The Black Sea and the Early Civilizations of Europe, the Near East and Asia

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Cambridge University Press, Aug 26, 2013 - History - 390 pages
The Black Sea lies at the junction of three major cultural areas: Europe, Central Asia, and the Near East. It plays a crucial role in enduring discussions about the impact of complex Near Eastern societies on European societies, and the repercussions of early urbanization across Eurasia. This book presents the first comprehensive overview of the Black Sea region in the prehistoric period. It penetrates artificial boundaries imposed by traditions, politics, and language to encompass both the European and Asiatic coasts and both Eastern European and Western scholarly literature. With a critical compilation and synthesis of archaeological data, this study situates the prehistoric Black Sea in a global historical context. By adopting the perspective of technology and innovation, it transcends a purely descriptive account of material culture and emphasizes society, human interaction, and engagement with the material world.
 

Contents

A Framework of Technology
18
The Neolithic Prologue
31
cluster at Ust Karenga in northern Transbaikal 1
45
The Valley of the Lower Kuban
50
LIST OF TABLES
52
quern from Chishkho 3 and a large storage vessel
71
Chishkho
77
turquoise 5 silver 6 gold
117
LIST OF TABLES
165
Wetlands of the Western Black Sea
170
silex 5 antler 6 7 pottery
188
Usatovo I13 1 4 1012 Usatovo 113 2 Usatovo I12
217
The Black Sea Littoral of Anatolia
227
Trench B 2 7 8 Ikiztepe III Trench I 10 12 Ikiztepe III
247
The Black Sea and the Outside World
257
Notes
273

The North Black Sea Grassland
130
House 2 at Mikhajlovka I
137
shell 6 8 sandstone 9 stone 10 granite
155
Bibliography
319
Index
381
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About the author (2013)

Mariya Ivanova is lecturer in Prehistoric Archaeology at the University of Heidelberg and research fellow at the German Archaeological Institute. She has participated in field projects in Turkey and in southeast and central Europe. She is author of Fortified Settlements in the Balkans, in the Aegean and Western Anatolia, c.5000-2000 BC and has published articles in Prähistorische Zeitschrift, the Oxford Journal of Archaeology and Eurasia Antiqua.

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