Kontekstualizirati Karaburun: Novo območje raziskav neolitika v Anatoliji

Recent surveys led by the author in Karaburun Peninsula discovered multiple prehistoric sites. This article introduces one of the Neolithic sites called Kömür Burnu in this marginal zone of coastal western Anatolia. The site offered various advantages to early farmer-herders including freshwater and basalt sources as well as proximity to agricultural lands, forested areas and marine resources. The plain slipped pottery from the site suggests a date between 6200-6000 cal. BC for the Neolithic occupation. P-XRF characterization of obsidian pieces from Kömür Burnu revealed that these were acquired from two different sources (Melos-Adamas and Göllüdağ). These constitute the first evidence for the participation of Karaburun early farmer-herders in the exchange networks that were active in Neolithic Anatolia and the Aegean. The differential technological features of these pieces concur well with the dual obsidian mobility model suggested by M. Milić for the western Anatolian Neolithic. Univerza Ege je nedavno izvedla površinske preglede na polotoku Karaburun, ki se na­haja na obalnem predelu v zahodni Anatoliji, in odkrila številna nova prazgodovinska najdišča. V članku predstavljamo eno od neolitskih najdišč, in sicer najdišče Komur Burni. Najdišče se nahaja na območju, ki je bilo ugodno za poselitev prvih poljedelcev in živinorejcev, saj ima dostop do sveže pitne vode, do naravnih surovin (bazalt) in do kmetijskih površin, gozda in morja. Materialna kultura kaže, da je bilo to območje poseljeno ok. 6200–6000 pr. n. št. Analiza P-XRF je pokazala, da so obsidian iz najdišča Komur Burnu pridobivali iz dveh geografskih območij (Melos-Adamas in Golludag). To je prvi dokaz o tem, da so bili prvi poljedelci in živinorejci na polotoku Karaburun v času neolitika že vključeni v sistem menjav med Anatolijo in otoki v Egejskem morju. Predvsem je opazno, da lahko te najdbe na podlagi njihovih različnih tehnoloških značilnosti dobro umestimo v model dvojne mobilnosti obsidiana kot ga je predlagala Marina Milić za zahodno Anatolijo v času neolitika

Contextualizing Karaburun A New Area for Neolithic Research in Anatolia

Recent surveys led by the author in Karaburun Peninsula discovered multiple prehistoric sites. This article introduces one of the Neolithic sites called Kömür Burnu in this marginal zone of coastal western Anatolia. The site offered various advantages to early farmer-herders including freshwater and basalt sources as well as proximity to agricultural lands, forested areas and marine resources. The plain slipped pottery from the site suggests a date between 6200-6000 cal. BC for the Neolithic occupation. P-XRF characterization of obsidian pieces from Kömür Burnu revealed that these were acquired from two different sources (Melos-Adamas and Göllüdağ). These constitute the first evidence for the participation of Karaburun early farmer-herders in the exchange networks that were active in Neolithic Anatolia and the Aegean. The differential technological features of these pieces concur well with the dual obsidian mobility model suggested by M. Milić for the western Anatolian Neolithic

Religion, History and Place in the Origin of Settled Life

WOS: 000512297200017[No abstract available

Two Possible Upper Paleolithic Sites on the Karaburun Peninsula, Turkey

Turkey, as a major geographical interface between Asia and Europe, is critical to understanding the lifeways and dispersal of earlyHomo sapienspopulations in Eurasia. However, the Upper Paleolithic period in Turkey continues to remain an archaeological enigma. In contrast to the Lower and Middle Paleolithic, which are relatively well represented across the country, the Upper Paleolithic is still largely missing from the archaeological record in most areas, impeding even a superficial understanding of the distribution and technologies of earlyHomo sapienspopulations. To help close the gap in the archaeological evidence for the Upper Paleolithic in Turkey in general, this contribution presents the discovery of and finds from two open-air sites on the Karaburun Peninsula, near Izmir, in coastal western Turkey, which we identify as Upper Paleolithic in age. The lithic assemblages display a flake-blade industry characterized by prismatic and discoid cores, side-scrapers, atypical end-scrapers, and blanks with parallel removals. Lacking the typical Aurignacian or Gravettian characteristics, these assemblages support the notion that Anatolia was very diverse in terms of Upper Paleolithic lithic technologies. We introduce the lithic material from these sites to open a discussion on the variability of Anatolian Upper Paleolithic industries

Roman Period Ceramics of the Archaeological Survey Project in Izmir-Karaburun

###EgeUn###An Archaeological Survey Project is conducted since 2015 in the Kamburun district of province Izmir in western Turkey. The main objective of this research is to fill the research gap in this archaeologically neglected area, to determine the regional settlement patterns from the beginning until the foundation of the Turkish Republic, and to document archaeological sites with the theoretical perspective of landscape archaeology.. The project, which is directed by the Protohistory and Near Eastern Archeology Department of the Ege University covered a large area since its initiation. During this study, surveys are led along the eastern coast of the Kamburun peninsula as well as in the areas that are considered to be under threat. In total, 105 archaeological sites (or points of interests) were identified between the years 2015-2018 which revealed a wide variety of finds, dominated by architectural features and ceramics. Although most of these sites belong to the Ottoman and Early Republican periods, archaeological finds from Byzantine, Roman, Hellenistic periods, Iron Age, Bronze Age, Chalcolithic Period, Neolithic Period, Mesolithic Period, Epipalaeolithic Period, Paleolithic Periods were also discovered. This article is based on the investigation of ceramic material from 16 sites dated to the Roman period. In these areas, intensive Roman Period ceramics and architectural structures were encountered with major sites being Balikliova-Sicabuk, Engicili, Boyabag and Ulucabuk. However, as a result of these areas being on the coastline, the abrasive effect of water and weather conditions prevented the collection of well-preserved material. Nevertheless, in addition to ceramic products of Candarli (Eastern Sigillata C) and Phokaia (LRC) a large number of roof tiles and slag fragments were identified. Therefore, we believe that the study of Roman material from Karaburun peninsula will shed light on the Roman Period of this region which remained under-represented in the archaeological literature. Our study suggests that Roman communities of Karaburun had access to both regional and imported products, furthermore the identification of workshops and ovens indicate that a locally maintained domestic production took place in Karaburun as well. We infer that the presence of Early and Late Roman remains will provide information on the settlement histories and site density of the region during the Roman Period. Since the materials studied for this article lack any stratigraphic context, typological indices, morphological features and ceramic analogies were used more in order to date these materials

Lake level changes and paleo-precipitation estimations based on colluvial stratigraphy of Holocene sediments in West Anatolia (Simav Graben)

Time-controlled quantitative climate data are crucial for reconstructing past environmental contexts of human history. In west Anatolia, the Simav Graben used to be occupied by a lake. However, today it is drained and associated with Holocene sediments that record lake level changes. An initial drill-core at the lake's centre reveals an arid phase before ca. 14 ka (i.e. prior to the Late Glacial warming) followed by a wet phase (marshes and lake) throughout the Holocene. Along the lake's margin, two additional sediment sequences contain a detailed Holocene record of changes in humidity throughout the Simav Graben's watershed. Classification of the shoreline facies from these sequences records drought events marked by colluvium prograding towards the lake. Using 13 radiocarbon dates, sedimentary facies suggest rapid lake contraction phases grossly around 8.0, 3.9, 2.9, 2.4 and 2.0 ka. After the drier periods, recorded by phases of terrestrial progradation, lake level increase is marked by retrogradational lake muds and peats onlapping the colluvium, consistent with increases in total lake volume. Based on modern lake morphology, climate and runoff data, and the elevations recorded by the shoreline facies identified within the marginal Holocene sedimentary sequence, we constructed a paleohydrologic balance model and a precipitation curve. According to the model, annual precipitation may have been fallen below 460 mm during the 8.2 ka event, and 468-478 mm during the 4.2 ka and 3.2 ka events demonstrating an extreme decrease in precipitation compared to the earlier wet phases. In turn, Holocene Archaeology in West Anatolia outlines (i) a widespread abandonment and/or notable fire events at the end of the Early Bronze Age III (ca. 4.2 ka), and (ii) a high level of social instability at the beginning of the Early Iron Age (ca. 3.2 ka). The correlation between the timing of lake level falls at Simav (water volume depletion caused by drying trends) at 8.0 ka, 3.9 ka and 2.8 ka and cultural fluctuations suggest that drought events may have played a major role in these socio-political changes in western Anatolia. Furthermore, the high lake-level stages (associated with precipitation >500 mm) coincide with the Late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age I transition as well as the Hellenistic and Roman periods, both times of economic stability and growth in the region.Commission for Scientific Research at Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Turkey [2016-15050]The authors are grateful to Dr. Fatima Makodem (CNRS) for her help in the fieldwork, and Ays egul Dikme (ESOGU) for her contribution to the laboratory studies. Clay Campbell (University of Kansas) kindly edited the manuscript. This study was financially supported by the Commission for Scientific Research at Eskis ehir Osmangazi University, Turkey (Grant number: 2016-15050)

A Lower Paleolithic assemblage from western Anatolia: The lithics from Bozyer

WOS: 000485032800006In 2005 the Central Lydia Archaeological Survey (CLAS) identified an open-air Lower Paleolithic site called Bozyer near Lake Marmara in the province of Manisa, Turkey. Intensive survey of Bozyer in 2008 resulted in collection of over 300 stone tools. Subsequent systematic analysis attributed 189 of these lithics to a Lower Paleolithic industry. The assemblage is characterized by flakes and retouched flake tools, many of which were produced with the bipolar flaking technique; preferential use of locally available quartz and quartzite over chert; a low proportion of cores, most of which were reused as choppers and chopping tools; and the absence of bifaces and other large cutting tools. With few exceptions, similar assemblages are rare in Anatolia, and comparable industries from Eurasia and the Near East date to the Early Pleistocene period. The lithic industry from Bozyer thus joins other nearby sites in evidencing some of the earliest hominin activities outside Africa, shedding new light on growing understandings of Lower Paleolithic technology, mobility, and activities in Anatolia

A possible Late Pleistocene forager site from the Karaburun Peninsula, western Turkey

WOS: 000430834300009The Karaburun Archaeological Survey' project aims to illuminate the lifeways of Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene foragers in western Anatolia. A recently discovered, lithic-rich site on the Karaburun Peninsula offers new insights into a currently undocumented period of western Anatolian prehistory.Ege University Research FundEge University [2015-EDB-005, 2016-EDB-018]; Groningen University Institute of Archaeology; Municipality of KaraburunThe project is conducted with the permission of the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, and is supported by the Ege University Research Fund (grants: 2015-EDB-005; 2016-EDB-018), Groningen University Institute of Archaeology and the Municipality of Karaburun

Human-climate interactions since the neolithic period in Central Anatolia: Novel multi-proxy data from the Kureysler area, Kutahya, Turkey

WOS: 000474671600001Sedimentological and paleoclimatological data from a fluvial infill retrieved from a series of cores taken across Kureysler Valley, Kutahya, western Turkey, are compared alongside evidence for an almost unbroken record of human occupation in the area since Neolithic times. Recent salvage excavations in the valley exposed settlement remains from the Early Bronze Age and Late Byzantine periods with inter fingering of archaeological and geological materials in the valley-fill, adding a wealth of information to the archaeological record in this region. Our geological data, constrained by seven radiocarbon dates from the sediment infill demonstrate that the earliest sediments were deposited during the Late Glacial (similar to 13.8 ka) under a cold and relatively dry climatic conditions with evidence of amelioration and increase in arboreal taxa from the Neolithic onwards. The occurrence of Cerealia-T and Apiaceae pollen is significant as an important indicator for anthropisation already present during the Epipaleolithic period (before 9 ka cal. BP). Also, the effects of 8.2 ka climatic event are clearly visible in our multi-proxy results. The onset of the Early Bronze Age settlements in the vicinity similar to ca. 5.2 ka BP occurred alongside a climatic switch to warmer conditions recorded by a lithological change and a positive shift in isotopic data. The 4.2 ka event, present in records related to several Early Bronze Age (EBA) sites of Anatolia is also recorded in the Kureysler Valley both in the pollen and 6180 records. In general, these results show that climate shifts occurred at the beginning and end of the EBA, as well as during the Neolithic and Chalcolithic and are to be compared with new archaeological data. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Commission for Scientific Research at Eskiehir Osmangazi University, Turkey [2016/15c102, 2016/15A118]This study was financially supported by the Commission for Scientific Research at Eskiehir Osmangazi University, Turkey (Grant numbers. 2016/15c102 and 2016/15A118). The authors wish to thank two referees for their comments and suggestions