A biomolecular perspective on mobile pastoralism and its role in wider socioeconomic connections in the Chalcolithic South Caucasus
Mobile pastoralism is widely evoked when discussing technological developments, resource procurement, <i>trans</i>-regional interactions, and exchange networks in the South Caucasus. In this study, we conduct a comprehensive multiproxy investigation of faunal and botanical remains from the Middle to Late Chalcolithic in southern Armenia, at the high altitude Yeghegis-1 site, to directly assess herd mobility and human subsistence practices. Our findings indicate that, alongside intensified interregional connectivity, the inhabitants practiced a rather sedentary form of multi-resource pastoralism, while maintaining herds at the site year-round. These results complement and expand upon models of pastoral mobility and its perceived crucial role in sustaining inter- and intra-regional connectivity. We argue that alternative models of increased intra-regional connectivity, focused on exchange between different specialized settled economies, need to be considered and further research is essential to unravel the complex interplay between subsistence, trade, and socio-economic dynamics.
Authors
- Laura Pereira Furquim (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8425-3125)
- Kseniia Boxleitner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2332-4302)
- Noel Amano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7871-2230)
- Արսեն Բոբոխյան (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2277-8281)
- Robert Nicholas Spengler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5648-6930)
- Ruben Davtyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0464-161X)
- Karen Azatyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6764-5917)
- Patrick Roberts (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4403-7548)
- Levon Yepiskoposyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6113-2072)
- Mariam Saribekyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0698-7446)
- Jana Ilgner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7210-8625)
- Gwendoline Maurer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5682-3661)
- Mariya Antonosyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4804-6449)
- Satenik Mkrtchyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7081-9802)
- Ellery Frahm (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7858-3523)
- Sabine Reinhold (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8107-6300)
- Anahit Hovhannisyan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0617-4469)
- Freg Stokes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2969-8663)
Institutions
- Museum of Science (US)
- American Museum of Natural History (US)
- Trinity College Dublin (IE)
- Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Zentrale (DE)
- Lower Saxony State Museum (DE)
- Yale University (US)
- Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography (AM)
- Robert S. Peabody Museum of Archaeology (US)
- Institute of Molecular Biology (AM)
- Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History (DE)
- Cardiff University (GB)
- National Academy of Sciences of Armenia (AM)
Publication Details
- Journal
- iScience
- Published
- 2025-05-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2025.112544
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 22.69
Funders
- National Academy of Sciences of Armenia
- Ministry of Education and Science
- Max-Planck-Gesellschaft