Anfänger
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The rise and transformation of Bronze Age pastoralists in the Caucasus
Abstract
The Caucasus and surrounding areas, with their rich metal resources, became acrucible of the Bronze Age- and the birthplace of the earliest steppe pastoralist
societies. Yet, despite this region having a large influence on the subsequent
development of Europe and Asia, questions remain regarding its hunter-gatherer pas
and its formation of expansionist mobile steppe societies?4{, Here we present new
genome-wide data for 131 individuals from 38 archaeological sites spanning 6,000
years. We find a strong genetic differentiation between populations north and south
the Caucasus mountains during the Mesolithic, with Eastern hunter-gatherer
ancestryt in the north, and a distinct Caucasus hunter-gatherer ancestry with
increasing East Anatolian farmer admixture in the south. During the subsequent
Eneolithic period, we observe the formation of the characteristic West Eurasian steppe
ancestry and heightened interaction between the mountain and steppe regions,
facilitated by technological developments of the Maykop cultural complex. By
contrast, the peak of pastoralist activities and territorial expansions during the Early
and Middle Bronze Age is characterized by long-term genetic stability. The Late
Bronze Age marks another period of gene flow from multiple distinct sources that
coincides with a decline of steppe cultures, followed by a transformation and
absorption of the steppe ancestry into highland populations.
Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08113-5