This project studies how a socio-economic reliance on locally acquired resources can influence social development. Under the guidance of Dr. Ian Hodder, Adam Nazaroff will study the procurement and use of chert, a rock composed principally of microcrystalline silica, at the site of Çatalhöyük, Turkey. This site was occupied during the Middle Eastern Neolithic from 7,400 to 6,000 BC, and is particularly well-known for its magnificent artistic motifs, its large size, and unique ritual and architectural practices. A significant portion of this project will include large-scale surveys of the landscape surrounding Çatalhöyük in order to discover natural deposits of chert which may have been exploited during the Neolithic. Using a combination of visual, geochemical, and mineralogical analyses, Mr. Nazaroff will identify which outcrops were used by the people of Çatalhöyük to produce chert objects. By studying the different objects produced from each chert source, it becomes possible to identify the different facets of society which were reliant on the use of local resources. More broadly, by identifying how local chert deposits were important economic, social, and ideological resources throughout the development of this Neolithic community, Mr. Nazaroff's research will help demonstrate the range of social practices which were impacted by the local landscape.
While the Neolithic is a time of wide-spread social change, encompassing many crucial developments in human history, current theories often argue that these developments originated in a few key centers before spreading outward to the rest of the Neolithic world. As a result, many communities have been envisioned as peripheral to, or subjects of, a predominantly foreign phenomenon. However, this research will help explain how Neolithic groups also developed within networks of local practices, which aided in the production of a heterogeneous Neolithic landscape. By giving a voice to the role of local processes, this project stands to more thoroughly inform archaeologists of the myriad of processes involved in community development.
This research is well suited to provide a broader impact beyond the scope of the above topics. Evident in recent anthropological and economic literature is a growing recognition of the directive force of regional and global networks on economic practices and community identities. Researchers have looked to understand how the origins of materials used in the manufacture of commodities impact the overall economies in which they are situated. This project adds the strengths of an archaeological approach to this discourse by analyzing how long-term processes articulate with other socio-economic practices to impact community development. This is a stark contrast to modern economic policies pertaining to the mining, trade, and exchange of resources which are only interested in short-term gains and ignore the long-term and nuanced consequences of particular investitures. This project also operates at the intersection of various disciplines (archaeology, anthropology, geology, economics) to provide a thorough perspective on the role of local resources in informing social behaviors. Collaborative research with local academic and governmental institutions, incorporating Turkish academic and student researchers, will also bolster connections between local and international researchers across disciplinary boundaries, which will help to develop an enriched archaeological discourse.
