Summer Farms - Seasonal Exploitation of the Uplands from Prehistory to the Present - John R. Collis
Pastoral Exploitation of the Caspian and Don Steppes and the North Caucasus during the Bronze Age: seasonality and isotopes
Summer Farms - Seasonal Exploitation of the Uplands from Prehistory to the Present - John R. Collis
Natalia Shishlina
State Historical Museum
Yuri Larionova
Russian Academy of Sciences
Description
The system of seasonal use of grassland has been one of the key principles of exploiting different ecological zones since the origin and subsequent evolution of the Eurasian steppes pastoral lifestyle during the Bronze Age. Seasonality data can therefore be used in identifying population mobility. Different values of 13C and 15N point to different diet systems, which have been reconstructed for various population groups. Therefore, the comparison between groups or even individuals can be used to identify the presence of immigrants who might have consumed a diet different from that of the population in a given area. 87Sr/86Sr ratio in human teeth enamel is another tool for the identification of human mobility and migration. With combination of all data available we are able to produce five models of population movements across the exploited Eurasian steppe areas during the Bronze Age and also gain insights into individual lives, so that personal stories begin to emerge.