The Form and Abandonment of the City of Kuik-Mardan, Otrar Oasis, Kazakhstan in the Early Islamic Period

A joint Kazakh-British archaeological initiative undertook a survey and excavation of the city of Kuik-Mardan, one of the largest of the seventy or so known settlements in the Otrar oasis on the Syr-Darya river, Kazakhstan. Several complimentary field techniques were employed including unmanned aerial vehicle photomapping and an extensive programme of radiometric dating. The radiocarbon dates obtained are the first for any city in the oasis and allow more confident interpretations of the experience of the city to be ventured. Also undertaken was a geoarchaeological investigation of the surrounding irrigation and water supply canal system. Key results include its wholesale destruction during the 6th to 7th century and the form of the later occupation of the city

Imaging and photogrammetry models of Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: A high-resolution digital database for research and conservation of Early Stone Age sites

This paper presents the first aerial mapping of Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and photogrammetric techniques, to provide a detailed digital cartographic basis for this world-renowned paleoanthropological site. The survey covered an area of 32 km2 of Olduvai Gorge, and through the use of aerial photos and ground control points from Global Navigation Satellite Systems, an orthomosaic and Digital Surface Model, with a higher than 5 cm/pixel ground resolution, were produced. The Digital Surface Model was then denoised to calculate a Digital Elevation Model, and a high-resolution imaging model of Olduvai Gorge was generated. A preliminary morphometric characterization using Geographic Information Systems shows the potential of this approach when analysing multiple topographic variables in large areas of paleoanthropological relevance, including production of a new map template for Olduvai Gorge and new data for the investigation of sedimentary and tectonic processes. These results constitute one of the first attempts to obtain high quality imagery from large geographic areas amenable to Early Stone Age research, and introduce new workflows for the creation of Digital Elevation Models. Overall, the digital dataset produced is intended to support archaeological and geological investigation in this area, and provide new monitoring tools for the conservation of cultural heritage

Survey and Digital Documentation of Endangered Temple Wall Paintings in Shanxi Province, China

Shanxi Province is at the heart of China, and home to some of its richest architectural heritage. Covering an area of 156,000 square kilometres the Province is larger than England and Wales combined. Many earthen and timber buildings and temples contain wall paintings, witnessing Chinese folk religion, Buddhist and Daoist beliefs. Scattered over a large geographic area these remote village temples present a fairyland of Chinese traditional folklore. Many of these sites are endangered, and most are unrecorded. Funded by Arcadia, a charitable trust fund of Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin, the Shanxi Digital Documentation of Endangered Temple Wall Painting Project (SDDP) is a four-year programme (2018–2021) aimed at recording these historic temples and wall paintings using high-resolution photographic and three-dimensional photogrammetric techniques, and also including selective capture of multi-spectral imagery. These records will form an open-access digital archive of temple paintings and associated architecture, structured by a Chinese-English bilingual database. The SDDP is a partnership between Zhejiang University, Shanxi Institute of Architecture Conservation and University College London (represented by two research centres within the Institute of Archaeology: the International Centre for Chinese Heritage and Archaeology and the Centre for Applied Archaeology). The programme of survey and research is guided by the Shanxi Provincial Bureau of Cultural Heritage (SBCH) and an international advisory board

Semi-fortified palatial complexes in Central Asia: new work at the Great Kyz Kala, Merv, Turkmenistan

Within Central Asia there is an unusual group of earthen buildings (köshks), usually constructed on raised platforms, with vertical engaged columns forming iconic ‘corrugations’ on the exterior walls. The complexes are semi-fortified, with a second storey entrance, and often with asymmetrical ranges of rooms around an internal courtyard. Little systematic archaeological work has taken place on these monuments, which have mainly been studied as relatively eroded standing structures. However, recent work at the Great Kyz Kala at Merv, Turkmenistan, the largest surviving monumental köshk in Central Asia, has provided more details of construction and use. The excavations suggest that this complex was constructed in the 8th/9th century CE, with well-appointed rooms on the second storey, including a large hall, and functional rooms and storage spaces around a courtyard on the lower floor. The complex was set within an enclosure, containing gardens and possibly ancillary buildings. This particular köshk may have acted as an elite palatial suburban residence, perhaps for the governor of Merv

RESEARCH OF IRON SULFATE HEAT TREATMENT IN PRESENCE OF ALKALINE REAGENTS AND WATER

The results of the research of the composition and properties of products formed during the heat treatment of the iron sulfate in the in the presence of alkaline reagents (CaO and Na2CO3) and H2O are presented. It is shown, that the formation of α-Fe2O3 using CaO and H2O occurs at a temperature 600–650°С, Na2CO3 and H2O at a temperature 350–450°С. Products of heat treatment have pigment properties: saturated color, spreading capacity 10–12 g/m2, oil absorption 30–40 g/100 g

A comparative study of the role of heritage in Post-Soviet Central Asian nation-building

This research explores the recent use of archaeology and heritage in the Central Asian region, with its diversity of cultures, manifold landscapes, and large sparsely populated territory. The present-day countries - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan - share some similarities in culture and language, as well as tangled histories which can be traced back long before the Soviet era. However, the current Central Asian states were delineated under the USSR and its collapse presented a major challenge. New state borders brought new political, economic and social realities. The need to replace Soviet ideologies with new national ideologies, based on interpretations of national histories, was paramount, and the interpretation and presentation of archaeology played a central role in this process. Archaeology thus became a highly political subject. Through analysing political texts, mass media materials and other reflections of the state’s vision of the heritage and nation’s past, the research demonstrates the use of heritage by the newly independent states under Independence in the last 20 years. It looks at the structure of heritage management agencies, the activities of heritage research institutions, and at the main national museums in order to analyse the relationship between claims about the greatness of national heritage and the actual practice of heritage management. It also briefly discusses the role that interpretations of heritage play in the relations between neighbouring states. This research relies heavily on primary data gathered in the region; the discussions with local specialists as well as the reviews of publications from the region reveal interesting details of the contradictions in heritage management in the Central Asian states. The findings reveal constant changeability in the state approaches and suggest looking at the processes as ‘nation-branding’ instead of ‘nation-building’

A case study of an early Islamic city in Transoxiana: Excavations at the medieval citadel in Taraz, Kazakhstan

© 2015. This report presents a summary of the 2011 and 2012 excavations of the joint UK-Kazakhstani excavations in the medieval citadel of Taraz. The city of Taraz, located near the southern border with Uzbekistan, is one of the most significant historic settlements in Kazakhstan, and the investigations in the central market place have started to reveal the composition of the medieval city. Despite frequent mentions in Arabic and Chinese written sources, the form and evolution of this important Silk Road city remains poorly understood. These excavations, which identified a series of buildings including a bathhouse and a fire shrine, are the first for almost 50years and include the first C14 radiocarbon date from the city. In addition, this is one of the first detailed accounts in English of an urban excavation in Kazakhstan

Nerve agent simulant diethyl chlorophosphate detection using a cyclization reaction approach with high stokes shift system

A reaction-based fluorescent probe (CoumNMe2) containing a coumarin-4-dimethyaminoaryl scaffold for the detection of nerve agent simulants was developed. The probe showed fluorescence enhancement selectively with diethyl chlorophosphate (DCP) over close competitors diethyl cyanophosphonate (DECP), and diethyl methylphosphonate (DEMP) with very little interference from metal ions. O-P bond formation by reaction of the benzyl alcohol motif on the probe with DCP, favours intramolecular cyclization that leads to the ammonium salt. The cyclization strongly inhibits the photo-induced electron transfer (PET) process, which leads to the enhancement of fluorescence intensity (∼10 fold). Also, DFT/TDDFT calculations were exploited to explain the nature of the fluorescence “turn-on” process. Herein, we report a new fluorescent probe (CoumNMe2) based on the intramolecular cyclization reaction for the detection of nerve agent simulant and has potential for real applications. © The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique9