All the material (artefacts and ecofacts) collected during the 2012 season have been completely processed (analysed, photographed and drawn) in the course of the present season and permanently delivered to the Khashuri Museum at the end of it. In addition, the team completed the work on the material from the 2011 season, which had been incompletely processed, and on the material excavated by Al. Ramishvili in 1984-87.
In particular Barbara Zamagni and Tamuna Meladze undertook a complete analysis of the macro- and respectively microlithic material from both campaigns, and Veronica Scandellari, with the assistance of Kathryn O'Neil Weber, analysed the whole corpus of animal bones from the excavation. There follows a preliminary synthesis of their results.
Macrolithic
We carried out a typological, petrographic, and use wear analysis of the macrolithic industry of the Natsargora site. Petrographic characterisation was carried out by the geologist of the mission (Giovanni Boschian). Use-wear analyses were carried out by hand lens at 5x and 10x magnification.
Only a limited choice of objects was drawn, because of the general homogeneity of the assemblage. From a typological point of view, the tools can be divided into: grinding stones, grinders, pestles, strikers, polishers, double-functionality tools, and other tools. The associations between identified raw materials and typological groups are the following: volcanic rocks (lava, vughy lava, scoria) are certainly the most common ones, and were used for grinding stones, grinders and polishers; HD-metamorphites were used for strikers and pestles because of their hardness and resilience, while other stones are less frequent: conglomerates, gritstones and sandstones were used for grinding stones and grinders, quartz for strikers; while flint and chert also occasionally occur.
Grindstones and grinders are usually ellipsoidal, with a plano-convex profile. The original shape of the raw material is seldom fashioned by flaking and/or hammering to obtain a peculiar shape. Such sorts of refashioning were more common on broken tools, whose functionality was recovered. The vughy structure of the lava fits very well the grinding of cereals, while the surface of grinding stones made up of other rock types was hammered in order to increase its abrasive power. The surface of some grinders is curved at its ends, originating some sort of “wings”, in order to improve the functionality and the adherence to the grinding stone.
Pestles are usually elongated and/or platy, but cube-or sphere-like shapes are also common; the ends are characterised by plain and smooth use surfaces. Conversely, the used surfaces of the strikers are finely pockmarked, indicating that they were used to knap stone (chert, obsidian, basalt), or also to hammer grinding stones or grinders.
The tools used for smoothing are usually made up of scoriaceous lava: their surfaces are smooth, sometimes with glossy patches probably due to wear on soft organic materials (leather). Double-use tools are rare: these are mainly strikers/anvils, strikers/retouchers, strikers/sharping stones. Among the diverse tools, and unfinished pear-shaped clubhead is especially noteworthy.
Summing up, the Natsargora macrolithics are well diversified, both as to typology and raw materials, testifying to all the possible activities of a settlement, connected to food processing and handcrafting activities. Moreover, not all the rock types used as raw material are directly available on site, ad their choice indicates good technical skills and knowledge of the territory.
Microlithic (chipped lithic)
The 2012 excavations at Natsargora yielded more than 500 items of chipped lithics. These include: 8 flint and obsidian arrowheads, 32 blades, cores and end-scrapers, and several flakes with retouch and traces of use.
With the exception of cogged blades (supposed sickle blades), of different shapes, which are made of flint, since obsidian is too flexible for making sickle blades, the largest majority of finds consists of obsidian flakes, most of which are just flakes, and not specific tools, but still show the presence of retouch and signs of use.
As for arrowheads, we found 3 obsidian and 5 flint projectile points. All of them are made on one flake, well retouched, and with double flaking. Three of them are tanged and five are concave-based (Fig. 7). They represent the most interesting finds because of their dating potential, since their typology allows an easy distinction between Early Bronze period and Late Bronze Period items. Such a distinction is more problematic for the remaining items, most of which come from mixed contexts (mainly Late Bronze pits which contain a large number of Early Bronze period finds).
The longest arrowhead measures 2.8 cm, and the smallest 1.6 cm. So, it is clear that they could only be used when hunting on birds or other small creatures. Tanged flint arrowheads (both triangle and leaf-shaped) are very typical for EBA sites in both Eastern and Western Georgia. They were widely spread on KA sites (Kvatskhelebi, Amiranisgora, Khizanaantgora), but also on Bedeni sites (Khovlegora). Flint arrowheads of the same shape are frequently met in Kura-Araxes cemeteries, and, as burial goods, during the whole Bronze Age.
Concave-based items first appear on EBA sites and reach their highest spreading on Middle Bronze sites (Tsagvli cemetery, Meskhet-Javakheti kurgans). Concave-based arrowheads of earlier periods are characterized by a well-expressed hafting area, and more rounded edges. Rectangular hafting areas are more characteristic for Late EBA and Middle Bronze arrowheads (Bedeni kurgans, Berikldeebi), while arrowheads with rounded/oval hafting area represent the most common type, which is in use during the whole LBA period (Tsagvli, Atskuri kurgan, Irganchai).
Cogged blades are all made of flint of mostly light or dark brownish and grayish colour. Their shape is generally rounded; only few of them show a rectangular or crescent shape. All of them have fine retouch on both sides, treated with double pressure flaking. The working edge is cogged and the polished surface common on sickles can be seen on both sides. Flint cogged blades are known since the early periods in Georgia, and are especially common on Kura-Araxes period sites. According to L. Dzidziguri (Early Farming Culture of Transcaucasia, 2000) the blades of this period are mainly rectangular in shape and, unlike items from the earlier periods, they are made with double pressure flaking. During the Bedeni period, flint cogged blades are mostly of crescent shape. Late Bronze period sickle blades are not very different from the ones we meet in earlier layers. In this period flint blades were gradually substituted by metal sickles, although both types co-exists for some time, e.g. in Beshtasheni cemetery.
The sickle blades discovered at Natsargora come from different layers. Some were found in EB, some in LB contexts, but mainly from layers and not from pit fillings. They are made with an advanced technique (double pressure flaking), which reflects a developed manufacturing economy.
Almost all remaining blades are made on obsidian flakes. Most of them are well retouched: among them we can identify: lamellae, end-scrapers, and cutters.
Animal bones
The analysis done upon the animal findings during the Natsargora 2012 campaign consisted of preliminary observations of the animal bones both on the field and in the house laboratory. The bones were washed, restored, photographed and then recognised by direct observation, paying special attention to the possible presence of cut and bite marks on the surface of the bone, with the aim of recognising anthropic activity. When possible, measurements were taken using the common guide edited by the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology (Angela Von Den Driesch, 1976); for teeth finds, special analysis concerning the dental wear stage were made, with the aim of indentifying the class age of the animal at the time of their death.
It is possible to draw a preliminary overall statistics of the species represented in all (EBA and LBA) contexts. These are, in order of decreasing frequency: bovines, pigs, ovines, deers, dogs, jackrabbits, and birds. The samples generally consisted of small and medium amounts of bone fragments, mostly from pits and installation fillings, while floors and walls gave very small amounts of rather small fragments. On the whole, finds from Late Bronze contexts were larger and better preserved, while the Early Bronze (mainly Kura Araxes) contexts yielded smaller amounts of badly preserved bone fragments.
In spite of these limits in documentation, it can be stated that Early Bronze findings were mostly composed by sheep/goat, pigs and, in order of decreasing frequency, bovines, with a high incidence of game (mostly deers and jackrabbits); just a few fragments could be recognized as bird bones. The Late Bronze contexts, conversely, were mostly composed by bovines and pigs, with a more limited presence of sheep/goats, and with a lower incidence of game (deers and jackrabbits); in the latter contexts, some fragments belonging to horses and dogs were also recovered.
In general, it is possible to recognise an high incidence of young and young adult individuals, while adults and senile individuals are less represented. An high incidence of fetal individuals is also characteristic for these contexts, mostly as concerns pigs.
Finally, a human first phalanx, a human fragment of maxilla with the included cheektooth row, and a single human molar were found in three different pit fillings from Kura Araxes and Early Bronze contexts.