study Situates The Prehistoric Black Sea In A Global Historical Context. By Adopting The Perspective Of Technology And Innovation, It Transcends A Purely Descriptive Account Of Material Culture And Emphasizes Society, Human Interaction, And Engagement With The Material World-- Environment -- A Framework Of Technology -- Eurasia: The Neolithic Prologue -- The Valley Of The Lower Kuban -- The North Black Sea Grassland -- Wetlands Of The West Black Sea -- Unknown Coasts: The Black Sea Littoral Of Anatolia -- Conclusions: The Black Sea And The Outside World. Mariya Ivanova. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 319-378) And Index. Cover 1 The Black Sea and the Early Civilizations of Europe, the Near East and Asia 3 Title 5 Copyright 6 Contents 7 Tables and Figures 9 Acknowledgements 15 A Note on Transliteration and Spelling of Cyrillic Names 17 Introduction 21 The Soviet Sea 23 The Black Sea between Europe and the Orient 24 Theoretical Background and Concepts 25 Organization of the Book 26 1 Environment 27 The Valley of the Lower Kuban 27 The Grasslands of the North Black Sea 28 The Western Coast 30 The Coast of Anatolia 32 Sea Level Change and Coastal Formation 34 A Note on Marine Biodiversity 36 2 A Framework of Technology 38 A Definition of Technology 38 Archaeological Approaches to Technology 40 Innovation in Technology 43 Transmission and Adoption of Technology 45 Outlook 48 3 Eurasia: The Neolithic Prologue 51 Technological Developments in Southwest Asia 51 Farming Technology 51 Food Technology 55 Textiles 57 Lithic Technology 57 Pyrotechnology 58 Conclusions 60 The Spread of Farming in the Black Sea Littoral 61 The Coast of Anatolia 61 The Coast of the Balkans 62 The Northern Black Sea Littoral 63 The Caucasian Coast 66 Outlook: The Age of Copper 68 4 The Valley of the Lower Kuban 70 Introduction 70 Archaeological Fieldwork 70 Synopses 71 Chronology 73 Shifting Households and Stable Cemeteries 75 Habitation Sites 75 Cemeteries 80 Conclusions 86 Farmers and Pastoralists on the Lower Kuban 88 Crops, Domestic Animals and Wild Resources 88 Storage of Staple Foods and Food Preparation Habits 91 Textiles and Lithic Materials 93 Weaving Crafts 93 Lithic Technology 95 Ceramic Vessels and Faience 98 Pottery 98 Faience 106 Metallurgical Innovations 107 Mining, Beneficiation and Smelting of Ores 107 Alloying 110 Melting and Casting 114 Metalwork 114 Metal Inventory 116 Animal-Powered Transport 123 Social Valuables and Funeral Feasts 124 Long-Distance Trade 128 Decoupling the Syro-Anatolian connection 138 The “Chaff-Faced Horizon” in Southwest Asia 138 The Great Khorasan Road and the North Caucasus 141 5 The North Black Sea Grassland 150 Introduction 150 Archaeological Fieldwork 150 Synopses 151 Chronology 153 Dispersed Communities 154 Farming in the Grasslands 163 Conservatism in the Manufacturing Technologies 168 Lithics 168 Ceramic Vessels 170 Metals 173 Transport 179 Domestic Architecture 180 Social Repertory and Long-Distance Contacts 181 Concluding Remarks 185 6 Wetlands of the Western Black Sea 190 Introduction 190 Archaeological Fieldwork 190 Synopses 193 Chronology 196 Hamlets, Kurgans and the Transformation of the Neolithic Settlement Tradition 197 Settlement 197 Burial Customs 201 Domesticating the Steppe 212 Crop Cultivation, Animal Husbandry and Exploitation of Wild Resources 212 Storage of Staple Foods and Food Preparation Habits 218 The Emergence of Complex Technologies 220 Weaving Crafts 220 Lithic Technologies 220 Pottery 223 Faience 229 Transport 230 Domestic Architecture 231 Copper Metallurgy and Metalwork 232 Mining and Smelting of Ores 232 Alloying, Melting and Casting 234 Metalwork 235 Metal Inventory 238 Social Practices and the Emergence of Monumentality 240 Usatovo, the Forest-Steppe and the Danube 244 7 Unknown Coasts: The Black Sea Littoral of Anatolia 247 Introduction 247 Archaeological Fieldwork 247 The Alis ̧ar Paradigm 253 Societies in the Margin 259 Food, Pots and Metals 263 Food Acquisition 263 Food Storage and Culinary Technology 265 Weaving 266 Pottery 268 Metals 270 Between Central Anatolia and Southeast Europe 273 8 Conclusions: The Black Sea and the Outside World 277 People of the Black Sea 277 Technological Developments in the Black Sea Coastland 280 Farming 280 Culinary Technology 281 Textiles 282 Ceramic Technology 284 Metals 285 Transportation 286 Conclusion: Networks of Transmission 288 Notes 293 Introduction 293 Environment 293 A Framework of Technology 294 Eurasia: The Neolithic Prologue 297 The Valley of the Lower Kuban 299 The North Black Sea Grassland 316 Wetlands of the Western Black Sea 322 Unknown Coasts: The Black Sea Littoral of Anatolia 332 Conclusions: The Black Sea and the Outside World 336 Bibliography 339 Index 401 "The Black Sea lies at the junction of three major cultural areas: Europe, Central Asia, and the Near East. It plays a crucial role in enduring discussions about the impact of complex Near Eastern societies on European societies, and the repercussions of early urbanization across Eurasia. This book presents the first comprehensive overview of the Black Sea region in the prehistoric period. It penetrates artificial boundaries imposed by traditions, politics, and language to encompass both the European and Asiatic coasts and both Eastern European and Western scholarly literature. With a critical compilation and synthesis of archaeological data, this study situates the prehistoric Black Sea in a global historical context. By adopting the perspective of technology and innovation, it transcends a purely descriptive account of material culture and emphasizes society, human interaction, and engagement with the material world"-- Provided by publisher The Black Sea lies at the junction of three major cultural areas: Europe, Central Asia, and the Near East. It plays a crucial role in enduring discussions about the impact of complex Near Eastern societies on European societies, and the repercussions of early urbanization across Eurasia. This book presents the first comprehensive overview of the Black Sea region in the prehistoric period. It penetrates artificial boundaries imposed by traditions, politics, and language to encompass both the European and Asiatic coasts and both Eastern European and Western scholarly literature. With a critical compilation and synthesis of archaeological data, this study situates the prehistoric Black Sea in a global historical context. By adopting the perspective of technology and innovation, it transcends a purely descriptive account of material culture and emphasizes society, human interaction, and engagement with the material world.--Résumé de l'éditeur