Trade, Cultural and Migration Relations of Bronze Age Margiana

Mouru by Avesta, Margush by famous Behistun inscription, later known as Margiana in Greek documents was confirmed archaeologically by prof. Victor I. Sarianidi in the ancient delta of Murghab River only fife decade ago. The new center of early civilization in south-eastern part of the Kara Kum desert in modern Turkmenistan is now activelyexplored. Very close cultural connections with Near East, different parts of Iran, Northern Afghanistan was underlined by prof. Sarianidi in his first publications on Bactria-Margiana archaeological culture/complex (BMAC). The discoverer believed that the large tribal migration caused by the Eurasian xerothermic period took place in the second part of the3rd Mil. BC. In his later texts prof. V. Sarianidi shew several interaction between Margiana and Indus civilization. Many colleagues agreed with parallels of Margiana culture and both Near East and Indus ones. But only few of them believe for real migration on these large territories. Main part opponents agree with Vadim Masson point of view that BMAC isa result of historical evolution of Namazga V cultures of Turkmenistan and all analogies can be explain by trade. New paleogenetic data (analysis of more than 500 representatives) on Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Indian subcontinent Siberia (but only single samples from Near East and Caucasus) show presence of makers characteristic of ChalcolithicYamnaya culture of southern part of Eastern Europe in Gonur and Indian gen pool as well as specific old-Indian markers in Gonur population. These findings confirm not only trade or cultural interactions but also the real migrations between centers of civilization of the Old World. The same can be said on the example of both anthropological, archaeozoologicaland archaeobotanical materials. They are collecting and analyzing during many years by our international team of Russian-Turkmen Margiana expedition, which is working in the frames of the Agreement between Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology of RAS and Ministry of culture of Turkmenistan. Many biological materials as well as imagesof plants and animals show wide connections of BMAC with surrounding territories including, for example Persian Gulf and Egypt. One more very important and interesting problem is interactions between agriculture and cattle breeder worlds, meaning by these words, not only (as it’s do usually) movable pastoralists of Eurasian steppe but also the tribeswho had a similar lifestyle around the settlements of the ancient Murghab delta. Thus, the report publishes these and other new aspects of our current activities at Gonur Depe. I hope that all the data together will help us to describe and understand the BMAC phenomenon as well as its history.

کلیدواژه ها:

BMAC ، material culture ، archaeozoology ، archaeobotany ، anthropomorphic plastics ، physical anthropology ، ancient farmers ، movable pastoraists