Leyla-Tepe culture on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The Leyla-Tepe culture of the
/ref> Similar amphora burials in the South Caucasus are found in the Western Georgian Jar-Burial culture, that is mostly of a much later date. The ancient Poylu II settlement was discovered in the Agstafa District of modern day Azerbaijan during the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. The lowermost layer dates to the early fourth millennium BC, attesting a multilayer settlement of Leyla-Tepe culture. Among the sites associated with this culture, the Soyugbulag
/ref> in particular, with the settlements in the
Potter's Marks on Leilatepe Culture Pottery: Eastern Anatolian Chalcolithic Traditions in the Caucasus
Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry, Vol. 16, No 1, (2016), pp. 283–294 doi 10.5281/zenodo.44772 Structures consisting of clay layers are typical; no mud-brick walls have been detected at Galayeri. Almost all findings have Eastern Anatolian Chalcolithic characteristics. The closest analogues of the Galayeri clay constructions are found at Arslantepe/ Melid VII in Temple C.Frangipane, M. (2009) Non-urban hierarchical patterns of territorial and political organisation in northern regions of Greater Mesopotamia: Tepe Gawra and Arslantepe. ''Subartu'', XXIII, 133–146
At the Beginning of Caucasian Metallurgy
Problems of Early Metal Age Archaeology of Caucasus and Anatolia. Proceedings of International Conference. Tbilisi, 2014 Recent research indicates the connections rather to the pre-Uruk traditions, such as the late
Archeological Excavations Along the Route of the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan Crude Oil Pipeline and the South Caucasus Gas Pipeline, 2002–2005
{{Azerbaijan topics 1980s archaeological discoveries Archaeological cultures of the Caucasus Archaeological cultures of West Asia Chalcolithic cultures of Asia Archaeological cultures in Georgia (country)
The Leyla-Tepe culture of the South Caucasus
The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...
belongs to the Chalcolithic
The Copper Age, also called the Chalcolithic (; from grc-gre, χαλκός ''khalkós'', "copper" and ''líthos'', "Rock (geology), stone") or (A)eneolithic (from Latin ''wikt:aeneus, aeneus'' "of copper"), is an list of archaeologi ...
era. It got its name from the site in the Agdam district
Aghdam District ( az, Ağdam rayonu) is one of the 66 administrative divisions of Azerbaijan. It is located in the west of the country and belongs to the Karabakh Economic Region. The district borders the districts of Khojaly, Kalbajar, Tartar, ...
of modern day Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
. Its settlements were distributed on the southern slopes of Central Caucasus, from 4350 until 4000 B.C.
Monuments of the Leyla-Tepe were first located in the 1980s by I. G. Narimanov, a Soviet archaeologist. In the 2000s
File:2000s decade montage3.png, From top left, clockwise: The World Trade Center on fire and the Statue of Liberty during the 9/11 attacks in 2001; the euro enters into European currency in 2002; a statue of Saddam Hussein being toppled during th ...
, attention to the monuments was inspired by the risk of their damage due to the construction of the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline and the South Caucasus pipeline
The South Caucasus Pipeline (also known as Baku–Tbilisi–Erzurum Pipeline, BTE pipeline, or Shah Deniz Pipeline) is a natural gas pipeline from the Shah Deniz gas field in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea to Turkey. It runs parallel t ...
.
Characteristics and influences
The Leyla-Tepe culture is also attested at Boyuk Kesik in the lower layers of this settlement. The inhabitants apparently buried their dead in ceramic vessels.Археология Азербаиджана/ref> Similar amphora burials in the South Caucasus are found in the Western Georgian Jar-Burial culture, that is mostly of a much later date. The ancient Poylu II settlement was discovered in the Agstafa District of modern day Azerbaijan during the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. The lowermost layer dates to the early fourth millennium BC, attesting a multilayer settlement of Leyla-Tepe culture. Among the sites associated with this culture, the Soyugbulag
kurgan
A kurgan is a type of tumulus constructed over a grave, often characterized by containing a single human body along with grave vessels, weapons and horses. Originally in use on the Pontic–Caspian steppe, kurgans spread into much of Central As ...
s or barrows are of special importance. The excavation of these kurgans, located in Kaspi Municipality, in central Georgia, demonstrated an unexpectedly early date of such structures on the territory of Azerbaijan. They were dated to the beginning of the 4th millennium BC.
The culture has also been linked to the north Ubaid period
The Ubaid period (c. 6500–3700 BC) is a prehistoric period of Mesopotamia. The name derives from Tell al-'Ubaid where the earliest large excavation of Ubaid period material was conducted initially in 1919 by Henry Hall and later by Leonard Wo ...
monuments,Гуп «Наследие» В. Л. Ростунов/ref> in particular, with the settlements in the
Eastern Anatolia Region
The Eastern Anatolia Region ('' tr, Doğu Anadolu Bölgesi'') is a geographical region of Turkey. The most populous province in the region is Van Province. Other populous provinces are Malatya, Erzurum and Elazığ.
It is bordered by the Black S ...
(Arslantepe
Melid, also known as Arslantepe, was an ancient city on the Tohma River, a tributary of the upper Euphrates rising in the Taurus Mountains. It has been identified with the modern archaeological site of Arslantepe near Malatya, Turkey.
It was ...
, Coruchu-tepe, Tepechik, etc.).
It has been suggested that the Leyla-Tepe were the founders of the Maykop culture
The Maykop culture (, , scientific transliteration: ''Majkop,''), c. 3700 BC– 3000 BC, was a major Bronze Age archaeological culture in the western Caucasus region.
It extends along the area from the Taman Peninsula at the Kerch Strait to ...
.
An expedition to Syria by the Russian Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across t ...
revealed the similarity of the Maykop and Leyla-Tepe artifacts with those found recently while excavating the ancient city of Tel Khazneh I, from the 4th millennium BC.
Leyla-Tepe pottery is very similar to the 'Chaff-Faced Ware' of the northern Syria and Mesopotamia. It is especially well attested at Amuq F phase. Similar pottery is also found at Kultepe, Azerbaijan.
Galayeri
In 2012, the important site of Galayeri, belonging to the Leyla-Tepe archaeological culture, was investigated. It is located in the Qabala District of modern day Azerbaijan. Galayeri is closely connected to early civilizations of Near East.Najaf MuseyibliPotter's Marks on Leilatepe Culture Pottery: Eastern Anatolian Chalcolithic Traditions in the Caucasus
Mediterranean Archaeology and Archaeometry, Vol. 16, No 1, (2016), pp. 283–294 doi 10.5281/zenodo.44772 Structures consisting of clay layers are typical; no mud-brick walls have been detected at Galayeri. Almost all findings have Eastern Anatolian Chalcolithic characteristics. The closest analogues of the Galayeri clay constructions are found at Arslantepe/ Melid VII in Temple C.Frangipane, M. (2009) Non-urban hierarchical patterns of territorial and political organisation in northern regions of Greater Mesopotamia: Tepe Gawra and Arslantepe. ''Subartu'', XXIII, 133–146
Metalwork
The appearance of Leyla-Tepe tradition's carriers in the Caucasus marked the appearance of the first local Caucasian metallurgy. This is perhaps, but not entirely, attributed to migrants fromUruk
Uruk, also known as Warka or Warkah, was an ancient city of Sumer (and later of Babylonia) situated east of the present bed of the Euphrates River on the dried-up ancient channel of the Euphrates east of modern Samawah, Muthanna Governorate, Al ...
arriving around 4500 BCE.Tufan Isaakoglu AkhundovAt the Beginning of Caucasian Metallurgy
Problems of Early Metal Age Archaeology of Caucasus and Anatolia. Proceedings of International Conference. Tbilisi, 2014 Recent research indicates the connections rather to the pre-Uruk traditions, such as the late
Ubaid period
The Ubaid period (c. 6500–3700 BC) is a prehistoric period of Mesopotamia. The name derives from Tell al-'Ubaid where the earliest large excavation of Ubaid period material was conducted initially in 1919 by Henry Hall and later by Leonard Wo ...
, and Ubaid-Uruk phases.
Leyla-Tepe metalwork tradition was very sophisticated right from the beginning and featured many bronze items. Later, the quality of metallurgy increased in both sophistication and quality with the advent of the Kura–Araxes culture .
See also
* Kura–Araxes cultureReferences
Sources
* Р. М. Мунчаев, Н. Я. Мерперт, Ш. Н. Амиров ТЕЛЛЬ-ХАЗНА I. Культово-административный центр IV–III тыс. до н. э. в Северо-восточной Сирии. Издательство «Палеограф». Москва 2004. *Najaf MuseyiblyArcheological Excavations Along the Route of the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan Crude Oil Pipeline and the South Caucasus Gas Pipeline, 2002–2005
{{Azerbaijan topics 1980s archaeological discoveries Archaeological cultures of the Caucasus Archaeological cultures of West Asia Chalcolithic cultures of Asia Archaeological cultures in Georgia (country)