PMU: Prehistoric Mining and Metallurgy in Uzbekistan

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The earliest metal finds in Central Asia date the beginning of metalworking to the 6th/5th millennium BC. Often the Central Asian copper deposits and in particular those of Uzbekistan are mentioned as raw material sources, but without substantiating this with geochemical data. Also systematic excavations in the mining areas were rarely carried out, and if, then usually at medieval sites that were already known from written sources. Prehistoric mining always played a minor role in the previous (russian/soviet) investigations, why only a rough description of the extent of Central Asian copper ore deposits and their significance in prehistoric times can be found in literature. Therefore, only little information about the beginning of the exploitation of copper bearing deposits is known. On the other hand, the traces of prehistoric mining in Uzbekistan are often destroyed or covered by medieval and modern mining activities, for which reason the prehistoric exploitation of deposits can only be proved on basis of the analytical approach. Geochemical data are already available for the copper deposits of the Iranian highland or the Caucasus, but there exist practically no geochemical characterisations for the copper deposits of Uzbekistan. So the primary aim of the proposed project is, based on selective surveys and sampling of the ore deposits, the establishment of a data basis in order to investigate the potential of the Uzbek copper deposits in terms of their prehistoric exploitation. Another focus of the project is the sampling and analysis of archaeological objects in the National Museum of Tashkent and other regional museums in Uzbekistan. Based on the conjunction of the chronological classification of the objects between the Chalcolithic and the Early Iron Age and the detailed geochemical characterisation of the ore deposits new knowledge about the prehistoric use of resources and their distribution overtime are expected placing the importance of the copper ore deposits of Usbekistan as suppliers of raw materials in a wider context.