High-precision dating of ceremonial activity around a large ritual complex in Late Bronze Age Mongolia

Antoine Zazzo (1) , Sébastien Lepetz (1) , Jérôme Magail (2) , Jamyian-Ombo Gantulga (3)

1 AASPE - Archéozoologie, archéobotanique : sociétés, pratiques et environnements
2 Musée d’Anthropologie Préhistorique
3 Institute of History and Archaeology

The deer stone and khirgisuur (DSK) monumental complexes are iconic elements of the Late Bronze Age (c. 1200–700 BC) ceremonial mortuary landscape of the Eastern Eurasian Steppe. A precise chronological framework of these monuments is crucial for understanding their ritual and funerary roles, as well as their wider social functions. The authors establish the first high-precision chronology for a large DSK complex in central Mongolia using 100 new radiocarbon dates. Their chronology suggests that the construction of this DSK complex extended over approximately 50 years, perhaps requiring only locally available human and animal resources, without the need to draw on those of wider regional networks.

Domaines: Archéologie et Préhistoire

Antoine Zazzo, Sébastien Lepetz, Jérôme Magail, Jamyian-Ombo Gantulga. High-precision dating of ceremonial activity around a large ritual complex in Late Bronze Age Mongolia. Antiquity, 2019, 93 (367), pp.80-98. ⟨10.15184/aqy.2018.175⟩. ⟨hal-02348791⟩