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New Radiocarbon Dates for the Kura-Araxes Occupation at Aradetis Orgora, Georgia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 July 2016

Annapaola Passerini ,
Lior Regev ,
Elena Rova  and
Elisabetta Boaretto
Annapaola Passerini*
Affiliation:
Max Planck – Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, D-REAMS Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100, Israel. Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Ca’ Foscari University, Dorsoduro 3484/D, 30123 Venice, Italy.
Lior Regev
Affiliation:
Max Planck – Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, D-REAMS Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100, Israel.
Elena Rova
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Ca’ Foscari University, Dorsoduro 3484/D, 30123 Venice, Italy.
Elisabetta Boaretto*
Affiliation:
Max Planck – Weizmann Center for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology, D-REAMS Radiocarbon Dating Laboratory, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100, Israel.
*
*Corresponding authors. Email: passerini.ap@gmail.com; Elisabetta.Boaretto@weizmann.ac.il.
*Corresponding authors. Email: passerini.ap@gmail.com; Elisabetta.Boaretto@weizmann.ac.il.
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Abstract

The absolute chronology of the Kura-Araxes (KA) culture in the Southern Caucasus still represents a challenge due to the fragmentation and inadequacy of the radiocarbon record, as well as the inconsistencies in material typologies in the region. Recent archaeological fieldwork at the site of Aradetis Orgora in the Shida Kartli region of Georgia revealed four occupation levels dating to the KA II phase according to the local relative chronology. 14C samples were collected from reliable contexts and further selected according to reliability criteria, taking into account both archaeological issues and lab procedures. FTIR was applied in order to determine the preservation of charcoals and to monitor the efficiency of lab treatments on all the samples. Only accurate 14C measurements were selected for Bayesian analysis incorporating stratigraphic information. Two models were run, the second of which simulated intervals corresponding to unexcavated stratigraphy or due to a lack of samples. In this article, the available 14C dates for the KA occupation at Aradetis are presented for the first time and analyzed using Bayesian principles. The results of Bayesian modeling suggest that the occupation of the excavated KA II levels cover the period between 3040–2810 BC (simple model) or 3090–2720 BC (interval model).

Keywords

Kura-AraxesSouthern CaucasuschronologyBayesian analysis
Type
Research Article
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 58 , Issue 3 , September 2016 , pp. 649 - 677
Copyright
© 2016 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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