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Walking Walls: Herds, Enclosures, and Land Claims in the Late Bronze Age South Caucasus

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Symons_cornellgrad_0058F_15596.pdf (46.23 MB)
No Access Until
2026-12-22
Permanent Link(s)
https://doi.org/10.7298/s2rq-q715
https://hdl.handle.net/1813/126620
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Cornell Theses and Dissertations
Author
Symons, Alex
Abstract

This dissertation proposes a new model of landscape analysis, the herdscape, andexplores how the people of the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age South Caucasus lived in their herdscapes. The model is built up from an exploration of the theory of territory and tenure, as well as explorations of hillforts that emphasise their social role, beyond simple defense. In defining the herdscape, this dissertation proposes that the herd be seen as a social actor in its own right, and that herds and enclosures function together as a symbiotic architecture. Together, they produce a new object, the herd-enclosure, which structured the landscape of the Late Bronze Age and early Iron Age South Caucasus. Having outlined this new model and the ways in which it might be identified in the archaeological record, the dissertation goes on to explore how people lived in the herdscapes of Dmanisis Gora, Georgia and Gegharot, Armenia. This exploration is structured around three components of landscape analysis: experience, perception, and imagination. The experience of the herdscape is accessed through zooarchaeological analysis of faunal remains, and isotopic analysis of the teeth of caprines and cattle. This analysis reveals that the two herdscapes are similar, with populations of cattle reared for milk likely kept in the vicinity of the enclosure sites, and more widely-ranging flocks of caprines, which were likely provisioned to the sites by herders who lived elsewhere. The isotopic data is combined with GIS analysis to investigate the perception of herds of cattle and caprines. Viewshed analysis is used to understand the degree of intervisibility between pastureland and the enclosure sites, and to what degree animals would have been visible year-round. This reveals that some animals would have been kept in sight, while others likely moved out of view, potentially expanding the limits of the herdscape as they did so. Finally, the theory of pastoral art is used to examine two classes of bronze objects from the LBA/EIA South Caucasus: bronze belts and enclosure models. The belts reveal that elites of the time produced art that obfuscated the daily lives of herders, focusing instead on the heroic exploits of the hunt. At the same time, the enclosure models reveal a deep concern with herding, and provide evidence for a sacral role of animals in this period. This ritual importance is further highlighted in the analysis of an extensive collection of worked astragali found in shrines at Gegharot, and of worked phalanges found in quotidian contexts at Dmanisis Gora. Overall, the dissertation contributes extensive new datasets to the archaeology of the South Caucasus, as well as reinterpretation of existing faunal data and artifacts. It also contributes a new theoretical approach to the analysis of landscapes formed by the construction of enclosed settlements and their attendant herds of animals.

Description
393 pages
Date Issued
2026-05
Committee Chair
Russell, Nerissa
Committee Member
Smith, Adam
Velasco, Matthew
Degree Discipline
Anthropology
Degree Name
Ph. D., Anthropology
Degree Level
Doctor of Philosophy
Type
dissertation or thesis

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