12 01 2016
LILIT MKHITARYAN
Kura-Araxes culture traces, the Early and Late Bronze Age as well as Iron age site at Gegharot, Province of Aragatsotn, continues to be in the center of attention of archaeologists, not only from Armenia.
When Gegharot complex was discovered
The archaeological complex at Gegharot was first identified by archaeologist H. Martirosyan who recorded scatters of Early Bronze Age surface materials, a cyclopean fortress, and a cemetery. However, only the cemetery became a focus for more intensive research. In 1956, Martirosyan excavated five Late Bronze Age burials and in 1960, Esayan investigated three more.
The surface remains recovered from Gegharot included a large corpus of fragmentary ceramics indicating occupations dating to the Early and Late Bronze Ages as well as to the Iron 3 period. Initial test excavations conducted in 2000 recorded well-preserved Early and Late Bronze living floors, as well as a series of destruction episodes that led us to expand our investigations at the site in 2002 and 2003.
The Early Bronze Age Site
The Early Bronze Age village at Gegharot appears to have been established on the summit and upper terrace of the hill and subsequently expanded onto the lower western slope. The growth of the Kura-Araxes horizon village suggests a late fourth and early third millennium occupation at the site of some duration, perhaps, as noted above, interrupted by at least one hiatus.
The Early Bronze Age village at Gegharot was occupied during two phases of the Kura-Araxes horizon: an early occupation beginning in the latter half of the fourth millennium B.C. (ca. 3500/3350-2900 B.C.) defined by an Elar-Aragats material assemblage and a later occupation from the early third millennium B.C. (ca. 2900-2700 B.C.) marked by a Karnut-Shengavit assemblage.
The tomb was a square stone crypt, 1.2 m long, 1.0 m wide, and 0.95 m deep with an entryway, or dromos, 60 cm high and 50 cm wide in the southern wall.
Inside the tomb were the remains of three individuals. The bones of two individuals had been pushed into a pile against the northern wall and the skulls of both were found in the northwestern corner. A large bowl was found between the two skulls.
The skeleton of the third individual was found fully articulated on the floor of the chamber. The skeleton lay on its left side, with its head to the east, facing the doorway to the south. The artifact inventory of the burial included 4 ceramic vessels and 79 cylindrical and discoidal beads made of white paste.
The two room complex (T17-T18) on the citadel was particularly interesting as it provided a remarkably complete in situassemblage of early Kura-Araxes material culture. Amongst the large quantity of distinctive finds from the southern room of the complex were carbonized seeds, a simple hearth, a single andiron, and extensive ceramic assemblages, but also contained a single bronze spearpoint on the floor.
The north room contained evidence of a quite sizable conflagration and an artifactual repertoire that included a decorated hearth, a deep pit cut into the floor filled with discarded ceramics, 13 flint sickle blades still articulated in the distinctive half moon shape of three sickles, and a large obsidian spearhead.
The ceramic assemblages from the T17-T18 room complex included primarily red and brown wares characteristic of the early Kura-Araxes Elar-Aragats group. The extensive evidence of burning across the complex suggests that this initial Early Bronze occupation was terminated by a significant fire.
As a result of the rapid abandonment of the building, the inventory of the rooms is marked by an exceptional diversity of artifacts (in terms of both material and function) related to an array of social practices that shaped daily life for the early Kura-Araxes era inhabitants of Gegharot
3,300-Year-Old Prophecy Shrines Found
In 2015 three shrines, dating back about 3,300 years, have been discovered within a hilltop fortress at Gegharot.
Local rulers at the time likely used the shrines for divination, a practice aimed at predicting future, the archaeologists involved in the discovery say.
Each of the three shrines consists of a single room holding a clay basin filled with ash and ceramic vessels. A wide variety of artifacts were discovered including clay idols with horns, stamp seals, censers used to burn substances and a vast amount of animal bones with markings on them.
During divination practices, the rulers and diviners may have burnt some form of substances and drank wine, allowing them to experience “altered” states of mind, the archaeologists say.
Although the rulers who controlled Gegharot put great effort into trying to predict and change the future, it was to no avail — their great fortresses being torched in a cataclysm they could not avoid.
Excavation at Gegharot complex will be continued this year, maybe new interesting and important artifacts will be discovered which whould shed light on ancient layers of history.
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