Descrizione del progetto
Un’invenzione sociale e tecnica nel Caucaso
Le civiltà dell’antica Mesopotamia hanno dato vita a numerosi importanti progressi nella scienza e nella tecnologia. La ruota più antica del mondo, ad esempio, è stata scoperta proprio in questa regione, utilizzata per delle bighe all’incirca 5 000 anni fa. Il progetto ARCHCAUCASUS, finanziato dall’UE, mette in discussione questa teoria, diffusa nel mondo della scienza e della tecnologia, rendendo possibili ipotesi alternative, ovvero che le nuove tecnologie e tecniche teoricamente scoperte in Mesopotamia fossero in realtà state adattate da diverse «periferie». Lo studio di ARCHCAUCASUS approfondirà questa tesi sondando quattro innovazioni decisive: la ruota e il carro, le leghe metalliche, la metallurgia dell’argento e la pecora da lana. Il progetto è multidisciplinare e si avvale dei più recenti metodi analitici.
Obiettivo
This project leads to one of the most dynamic regions in prehistory: the Caucasus of the 4th and early 3rd mill. BC. During this vibrant time, basic innovations emerged, which were crucial until the 19th century: wheel and wagon, copper alloys, the potter’s wheel, new breeds of woolly sheep, domestication of the horse, and others. At the same time, massive migrations from the East European steppe during the early 3rd mill. BC changed the European gene pool.
The project challenges the still predominant narrative that all technical achievements stemmed from urban centres in Mesopotamia. New studies have created space for alternative hypotheses: possibly it was not the development of new techniques, but instead their adaptation from different ‘peripheries’ and their re-combination and re-configuration that formed the basis for the success of these ‘civilisations’.
The Caucasus, linking Mesopotamia to the Eurasia and Europe, is for the first time in the focus of a study on innovation transfer. The study will make a major contribution by investigation of four axial innovations: wheel and wagon, metal alloys, silver metallurgy and woolly sheep. 40 wheels will be analysed by computer tomography and strontium isotopes. Some 300 copper alloys artefacts and 200 silver objects will be examined using mass spectrometry with laser ablation. 400 aDNA genom-wide analyses of humans from burials in the North Caucasus will offer the unique chance of elucidating the role of migrations for the spread of innovations. The pottery in the region, often linked to Mesopotamia, will be studied under technical aspects and is a complementary path to shed light on migration and the transfer of knowledge. Excavations in settlements will allow building up a chronology using 400 AMS 14C analyses. The project is multidisciplinary, making use of the most up-to-date analytical methods. Our long experience and reputation on both sides of the Caucasus is the ideal background for cutting-edge research.
Campo scientifico
- humanitieshistory and archaeologyhistoryprehistory
- humanitieshistory and archaeologyhistoryancient history
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrytransition metals
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistryalkaline earth metals
- natural scienceschemical sciencesanalytical chemistrymass spectrometry
- engineering and technologymaterials engineeringmetallurgy
Parole chiave
Programma(i)
Argomento(i)
Meccanismo di finanziamento
ERC-ADG - Advanced GrantIstituzione ospitante
14195 Berlin
Germania