MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 A mer i c a n R e s e a r c h Ins t i t u t e

o f t h e Sou t h C a u c a s u s

Welcome! book and LinkedIn, reaching a much broader audience. Keep us in the loop Talin Lindsay, Executive Director about any developments on your re- search, from grants, to publications, to It is with great pleasure that I share breakthroughs, and beyond. with you ARISC’s 2014-15 accomplish- I invite you to read our “Notes From ments and programming in this newslet- ter! Since ARISC started as a nonprofit Abroad” section starting on page 5 to learn more about the most recent schol- organization in 2006, we have steadily grown in our activities, funding opportu- arship being conducted in the region by

nities, and reach. This third year of our the next generation of scholars of the South Caucasus. We have made several four-year grant through the US Depart- ment of Education has seen our overseas awards to graduate students and junior scholars working in a variety of disci- IN THIS ISSUE: offices flourish, and our support of schol- plines. We have a steady stream of ar- ars’ research in the region continue to chaeologists reporting on recent finds, as make an impact for junior academics. Welcome Note 1 well as reports from the disciplines of art The 2014-15 year started with the history, anthropology, theology, history, ARISC Resident Directors 2 opening of the Georgia Branch in fall political science, geography, as well as 2014, and was celebrated with a joint ecology. ARISC Staff 3 lecture on Sir Oliver Wardrop, one of Because ARISC is a Member in Devel- the Western Diplomats and academics News from ARISC Members 4 oping Status with the Council of Ameri- who contributed to the recognition of the first republic of Georgia in the begin- can Overseas Research Centers Notes From Abroad 5 ning of the 20th Century and established (CAORC), scholars interested in applying one of the first Georgian Studies Centers for their Multi-Country Fellowship have Graduate Fellowships 5 at the University of Oxford. Stephen been able to work in Armenia, Azerbai- Jones, ARISC Vice President gave the jan, and Georgia, as well as other ORC Jr. Research Fellowships 12 centers around the world. In this news- inaugural talk (see p. 30). letter, you will find reports by Heather CHM Grant in Armenia 20 The highlight of our year was a sym- Badamo and Irina Levin, whose research posium on the state of higher education took them through the South Caucasus CAORC Fellowships 22 in the South Caucasus featuring speakers as well as Turkey and Lebanon, respec- from all three states as well as the US, tively, to construct a broader picture of Awards 2015-16 24

and moderators from the US and Saudi cultural exchanges over time (p. 22-23). Arabia (p. 31). The summer 2015 event In Appreciation 25 underscored ARISC’s commitment to Future newsletters will be released in nurturing scholarly ties in the region. Vid- the fall to better capture our fiscal year. ARISC Events 26 eos of the papers and discussion are avail- So this newsletter features two years of fellows’ reporting on their grant activities International Symposium 31 able on our website. to catch up on our timeline. Throughout the year, we held lec- Membership Information 32 tures, reading groups, and film studies I am forever grateful to our members groups to showcase academic research for always stepping in to help ARISC with Institutional Members 31 being done in the region and to bring planning and ideas. Thank you! Contact Us 31 together US and local scholars (p. 26-30). All our activities are made possible A new addition to the annual newslet- because of the hard work and dedication ter is a section on news items from you, of our overseas staff, Diana Lezhava, Su- our ARISC members (p.4)! We’re excited san Marukhyan, and Leyla Rustamli. Read and proud to share the great work you’re more about them on page 2 of the news- doing, not only among our members, but letter. We all owe them our gratitude for also on our social media outlets, Face- helping ARISC grow! Be sure to visit them when next you’re in the SC! 1

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

ARISC REPRESENTATIVES IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS

The people who make everything happen abroad Funding for these positions has been made possible by a grant from the US Department of Education

Caucasus Mountains. Photo by Ketevan Jikidze

SUSAN MARUKHYAN LEYLA RUSTAMLI DIANA LEZHAVA

Armenia Resident Director Azerbaijan Resident Director Georgia Resident Director ______

The world of research is endless, and Working for ARISC has been very ap- ARISC is a wonderful space where every new piece of knowledge is a new pealing and at times challenging, especially people of different nationalities, back- the last two years. There is the lack of grounds, and academic spheres can in- positive emotion that leads our life. strong and intensive bonds among Ameri- teract and find a common ground. Being Work in ARISC is especially interesting, can and Azerbaijani scholarly communities a participant of its events, reading as it supports research in various fields and in the last years there appeared an all groups, film study groups, symposiums and every day adds new grains of obvious vacuum in academic connections and conferences, I can say that high knowledge and perspectives, brings in of the two countries. ARISC Reading quality, interesting topics and profes- new challenges and gives an opportunity Groups, public lectures of ARISC fellows, sionalism is what have distinguished to meet and mix with exceptional and alongside the Symposium in Tbilisi in June, ARISC from other similar organizations. 2015 have been important activities in I feel privileged for being part of ARISC knowledgeable people. building a bridge between the American and what it does. and Azerbaijani scholars. Susan Marukhyan is a public relations Diana Lezhava holds a BA degree in and public education specialist based in Leyla Rustamli received her BA in IR and Humanities (English Language and Litera- ture) from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State Yerevan, Armenia. She graduated from Ye- International Law from Azerbaijan University University, and a MA in International Affairs revan State Language University after V. of Languages and MA in Middle Eastern Stud- ies from Baku State University. In 2008-09 from the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs. Brusov in 1994. Later she studied in the she studied at Rothberg International School In the past she has worked at Ivane Ja- Department of International Relations and of Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel). vakhishvili Tbilisi State University as an European Studies at the Central European She is an expected PhD in IR at Philosophy administrator of the Center for Interdiscipli- University (1996-1997). Since 1994 she and Sociology Institute of ANAS. Leyla has nary Programs and Research Development, as well as that of the TSU Institute of Gen- has worked for different foreign and inter- been teaching various courses on foreign poli- cies of Middle East countries, international der Studies. Currently, Diana also works at national organizations in the spheres of the Center for Social Sciences as an Admin- management and administration, public and security problems and peace and conflict studies. She is the author of a number of istrative Director. Her research interests media relations, and communication, re- articles on security problems and politics of are: higher education, education manage- search, translation, and publishing. ment and policy, post-soviet transfor- Azerbaijan and Middle Eastern countries. mations.

[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 ARISC STAFF INTERNS ACCOUNTANTS Ketevan Gikashvili (Georgia) Elen Grigoryan I have been working for Interning for ARISC Armenia Branch was one of the best ex- ARISC as an accountant since periences of my year. My first day was a lot of feeling my way November 2014 and this expe- around and figuring out the new environment. Thanks to my rience has been very pleasant direct supervisor, who did everything to for me. While working in this create a friendly and warm atmosphere, I position I have had the oppor- integrated very quickly and my internship tunity to meet very interesting became a pleasant experience. My supervi- people from Armenia and sor wanted me to get the most out of my Azerbaijan, as well as from the internship, so I was lucky to have a nice USA. I feel that I am part of friend and a caring teacher. ongoing and future research The internship taught me not to be afraid. and projects with professionals Staying confident shows the people around you that you're com- from various countries, many of which will have important re- fortable, which makes them comfortable in turn. Being an intern sults for Georgia and science in general. for ARISC Armenia Branch was an experience I will not forget for all the right reasons. Nina Panyan (Armenia) Sona Hakobyan In our age of permanent haste, the My internship with ARISC was a wonderful experience, activity of ARISC strives to examine which opened my eyes to situations and processes that I was and understand the essence of real unaware of. It taught me valuable skills that Armenian values of past centuries, a classroom cannot teach. The internship abundant in architectural and histori- helped me understand what my strengths cal monuments, and has great mean- and weaknesses are and work on them to ing for the future generation and succeed in future employment opportuni- should be highly praised. I am happy ties. Lastly, I learned about the importance that I can also be helpful to ARISC. of having a great mentor, who taught me work ethic and professionalism, guiding me on the path of my career growth.

Black Sea Coast Photo by Ketevan Jikidze

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

News from ARISC Members

Book Publication by Stephen Rapp Rethinking Theories of Origin in Ar- nia. Read more at Purdue.edu. The latest monograph by Stephen H. chaeology Rapp, Jr., ARISC President and Associate Professor at Sam Houston State Universi- Analysis of artifacts from a newly excavat- ty in Texas, The Sasanian World through ed site in Armenia shows that human Georgian Eyes: Caucasia and the Iranian technological innovation occurred inter- Commonwealth in Late Antique Georgian mittently throughout the Old World, ra- Literature, was published in October 2014! ther than spreading from a single point of Learn more at http://www.ashgate.com/ origin, as previously thought. The study, isbn/9781472425522 co-authored by University of Connecticut archaeology professor and ARISC Board US Ambassador Visits Project ArA- Member Daniel Adler and more than a GATS Site! dozen scientists from universities world- wide, was recently published in the Sep- John A. Heffern, the Ambassador of the tember 2014 issue of the journal Science. United States of America to Armenia, Also participating in the project is ARISC visited the excavations of Project ArA- Member Ellery Frahm. Read more Ian Lindsay with drone. Photo by GATS in July 2014! ARISC Members Ad- about the project in UConn Today. Project ArAGATS am Smith, Lori Khatchadourian, Ian Lindsay, and Alan Greene are on this US Ambassador John Heffern At- project. Touring excavations at Gegharot tends ARISC Talk in Yerevan Kurgans, Gegharot Fortress, and Tsa- ARISC was very excited to host a joint ghkahovit, the Ambassador tweeted his archaeology lecture, held at the Institute experience on his twitter feed: of Archaeology in Armenia, that was at- “Nice get together tonight of @cornell tended by US Ambassador John Heffern. archeology team, Armenia Arch Institute, Two of the three talks were given by World Bank, @amap, @USAIDArmenia ARISC Research Fellowship Fellows @IDeArmenia. Great team.” Kathryn Franklin and Alan Greene!

For more information, see the Aragats Daniel Adler. Photo by UConn Today. Foundation website for more information.

ARISC Member is the New Presi- dent of the Linguistic Society of America Alice Harris, ARISC Board Member, will be the President of the Linguistic Society of America as of January 2016. Founded in 1924 to advance the scientific study of language, the Linguistic Society of America (LSA) plays a critical role in supporting and disseminating linguistic scholarship both to professional linguists and to the general public. Congratulations to Dr. Harris!

Drone Imagery of Archaeology Site L-R: L. Khatchadourian, R. Badalyan, A. ARISC Board Member and Purdue Univer- Smith, Amb. Heffern. Photo by Aragats sity archaeologist, Ian Lindsay, is utilizing Do you have news you would like to share Foundation drone technology to capture details and with ARISC's membership? Please send up- data from Bronze Age field sites in Arme- dates to [email protected].

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

Notes from Abroad ARISC Grants and Fellowships 2013-14 and 2014-15

Lake Göygöl, Azerbaijan, Photo by Leyla Rustamli Graduate Fellowships 2013-14

Funding for the Graduate Fellowships is made possible by membership fees and private donations. Awards are made up to $1,500 per Fellow.

Nathaniel Erb-Satullo located a large number of hilltop settle- several different methods of systematic “Metals, Mining, and Movement: ment sites, at which I subsequently con- collection of ceramics, lithics, and metal Landscape Archaeology in Kvemo ducted systematic surface collection of production debris. The goal was to devel- Kartli, Georgia” artifacts. Initial results show that many of op a collection method that yielded the sites date to the Late Bronze Age and enough material to accurately assess the Very little research on ancient land- Early Iron Age (c. 1500-600 BC), and sev- relative intensity of occupation in different scapes has studied the intersection be- eral settlement sites yielded evidence of periods, without overwhelming my re- tween metal production and settlements metal production. The placement of cording system. in mining regions. Using ARISC funds, I hilltop sites at key nodes within the land- conducted an archaeological survey in Survey results demonstrated that many scape suggests that observation and per- Kvemo Kartli, mapping sites and systemat- hilltop sites have Late Bronze-Early Iron haps control of movement through the ically collecting ceramics. The region was Age (LBA-EIA) occupation, with some landscape was an important factor in chosen because it not only sits on the their placement, and the links with metal direct route between the Kura Lowlands production suggests that people at these and the Armenian plateau to the south, hilltop sites were involved in the produc- but it also contains deposits of copper, tion of metal. gold, and iron ores. The goal of the survey was to examine the relationship between I used Google Earth Imagery and on-the settlement sites and metal production -ground observation to generate a list of activities, in order to understand whether possible settlement sites. After visiting the placement of settlement sites was in these places, I conducted a systematic part due to a desire to control access to survey to understand in more detail the Nathaniel Erb-Satullo at Qveshi the ore deposits. Using Google Earth im- spatial and chronological extent of settle- Castle, Georgia agery and on-the-ground observation, I ment on several different sites. I tested 5

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 sites having almost exclusively LBA-EIA es of the South Caucasus—the modern develop deeper ties with the Georgian and ceramics on the surface. A number of nations of Azerbaijan and Georgia—is Azerbaijani archaeological communities, these sites are situated on hilltops over- rarely integrated into these narratives, both with senior scholars as well as with looking major trans-regional routes, while despite abundant evidence excavated by younger peers. Since there are few foreign others are situated at the entrances of Soviet and post-Soviet archaeologists and scholars currently working on this particu- narrow "dead-end" valley which nonethe- a rich history of scholarship within Russian lar period in Azerbaijan, and only a small less contain ore deposits. This suggests language literature. community in eastern Georgia, these net- that the sites of habitation were posi- This is, however, a powerful site for works will be particularly important to the tioned to maximize visibility of the sur- exploring life at the fringes of competing progress of my dissertation. The long du- rounding landscape, perhaps to monitor empires and the twinned dynamics of con- ration of this preliminary research trip access to ore deposits as well as to con- tinuity and rupture that develop as bor- gave me the ability to spend significant trol movement through the region. derland states negotiate their geopolitical periods of time in discussion with schol- Nathaniel recently completed his PhD in realities. ars, participate organically in the archaeo- logical community, and develop a much Anthropology at Harvard University. My project argues that the rise of Rome clearer direction for my dissertation on Lara Fabian and Parthia had far-reaching, but not mon- both practical and intellectual levels. “Between East and West in the olithic, consequences for daily life and Lara is working on her PhD in Archaeology South Caucasus: Regional Perspec- social structures in eastern South Cauca- at the University of Pennsylvania. tives on the Roman- P a r - sia. I also suggest that interactions with thian Borderland” the Steppe were f u n d a - Susannah G. Fishman The South Caucasus is situated “Ceramic Entanglements at the Urartian Periphery: Technologi- along a spatial fault line—a perpetual frontier of great empires and an interface cal Analysis in Naxçıvan, Azer- between the Eurasian Steppe and the Given the relatively small body baijan” highlands of Anatolia, where local resi- of foreign scholars in my field This project explores the rela- dents and political authorities have working in the South Caucasus, tionships between technology been engaged in processes of social and ARISC provides a critical and politics by examining how cultural negotiation for millennia. For source of interaction and sup- ceramic technology in local this reason, it is a particularly rich site of port, particularly to those of us centers in Naxçıvan, Azerbaijan, cultural interaction and preserves a wealth at early stages of work. at the periphery of the Urartian of information about how borders were Empire (Middle Iron Age, MIA, 800- negotiated and empires constructed in the 600 B.C.), shaped life in the frontier. mental ancient world and beyond. My doctoral in both the r e - The primary goals of this research expe- dissertation considers archaeological ma- gion’s geopolitical importance and its cul- dition were to collect ceramic samples terial from the first centuries CE in this tural development. Rather than ushering in from the Oğlanqala fortress excavations region. a marked rupture with past practice, the conducted in 2008-2011, to collect ceram- In the Roman period c. 100 BCE – 300 first century BCE to third century CE was ic samples from ongoing survey of sur- CE, the South Caucasus was located on a period of gradual change that saw shift- rounding sites, and to conduct a geological the restless border between the Roman ing alliances, new trade opportunities, and survey of the entire Naxçıvan region to and Arsacid-Parthian (Iranian) spheres. a significant increase in international inter- provenience the ceramics. I selected ce- Local dynasts built bath complexes in a action across the region. ramic samples primarily based on form Roman style, and drank from cups import- with the help of co-director/ceramicist I began compiling data for this study ed from Parthia. They wrote inscriptions Hilary Gopnik (Emory). Survey samples through a combination of museum, site, in Greek declaring their ties to Rome, but were taken entirely from a settlement and archive visits in Azerbaijan and Geor- had strong economic relations with Par- approximately 5 km north of the Urartian gia. The main goal of my visits was to de- thia, as evinced by the abundant Parthian site of Sǝdǝrǝkqala. Just 13 km west of velop deeper familiarity with the large coinage. While the borderlands of the Oğlanqala, Sǝdǝrǝkqala has more typically body of archaeological material excavated Roman Empire have attracted much atten- Urartian ceramics and architecture than by Soviet and post- Soviet archaeologists, tion in recent years among scholars in its neighbor. The nearby Sǝdǝrǝkqala set- and solidify my plans for writing a doctoral Western Europe and America, the story tlement contains abundant Early Iron Age dissertation concerning this material. of Roman presence in the northern reach- (EIA, 1200-800 B.C.) and MIA ceramics Equally importantly, I used this time to

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that provide an excellent comparative knowledge of the ceramic typology. By ever, the variation of the EIA pottery from dataset for the more locally oriented studying the newly collected survey pot- Sǝdǝrǝk settlement has compelled me to Oğlanqala material. This comparison will tery in conjunction with the excavated revise this perspective in favor of one that help to contextualize how the Şǝrur plain material from Oğlanqala, we came to un- pays closer attention to local dynamics of ceramics relate to Urartu. derstand that the EIA pottery was more ceramic production before Urartu. Are In total, 122 ceramics were sampled, varied than we initially suspected, and that there similar degrees and types of local including 85 ceramics from the Oğlanqala there was greater continuity between the continuity of ceramic production from excavations and 37 samples from survey. EIA and MIA than I had previously real- before and after the Urartian expansion in Nearly all samples were taken from diag- ized. I came to understand that some of Sǝdǝrǝk and Şǝrur? Do pre-Urartian nostic rim sherds, with a few exceptions petrographic distinctions that I had previ- practices of ceramic production affect occurring when a feature of a particular ously drawn were the product of the lim- how Urartian methods and styles are in- sherd offered unique data. When possible, ited forms and contexts I had sampled in corporated into local production and use I took three samples from each sherd to my pilot study. With increased knowledge in the MIA? analyze using petrography, Neutron Acti- of the ceramic assemblage acquired on All 122 ceramic samples and 63 geologi- vation Analysis (NAA), and Scanning Elec- this trip, I was able to correct this bias and cal samples were brought back to the U.S. tron Microscopy (SEM). All sherds will be develop a representative sample of each and have been prepared for a range of analyzed using petrography, while NAA period. Additionally, the geological survey laboratory based analyses. The ceramic and SEM will be used more selectively for gave me a better understanding of the samples are being made into thin sections appropriate sub-samples. The data from complex geology of the region, clarifying and the clay/soil samples are being fired these ceramics will be combined with and enriching the extremely complicated into briquettes for petrographic analysis. samples collected in 2011 and 2013 for a picture presented by geological maps and NAA and SEM will follow once petro- total data set of 257 sherds. articles. This first-hand knowledge of par- graphic analysis has been conducted. It is ticular formations will allow me to more Additionally, I conducted a seven day too early to offer any conclusions since effectively assess how ancient people may geological survey of Naxçıvan with Deanna the primary analyses have yet to be con- have employed their mineral resources. Grimstead (Ohio State University) and ducted. However, the significantly expand- For example, I was able to locate several Selin Nugent (Ohio State University). The ed dataset created by these samples will excellent clay beds close to ancient sites geological diversity of the Southern Cau- ultimately enable me to reconstruct that were not marked in geological maps casus makes it an excellent region to study changing ceramic production and ex- nor noted by local informants, since there ceramic provenience, since various geo- change throughout the Iron Age in Şǝrur, has not been ceramic production in the logical zones have distinct signatures. Us- Naxçıvan. The pilot study I conducted in area since the USSR. These clay beds will ing geological maps, we selected sixteen 2011 pointed to a substantial increase in be analyzed using NAA and petrography, distinct geological regions from which to variability and exchange with the expan- and used to reconstruct past exchange sample. We drove to each area and then sion of the Urartian Empire. This expand- networks. explored on foot to ensure that we cap- ed study will allow me to confirm, reject, tured the geological diversity of the target This project seeks to understand how or complicate this model, and show how region. We surveyed Jurassic, Triassic, people on the periphery of the Urartian changing political relationships can engen- Devonian, Neogene and Quaternary con- Empire responded to imperial expansion, der new technological practices. texts, all of the major drainage systems in a shift that was initially formulated as a Susannah is pursuing a PhD in Anthropolo- Naxçıvan, and developed a detailed under- largely chronological comparison between gy at the University of Pennsylvania. standing of the geological diversity in this the period before Urartu and after Urartu. My incorporation of spatial complex region. In total, I collected 63 clay, soil, and rock samples. These samples variation was limited to noting will be analyzed with petrography and/or differences between the ceramics NAA, depending on the nature of the at the more clearly Urartian site ARISC has provided a crucial sample. The data from this survey will of Sǝdǝrǝkqala to the more local- means of connecting scholars who enable me provenience the raw materials ly oriented Oğlanqala. Though my work in the Southern Caucasus, used in ceramics, and thus reconstruct petrographic data suggested that and I have discovered many im- the EIA pottery was locally pro- changing exchange networks and use of portant resources through this duced, I focused on how well raw materials. network. these ceramics stylistically fit into This trip gave me a far greater under- the regional EIA grey ware hori- standing of both the ceramic and geologi- zon without fully appreciating how cal complexity of the region. Working - Susannah G. Fishman varied that horizon could be. How- with Dr. Gopnik, I improved my 7

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 Graduate Fellowships 2014-15

Funding for the Graduate Fellowships is made possible by membership fees and private donations. Awards are made up to $1,500 per Fellow.

Elizabeth Anderson it is only very recently that scholars have Second, this project is a contribution to “Syriac Manuscripts in the Matena- begun to look at their own original com- the ongoing discussion about the relation- daran” positions and the contributions that they ship between religion and medicine and made to theology in their own right. the role of the body in religion, which has My dissertation, "The Anatomy of Holi- held such prominence in the scholarship ness: Mysticism and Medicine in Medieval In addition to providing wider of recent decades. The modern categories Iraq", is a study of several previously un- knowledge about texts that have not pre- of “medicine” and “religion” are ultimately translated texts on asceticism and prayer viously been edited or translated, this pro- a product of the Enlightenment, and it is that were written by Christian physicians ject participates in three major scholarly now widely accepted that they cannot be in Syriac, Arabic, and Armenian during the conversations that are currently im- uncritically applied to the study of pre- Abbasid Caliphate. I explore the ways in portant within religious studies. First, it modern or non-Western societies. While which the authors' medical training in- helps increase the awareness of medieval treating fresh material, therefore, this forms their understanding of the spiritual Christianity as a global phenomenon, with project engages closely with the work of life, including topics such as visions and a far greater diversity of thought and prac- scholars such as Michel Foucault, Peter hallucinations, fasting and Eucharistic the- tice than has often been acknowledged. Brown, and Carolyn Walker Bynum. ology, passions and humors, the imagery Christianity is usually still studied as of gestation and childbirth, and views of though it had been exclusively a Western Finally, this project offers a contribution the bodily resurrection. Christians living in European religion until missionaries from to the study of inter-religious engagement the Abbasid Caliphate played an important the West brought it to other regions of between Christians, Muslims, and Jews. role as translators of Greek medical texts the world. Yet this assumption is mislead- While the primary focus of my work is on into Syriac and Arabic, and a number of ing, and at a time when Christianity is Christian writings, these are examined in the most important Christian theological growing so rapidly outside of Western conversation with contemporary Jewish writers had training in medicine. While Europe and North America, it becomes and, especially, Muslim sources. It is clear their role as translators and intermediar- even more essential to understand its that many of these Christian works are ies between the classical world and Islam history in a wider variety of cultural con- very much in dialogue with Muslim writ- has been much studied, for the most part texts. ings on similar themes, and in some in-

NATHANIEL ERB-SATULLO GEORGIA

View over kurgan field

Photo by Nathaniel Erb-Satullo

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 stances they do not hesitate to copy large lished among various Muslims across the establishment of cross-Caucasian Muslim chunks of text verbatim. For example, southern Caucasus in the last years of the solidarity prior to World War I. These much of Bar Hebraeus’ work The Book of Russian Empire and the early years of barriers included linguistic, historical, and the Dove is lifted directly from al-Ghazali, Azerbaijani independence. The project sectarian d i f f e r - and this is not an anomalous example. looks at shared histories across current This kind of borrowing occurs not only political boundaries and among various when discussing questions such as science Muslim groups using archival sources from and medicine, but also when treating top- Azerbaijan. The fellowship facilitated my ics like mysticism, asceticism, and the life My primary source material for this first trip to Azerbaijan, and of prayer. Such shared texts obviously project came from the Azerbaijan Re- my interactions with archive raise many puzzling questions, not only public State History Archive (pre- researchers, local authori- about the relationship between Christiani- 1918) and the Azerbaijan Republic ties, and new friends over ty and Islam, but also about the extent to State Archive (post-1918). The core of the course of the month all which it is possible or appropriate to dis- my research followed the traditional gave me new perspectives cuss a general concept such as approach to research in post- on the country. “mysticism” independently of the particu- Soviet archives. Consulting lar religious tradition in which it is contex- both experts in the field tualized. While such questions are not and archive catalogs quickly or easily resolved, greater atten- available on site tion to shared texts such as these that (putevoditel’), I established a list of ences as well as were utilized by more than one religious collections (fond) I wished to examine. distinct regimes under the Russian Empire community can offer an important contri- Most of these collections were of docu- (military rule in the west versus civilian bution to this discussion. ments related to the foreign or interior rule in the east). The Matenadaran has a large and signifi- ministries of the governments at the time. Second, I found that World War I was cant collection of Syriac manuscripts; I read over the inventory (opis’) for each the key turning point that facilitated a rise however, because the cataloging of these collection and ordered documents rele- in expressions of solidarity between is still incomplete, these have largely been vant to my research questions. Archive Turkophone Muslims across the South ignored by scholars. Similarly, their collec- work during the week was supplemented Caucasus. There were several reasons tion of medieval Armenian manuscripts is by weekends at the Azerbaijan National why World War I was a turning point: unrivaled by anywhere else in the world, Library, where I read local newspapers but because the catalogues are only pub- from the early twenti- lished in modern Armenian, these manu- eth century. Newspa- LEXANDER ALISTRERI scripts have remained largely inaccessible pers complemented A B to scholars from outside of Armenia. my archival research AZERBAIJAN Elizabeth Anderson is a doctoral candidate by pointing to certain in religious studies at Yale University, where events that were like- Lecture, “From Baku to Kars” her research focuses on editing and translat- ly to have a docu- ing Syriac Christian manuscripts. mentary trail (for Photo by Leyla Rustamli example, an article Alexander E. Balistreri from 1915 which stat- “From Baku to Kars: Muslim Soli- ed that refugees from darity Across the Southern Cauca- Kars submitted a peti- sus, 1910– 1922” tion to the Baku city In 1878, tens of thousands of Ottoman council led me to Muslims, most of them speakers of Turkic search for this at the dialects, were annexed to the Caucasian State History Ar- territories of the Russian Empire. In the chive). following decades, diverse Muslims from First, I found that Baku to Kars shared a political and cultur- there were significant al trajectory. My research project exam- cultural and adminis- ines how bonds of solidarity were estab- trative barriers to the

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

Muslim charity work on the Caucasian Georgia (28 May-13 June 2015) for re- light on shifting imperial, republican, and front was a means of supporting both the search related to my doctoral dissertation local center‐periphery dynamics in the war and assuaging Russian Muslims’ con- in history, titled Lived Nationality: Policy and postwar Soviet Union and situates the science about fighting against the Otto- Practice in Soviet Georgia, 1945-1978. Dur- subtleties of the Georgian case within a mans; it was also supported officially by ing my ARISC fellowship term, I conduct- broader trajectory of twentieth‐century Russian imperial authorities. Muslim chari- ed research: at the Ministry of Internal Eurasian nation-building practices. ty work in the southwest Caucasus was Affairs’ Party Archive, which holds the I use the Georgian S.S.R. as a case study fueled by competition with imperial or collection of the Georgian Communist to examine how citizens came to inhabit Christian charity organizations. Finally, Party’s Central Committee; at the Nation- and mobilize national identities forged rising nationalist discourse downplayed al Parliamentary Library of Georgia, which through Soviet state institutions in the sectarian differences among the Muslims holds Georgian-language periodicals and postwar era. Building upon a question of the South Caucasus. Third, I found that secondary literature; conducted meetings posed by Bruce Grant in his study of the Azerbaijan continued to have an interest with academics and residents about specif- Nivkh, an ethnic group on Sakhalin Island, in Kars after World War I but that it was ic events in my research; and presented I argue that emphasizing the difference unable to act on this interest after the my research to a public forum through the between Soviet and Georgian identities establishment of the Soviet Union. Re- ARISC/CRRC/American Councils’ Works- eschews “the very mechanisms that ena- ports discovered during my research In-Progress series. bled the Soviet administration to recruit a show that Kars was a battleground for My dissertation asks how nation-ness patriotic” Georgian “collective” (Grant Azerbaijanis who rejected and supported “happens” at the level of lived experience, 1995). Thus, rather than speaking of iden- their country’s “sovietization.” taking up one of the central questions tity formation in the Georgian S.S.R., I Alexander is a Ph.D. candidate in Near posed by sociologist Rogers Brubaker in investigate identity negotiation – between Eastern Studies at Princeton University. his works on nationalism and identity. Soviet and Georgian, between that of Though the Soviet state was founded on Georgians and those non-ethnic Geor- principles of Marxism-Leninism, which gians who also inhabited the republic, be- sought ultimately to transcend national tween national and local, and between distinctions, the lived experience of the Soviet understandings of national identity Soviet project constructed and consolidat- and preexisting currents of Georgian na- ed rather than dissolved nationality among tional sentiment. its multiethnic population. Existing schol- The dissertation, which is divided into arship on Soviet nationality policies has two thematic sections, consists of six largely focused on the interwar era from a chapters and is based on archival research. Moscow perspective, when the state’s The first section, titled “Institutions of distinctive approach toward managing eth- Nation-Building,” examines the productive nic difference was conceived and initially (e.g. crafting national histories, census implemented. Relying on new archival ma- nationality categories, and territorial terials in Georgian and Russian, my disser- boundaries) and extractive (e.g. ethnic tation examines nationality from the view- deportations) Soviet practices of ethno- point of the post-World War Two Geor- territorial consolidation in late Stalin-era gian S.S.R., when early Soviet nation- Georgia. This reveals not only the ways in Baku building policies came to have lived trac- which Soviet institutions and practices photo by Alexander Balistreri tion among the citizenry. Drawing from constructed nationality in Georgia, but theories of nationalism and approaches also the active participation of Soviet toward lived experience in cultural an- Georgian academic elites and local leader- Claire P. Kaiser thropology, I trace a coexistence – if a ship in this project. The dissertation’s sec- fluctuating one – of Soviet and national “Lived Nationality: Policy and ond part, titled “Popularizing the Nation: forms of belonging among Georgians in Practice in Soviet Georgia, 1945- Event and Everyday Life,” examines the the postwar period. By the 1970s, Soviet 1978 lived experience of the developing post- policies to cultivate and, ultimately, trans- Stalin national social contract among

cend ethnonational distinctions produced Georgia’s populace between 1956 and I used my ARISC Graduate Fellowship a “Georgian” Georgia for the first time in 1978. This section contains chapters on a award to spend two weeks in Tbilisi, modern history. This study sheds new pro-Stalin, national demonstration in 1956,

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 the postwar nationalization of Tbilisi, out- approaches in nationalism studies, in spite ular, I gained new insights into the im- reach and repatriation campaigns among of their differences, both depict a develop- portant roles played by Shevardnadze as Georgian diasporas in Iran and Azerbaijan, mental understanding of nationalism and First Secretary in negotiating local and and a protest movement to protect the the nation-state that fails to explain how Moscow imperatives with regard to lan- status of the Georgian language. nationality as a lived category took root guage, culture, economics, and politics in A study of postwar nationality policies in among Soviet citizens (Gellner 1983, An- Georgia in the 1970s. New archival docu- the Georgian S.S.R. engages two major derson 2006, Hobsbawm 1992). Following ments by and bodies of scholarship. Most directly, this Rogers Brubaker and Frederick Cooper, As a result of my ARISC fellow- project intervenes temporally and region- viewing the nation as “a category of prac- tice” rather than a “category of analy- ship, I have further reaffirmed ally in a developing historiography of the my project’s argument about the sis” permits us to understand how the Soviet Union as a multinational state. Since importance of the postwar peri- 1991, studies of Soviet nationality policies idea of the nation “can crystallize, at od for the consolidation and have flourished through the contributions certain moments, as a powerful, com- proliferation of Georgian nation- of scholars such as Ronald Grigor Suny, pelling reality” (Brubaker & Cooper al identity. Terry Martin, Francine Hirsch, and Yuri 2000) and “come to structure percep- Slezkine, who have provided groundbreak- tion, to inform thought and experi- ing studies of central Moscow policy and ence, to organize discourse and polit- a b o u t theoretical discussions of the Marxist- ical action” (Brubaker 1996, 2004). Invok- Shevardnadze, combined with conversa- Leninist approach toward nationality (Suny ing the interventions made by Katherine tions with Georgians who were students 1994). Similarly, geographic case studies Verdery, Grant, Brubaker, and scholars of and young professionals in the 1970s, gave ranging from Ukraine to Uzbekistan con- Soviet nationality to the theoretical discus- me a much better understanding of how tinue to be a dynamic avenue for explor- sion of nationalism and its socialist variant, Georgian politics worked in the era of ing nationality policies as realized on the my dissertation reveals precisely what the “developed socialism” and the possibilities ground, though Georgia remains unex- consolidation of a Georgian national cul- and constraints for republic-level action amined by comparison beyond Suny’s in- ture and polity while under Soviet rule and innovation independent of Moscow. fluential longue durée study of Georgia tells us more broadly about models of The new archival documents I found dur- (Suny 2006). Much of this literature focus- nationalism and our received wisdom ing the ARISC fellowship related to the es on nationality policies in the early Sovi- about how these polities are organized 1978 constitution events, Georgian- et era – roughly from 1921 to 1939 – (Verdery 1999). Abkhaz relations in the 1970s, initiatives when such policies were initially conceived As a result of my ARISC fellowship, I for public opinion polling, and the cam- and first implemented. My dissertation have further reaffirmed my project’s argu- paign to combat ancient traditions have studies how early Soviet nationality poli- ment about the importance of the post- been decisive in my ability to formulate cies came to have lived traction and, war period for the consolidation and pro- my conclusions about the national consoli- therefore, how Soviet citizens inhabited liferation of Georgian national identity. dation of the Georgian SSR, the these policies over the course of subse- The archival documents and library mate- “developed socialism” national-social con- quent decades. rials I reviewed during the ARISC fellow- tract in Georgia, and the hegemony of the entitled nationality by the 1970s. In addition to Russian and Soviet histo- ship term gave me a much better sense of ry, my dissertation addresses theoretical how nationality was demonstrated and At the time of award, Claire was a Ph.D. questions of nationalism and national iden- mobilized in everyday life in Georgia (in candidate in modern Russian history at the tity. The modernist and ethno-symbolist the 1960s and 1970s especially). In partic- University of Pennsylvania.

CLAIRE P. KAISER GEORGIA

A pre-race supra (feast) for riders in Zev- zaoba, a yearly horse race in Alvani (Kakheti)

Photo by Claire P. Kaiser

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 Junior Research Fellowships 2013-14

Funding for the Junior Research Fellowships is made possible by a grant from the US Department of Education. Awards are made up to $5,500 per Fellow. All projects must include one or more undergraduate and/or graduate students in a mentoring relationship that both develops the academic skills of the mentee and strengthens ties between the US and host country.

Kathryn J. Franklin cessive ovens nested one within the other samples were washed using 0.5mm sieves “Village Life on the Armenian Silk attested to an extended period of inten- to generate macrobotanical samples, and Road: Local and Large Scale in the sive production. We are still processing passed through 0.5cm screens to provide Late Medieval Period“ the data (soil samples, ceramic assemblag- heavy fraction for microstratigraphic anal- es) which will tell us what was being pro- ysis. Though these datasets and samples

duced, but it very likely was linked to the still await analysis, it is already possible to The aim of our research this year village’s relationship with the contempo- posit a number of conclusions from the (2013) was to expand upon preliminary rary road inn or caravanatun, located research. The spaces excavated at Am- observations at the site of Ambroyi, a 500m to the southeast. broyi consisted of two adjoining large medieval settlement to the south of Arai The research project of 2014 was rooms separated by orthogonal, thick (Bazarjugh) village in the south-central structured around excavations which fieldstone walls. These spaces were occu- part of the Kasakh Valley, Aragatsotn. In would enable data gathering of various pied at the same time, though the space 2013 we built upon survey data and eth- types and scales. Excavations were laid to the south was filled in due to a collapse nographic records and confirmed the out based on information from satellite and then bisected with a later wall. In all, presence of a late medieval (AD 1200- imagery and generated from pilot excava- it seems that this part of Ambroyi Village 1500) village in that location. In 2014, tions in 2013. Our 5x5m excavations was actively occupied during the late me- with the support of ARISC, we returned units were located to the north and east dieval period by people who were using for the task of substantively researching of the previous excavations: all units were and reshaping their space to fit their the nature of medieval life at this site. separated by 1m barriers. These barriers, needs: they dug pits, tore down and re- We opened 3 excavation units (a total of called baulks, enable us to maximize strat- built ovens, and built walls and their rela- 75m2) in the southern reach of the area igraphic (soil and deposit layer) recording tionship to the architecture changed over of preserved village. These excavations while still maintaining close relationships time—though only perhaps a few hundred uncovered thick field stone walls (up to between excavated areas. We excavated years. We still have a number of research 1.5m across), paved working areas, and according to natural levels; that is, follow- questions which will be addressed living spaces carved from the clay soil of ing colors, content and contours of soils through analyses of the collected archi- the Kasakh Valley. These living spaces or features until they change, and record- tectural, ceramic, bone and botanical da- were also working spaces, as evidenced ing all artifacts and samples according to tasets: What is the temporal relationship by numerous deep storage pits, and clay those distinguished levels. Collected ma- of the architectural components uncov- ovens (called tonir in Armenian). In one terials included animal bone, ceramic ered this season? Specifically, how do the area of the medieval habitation, which sherds, metal and glass artifacts. We also continuing productive activities of the was dated to the AD 13-14th C. using the collected numerous 7-liter samples of soil northern section of the excavated area ceramic debris found on the floors, suc- from pits, floors, walls, and ovens: these relate to the filled-and-reoccupied areas

KATHRYN J. FRANKLIN ARMENIA

Ambroyi, Kasakh Valley, Aragatsotn

Photo by Kathryn J. Franklin

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 to the south? This question will be ad- Franklin’s doctoral dissertation. Working and laboratory research in Yerevan fol- dressed using architectural and strati- from references in publications from the lowing the field season. graphic data. 1980’s, we successfully located the site of Work at Aragatsi Berd revealed sub- What was the cuisine style of the inhab- Tknuni, a 14th century Ilkhanid (Mongol) stantial remains affiliated with the second itants of Ambroyi? What kinds of table- castle in the eastern Ararat plain, near the millennium BC fortress and exposed the ware and dishes did they use to cook site of Dvin. At both of these medieval first in situ remains of the site’s third mil- with, serve and eat from? Were these sites (Talin and Tknuni) we collected sur- lennium village as well. Excavations were vessels made locally, or imported from face materials, took GPS points and dis- focused on the eastern slope of the site other towns in Armenia? This question cussed the potential for further archaeo- (Operation AB4), within the second occu- will be addressed using ceramic data. logical work. We also left the washed, pation terrace. A Late Bronze (LB) Age collected and curated ceramic, glass and What were the villagers producing in room, identified from surface indications metal artifacts from this year’s excavations their ovens and storing in their pits? What during the 2008 field season, was located in the medieval department at the Insti- was the nature of the production practic- and delimited approximately two meters tute: this collection will support ongoing es in this area of the village? Were they below the contemporary ground surface. comparative research on the late medieval making tools? Vessels? Food? This ques- The room’s contents, including ground period by Astghik and other students, tion will be addressed using the ceramic and chipped stone tools, pottery frag- who are interested in developing a more and botanical datasets. ments, wool spinning implements, artifacts systematic typology of material culture, crafted from animal bone, sewing notions, This research was undertaken in collab- especially plain ceramics, for this period. and jewelry beads, will be analyzed over oration with several members of the RA Kathryn recently received her PhD in the the next year to understand how the sec- NAS Institute of Archaeology and Ethnog- Department of Anthropology at the University ond millennium occupation in this portion raphy. Our primary collaborator is Dr. of Chicago. of the site compares to those more sub- Frina Babayan, a preeminent scholar of the stantially documented on the northern late medieval period in Armenia. This Alan F. Greene slope. Eighteen square meters of the summer we were also pleased to have “Late Bronze Age Political Econo- room were opened during the excavation Astghik Babajanyan as a colleague and a mies in the South Caucasus: The season, but as much as 70–100 additional mentee: Astghik is currently completing View From Aragatsi Berd and Arme- square meters may remain for future re- her dissertation at the Institute with a nia’s Plain of Flowers” search efforts. Excavations also revealed focus on the material culture of the late two areas of third millennium occupation medieval and early modern Caucasus. This project conducted new ar- on the terrace, both intruded upon by the During her time in the field Astghik partic- chaeological excavations at the construction activities of second millen- ipated in all aspects of the project, actively Bronze Age site of Aragatsi Berd, pro- nium BC residents. taking part in excavations, landscape sur- vided a training opportunity for an Ar- vey, pottery processing, soil flotation for Of particular note is a typical early menian student in excavation and mate- botanical sampling, and analysis of washed third millennium abandonment rials analysis techniques, and laid the pottery for typological and chronological floor, fea- groundwork for continuing doctoral-level analysis. Our working relationship was research in the investigation of political- truly an exchange: we spent time discuss- economic institutions in the late sec- ing the difference between American and I have maintained a productive and ond millennium BC South Caucasus. Armenian traditions of excavation and academically stimulating relationship Research efforts included two research, as well as the appropriateness of with ARISC over the last several phases of activity in concert with various strategies for the work at hand. years of graduate studies at the Uni- the annual field research of Pro- We also took three field trips together as versity of Chicago and then postdoc- ject ArAGATS (the Armenian- a project. We visited the joint American- toral efforts at Stanford University. American collaboration for the Armenian excavations at Gegharot (a Across my steering and programming Archaeology and Geography of Bronze Age site in the Tsaghkahovit plain committee duties, I have found Ancient Transcaucasian Socie- with settlement and burial contexts). As ARISC’s work to be essential to the ties): (1) excavation fieldwork at part of a preliminary discussion of ongoing continued development of American the Early (ca. 3500-2600 BC) and collaborative work, we visited the site of research in the South Caucasus. Late (ca. 1500-1150 BC) Bronze Age the Talin caravanatun (road inn) which is site of Aragatsi Berd in Armenia’s Tsa- contemporary with the inn at Arai/ ghkahovit Plain and (2) materials analysis Ambroyi (and which was the focus of K.

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 turing multiple broken pottery vessels and both field and laboratory work. Field fined architecture from LB rooms or ex- delineated by stone wall architecture. This notebook journals were also employed tramural spaces, leaving the site’s LB oc- Early Bronze (EB) Age room provides for note-taking and drawing, during both cupation significantly less well understood intriguing contexts for future exploration phases of work. than that of its more extensively excavat- of the site’s initial occupation. This project’s research at Aragatsi Berd ed neighboring sites. The room walls ex- Phase One of the project (June 21st– achieved four primary substantive results: posed during the AB4 excavations pro- July 27th), excavation efforts at Aragatsi (1) the identification and exposure of the duced well preserved and substantial LB Berd, were conducted by one locally hired first substantial and coherent late second room architecture formed from several five-worker excavation crew under the millennium architectural assemblage at the articulating wall sections. This represents supervision of the American project direc- site, (2) the discovery of a significant an important achievement for the LB for- tor and the Armenian student project “kurgan” cemetery, located directly south tress and settlement archaeology of the member, Levon Aghikyan (Institute of of the site in the Tsaghkahovit Plain, (3) region. Archaeology and Ethnography, NAS, RA). the collection of a large assemblage of LB During the first week of excavation Mr. Aghikyan acted as a project assistant, materials from the site’s eastern second work, a cluster of what are likely Bronze training in the monitoring and supervision millennium occupation, and (4) the expo- Age “kurgan” burials was observed and of excavation, registering of finds, drawing sure of an in situ early third millennium recorded just south of the site, immedi- of excavation layers, and general archaeo- occupation at Aragatsi Berd that both ately outside the nearest survey transect logical fieldwork documentation. Work in confirmed the EB village indicated by col- associated with the Project ArAGATS excavation Operation AB4, initially luvial materials collected in 2008 and es- settlement survey of 1998 and 2000. This opened during the 2008 field season, ex- tablished the preservation level and future discovery, like the Gegharot kurgan ceme- posed a total of 34 square meters of early research potential of the site’s third mil- tery discovery of 2004, may represent a third and late second millennium BC ma- lennium deposit. significant component of the site: the in- terial remains, terminating at the hill’s Prior research into the political- ternment of important members of the andesite bedrock approximately two me- economic life of Aragatsi Berd’s second fortress population and burial evidence ters below the modern surface. millennium inhabitants, conducted in 2006 that can function as an essential, comple- Recovered archaeological materials and 2008, documented an extensive LB mentary component to the fortress exca- were washed at the dig house, 20 kilome- occupation at the site and collected over vations. Future work at Aragatsi Berd ters south of the site, and ceramic materi- 3000 botanical, faunal, and pottery sam- would benefit greatly from side-by-side als were preliminarily assessed for chron- ples for laboratory analysis. The excava- fortress and mortuary investigations. ological affiliation and vessel portion. Fau- tions associated with this work, however, Radiocarbon dates from the initial nal materials were analyzed by Project did not expose significant and clearly de- (2008) excavation work in AB4 indicated ArAGATS’ Belinda Monahan and Hannah Chazin (University of Chicago), while bo- tanical remains recovered from soil sam- ples were examined by Roman Hovsepyan (Institute of Archaeology and Ethnogra- phy, NAS, RA). Phase Two, conducted between July 29th and August 7th, involved the cura- tion, and analysis of the recovered archae- ological materials at the ArAGATS depot at the Yerevan Municipal Museum. Materi- als were organized, labeled, and described in detail through canonical forms of visual materials analysis. The finds were incorpo- rated into the existing ArAGATS storage system, which holds the Aragatsi Berd materials collected during prior excava- tions at the site (2006, 2008). The Project A Late Bronze Age room carved into the hillside bedrock of ArAGATS excavation database served as Aragatsi Berd in excavation Operation AB4. Photo by Alan F. Greene the primary recording mechanism for

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 that the second millennium occupation where detailed and statistically viable data radius of the center of the city of Tbilisi. there, and perhaps that of the eastern will shed light on early third millennium The first two weeks of survey involved a hillslope more generally, was dated slightly life in this region. "windshield survey," in which several po- later than that of the more extensively Alan is a postdoctoral scholar at the Stan- tential survey zones were considered, and excavated northern and western slopes ford University Department of Anthropology previously known sites recorded by GPS. (Operations AB1–3). Unfortunately, the and the Stanford Archaeology Center. Survey zones were evaluated based on incomplete and modest AB4 excavations topography (whether they were flat Kathryn O'Neil Weber did not produce enough material to effec- enough for the kind of survey described in tively compare artifacts and chronologies “Transitions in Human-Animal the project design), vegetation (to maxim- across these two regions of the site. With Interactions and Social Inequality in ize visibility), and the presence of existing a substantial sample of materials now col- the Bronze Age South Caucasus” archaeological sites. The Tbilisi Sea area lected from AB4 (botanical, ceramic, fau- was chosen because it had relatively low nal, lithic, etc.), extensive spatial and tem- This research project involved intensive slopes, had the least heavy vegetation, and poral comparison is now possible at Ara- pedestrian survey focused on an area to was already known to have several kur- gatsi Berd. the northeast of Tbilisi Sea, seeking ar- gans (burial mounds). Six weeks of the Finally, the exposure in AB4 of two spa- chaeological remains. The research result- project involved intensive pedestrian sur- tially distinct early third millennium BC ed in new data, useful both to the doctor- vey. The survey team walked transects at settlement deposits, both disturbed by the al dissertation of the grant recipient and 20 meter intervals. Areas with urban de- construction of the late second millenni- to the conservation of archaeological sites velopment or heavy vegetation where um room, corroborates previous surface in the face of rapid urban development. ground visibility was low were left unsur- and colluvial indications of an EB occupa- The survey team, composed of Georgian veyed. Though mobile campsites and ani- tion at the site. While one of these spaces archaeologists and students, discovered mal enclosures leave minimal material was represented by more ephemeral oc- several new archaeological sites, primarily traces, the goal of the survey was not cupation floors or “lenses,” the second dating to the Classical/Antique and Medie- 100% coverage, but to use transects as a context, located directly uphill of a late val periods, as well as obsidian flakes likely systematic sampling technique. We col- second millennium room wall, consisted dating to earlier periods. In addition to lected all lithics and non-modern ceramic of an in situ late third millennium room these particular archaeological finds, this sherds found. The geospatial location of all surface with associated stone architec- survey contributes to the ongoing en- finds were recorded with GPS devices, ture, broken and articulated ceramic ves- hancement of survey methodology in the then categorized and described in a data- sels, and faunal remains. These discoveries region, tailored to respond to local condi- base. provide critical information for the under- tions of topography and vegetation. In the first place, this research has standing the earliest occupation at Ara- The survey area of this project was lo- demonstrated that the landscape around gatsi Berd, turning it from a simple point cated to the northeast of Tbilisi Sea. The the city of Tbilisi is highly variable in terms on the EB regional map, to a location potential survey area was within a 25 km of the exposure of sites dating earlier than

KATHRYN O'NEIL WEBER GEORGIA

Surveying North of Tbilisi Sea, June 5, 2014

Photo by Kathryn O'Neil Weber

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 the Classical or "Antique" period. While it sult of deep soil deposits and modern such variation can be identified, I will at- is difficult to identify such sites, the recov- dumping. In the future, I intend to deploy tempt to do so as a part of my disserta- ery of obsidian debitage and cores in the a more flexible survey strategy, that be- tion project. course of the survey suggests that certain gins by ruling out such unproductive areas The project allowed me to build a net- topographical and geological conditions and more intensively targets areas in work of young Georgian scholars with make site discovery more likely. The ana- which existing sites have been found. whom I anticipate working closely in the lytical phase of the research, which will be This experience has also demonstrated future. We have already discussed several done in the autumn of 2014, aims to quali- the necessity of including test excavations subsequent research projects, including fy these conditions. as part of future project design. While we further survey and excavation. As a result As for archaeological results, the survey were able to identify several important of these ties, I have been invited to visit demonstrated that there are several sites locations for further investigation, we several ongoing archaeological expedi- dating to the Classical/Antique and Medie- would have been able to more clearly tions. In addition, the survey gave the op- val periods within the survey area. Most of describe the nature of such sites with test portunity for several students who had the 306 ceramic sherds collected appear pits. Likewise, we could better determine not previously engaged in this kind of sys- to belong to these periods. In addition, 54 whether mounds were or were not buri- tematic survey to be trained in the prac- lithics were discovered in 40 locations, als with the removal of some of the soil tices which it requires. Such training will indicating sites of greater antiquity. The covering these mounds. facilitate future archaeological engagement next phase of research aims to identify A major question prompted by the re- in the area. Most importantly, this survey whether any of these lithics are located in sults of the current research project is complements a commitment on the part proximity to Bronze Age mortuary sites. why the survey area (to the northeast of of a contingent of Georgian graduate stu- In addition to 14 previously known kur- Tbilisi Sea) is so relatively unpopulated, dents to surveying, recording, and map- gans (for which the project recorded geo- despite evidence of occupation through- ping the cultural history of the country in graphic coordinates), the survey identified out the last millennium. In addition, the a comprehensive way. At the time of this 45 possible burials (kurgans, cromlechs project has increased my interest in iden- report we are in the beginning stages of and other graves). tifying alternative styles of kurgan con- planning a conference dealing with survey In terms of survey methodology, the struction. It remains difficult to identify and geospatial analysis. [N.B. The confer- research performed with fellowship funds kurgans in this landscape, especially given ence mentioned, ICAANE was held in demonstrated the inadequacy of strictly the piles of stones produced by agricultur- April 2016 in Vienna.] systematic archaeological pedestrian sur- al field clearing and the remains of modern Kathryn is a doctoral candidate from Cor- vey. It became clear that one can quickly dumping. It would be beneficial to know nell University. identify areas that will be unproductive of whether there are regional variations in archaeological material, primarily as a re- size (diameter and height) of kurgans. If

GEORGIA

Spring Photo by Ketevan Jikidze

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 Junior Research Fellowships 2014-15

Funding for the Junior Research Fellowships is made possible by a grant from the US Department of Education. Awards are made up to $5,500 per Fellow. All projects must include one or more undergraduate and/or graduate students in a mentoring relationship that both develops the academic skills of the mentee and strengthens ties between the US and host country.

Maureen E. Marshall menia revealed variation in individuals’ valley. While tombs are divided topo- “Lived Experience in the Late lived experience, particularly in terms of graphically by the two facing slopes and Bronze Age South Caucasus” diet, movement, activity, and participation basalt outcrops, architectural “sub- in violent activities. In addition, differ- clusters” are also noticeable in terms of

ences were noted in mortuary practices placement and alignment of tombs. Anal- The Late Bronze Age in the South Cau- (location, tomb architecture, associated ysis of materials from ten previously exca- casus is marked by a dramatic change in materials, etc.) within the cemetery. Yet vated tombs revealed differences between the socio-political sphere as populations these observations led to further ques- the two slopes in terms of chronology shifted from practicing a highly mobile tions about how differences in mortuary (LBI and LBII) and sub-surface construc- form of agro-pastoralism to a more set- practices might relate to the individuals’ tion (pit and stone cist), associated mate- tled way of life. Populations in the Late experiences in life. As a first step towards rials (undecorated bowls vs. decorated Bronze Age have been interpreted as investigating this relationship, the 2015 jars), as well as demonstrated variation in settled or partially settled based on the research (funded by an ARISC Junior Re- post-mortem treatment of the deceased relatively sudden appearance of hilltop search Fellowship and Project ArAGATS) (full articulation, partial articulation, disar- citadels and vast burial fields consisting of sought to clarify the archaeological con- ticulation and excarnation, and burials clusters of “cromlech” tombs. The for- text in an area of the cemetery that ap- without bodies). Bioarchaeological analy- tresses have been interpreted as evidence peared to have a complex construction sis showed that two individuals interred of burgeoning political institutions and history with densely packed overlapping in Subgroup 3 on the south slope showed centralized authority. Yet we know little tombs combined with terrace walls that evidence of healed depressed fractures to about the lived experiences of individuals separated the tombs into groups. Excava- the frontal bones of the crania while an- within the socio-political context of an tions were designed to investigate the other showed evidence of a habitual activ- early complex polity. A combination of construction history of the cemetery and ity, perhaps tool or weapon making. In looking at how people were treated in the temporal and spatial relationships contrast, none of the individuals interred death through mortuary analysis with between tombs. in Subgroup 1 or 2 on the North Slope their practices in life through bioarchaeo- Tsaghkahovit Burial Cluster 12, or showed evidence of trauma or activity logical analysis can illuminate the lived TsBC12, is situated 350m southeast of related pathologies, although this may experience of subjects in early complex the Tsaghkahovit fortress and covers an have been the result of these individuals polities in the Late Bronze Age (1500- area of approximately 5.5 hectares. having young ages-at-death. 1150 B.C.) South Caucasus. TsBC12 is comprised of approximately In order to illuminate both the mortu- Previous mortuary and bioarchaeologi- 140 small (3-8m in diameter) circular ary context at TsBC12 and bioarchaeo- cal research at the Late Bronze Age cem- stone tumuli, “cromlechs”, that are logical information we conducted excava- etery Tsaghkahovit Burial Cluster 12 spread over two facing slopes of a narrow tions in a topographic area of the ceme- (TsBC12) in the Tsaghkahovit Plain, Ar-

MAUREEN MARSHALL ARMENIA

Excavation team removing capstones

Photo by Maureen E. Marshall

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 tery termed Subgroup 1. The project was Meanwhile, “Burial 04” directly next to, two more tombs with still different archi- designed according to the following re- or north-east of Burial 01, was a standard tecture. “Burial 03” was an oval shaped search questions: (1) What is the tem- cromlech (diameter = 3.17m) filled with standard cromlech with single ring of poral and spatial relationship between cobbles on its southern half. The subsur- stones measuring approximately 3.2m x tombs and terrace walls in Subgroup 1; (2) face architecture consisted of a “cist” 2.1m with three large capstones on the Are the differences in mortuary architec- chamber (1.38m x 0.71m x 0.86m) with north-eastern side. Materials, including ture and associated materials between stone lined walls on three sides; the north human remains and an obsidian projectile Subgroup 1 and Subgroup 2 due to chang- -eastern and south-western walls were point, were found throughout the fill of es in practices over time or the result of constructed from three courses of shaped the earthen pit (2.13m x 1.83m x 0.87cm). different mortuary practices; (3) Did any This situation suggests that the tomb may of the excavated individuals from Sub- Based on my own have been looted in the past. Partially ar- group 1 participate in similar activities to experience, I believe ticulated and disarticulated remains were those previously excavated in Subgroup 3? that ARISC’s Junior found in two main concentrations in the The excavation team consisted of M. Mar- Research grants are western and eastern part of the pit. A shall, Armenian graduate student Levon crania was found on its right side next to critical to young Aghikyan, and eight team members from a large smashed jar. Given the fractured scholars transitioning the town of Tsaghkahovit. state of the remains, additional analysis from dissertation work and reconstruction are necessary to de- To investigate the temporal-spatial and to formulating the basis termine the skeletal sex and age of the architectural questions, we opened a large for new long-term 2 deceased individual. trench, approximately 182m , that en- research projects in the compassed a terrace wall, four complete region and thus To the north-east of Burial 03, “Burial circular cromlechs and 1 rectangular cist developing international 02” consisted of a rectangular surface north-east of (or upslope from) the ter- scholarship of the South construction. There was no surface crom- race wall, one complete cromlech south- lech architecture visible, instead a rectan- Caucasus. - Maureen E. west of (or downslope from) the terrace gle (2.47m x 2.8m) was constructed by a Marshall wall. The portion of the terrace wall cap- southern wall consisting of two large tured by the trench consisted of seven shaped blocks that were aligned length- large shaped blocks that run linearly NE - medium and large blocks, while the north- wise east-west (also separating Burial 02 SW across the 10m of the width of the western wall was constructed from four from Burial 03), a northern wall consisting trench. The largest measured 1.8m x courses of shaped and lightly worked of 5-6 medium blocks, and eastern and 1.15m x 0.8m. Many have a modified face small and medium blocks. The south- western walls with long flat (lentil like) on their downslope (southern) side. eastern side was closed with a large cap- worked blocks. The interior of the rectan- stone, set at an angle and topped with the Four of the complete tombs located gle was filled with cobbles. Below this first cobbles. The chamber included a single upslope from the wall were selected for course of blocks, the subsurface architec- primary inhumation of an individual placed excavation based on their close spatial ture was a rectangular earthen pit with in a flexed position on its right side with relationship to each other and feasibility of curved corners (1.03m x 1.5m x 1.19m). the head in the north-west of the cham- excavation in relation to time constraints. The pit contained one fully articulated ber and facing west. The deceased’s body These excavations revealed a variety of primary interment with the deceased was placed on top of one large bowl with surface and sub-surface architectural placed in a tightly flexed position on its a second small vessel placed between the styles, associated materials, and possibly left side with the head in the south corner legs and chest, a jar placed west of the post-mortem treatment. “Burial 01” con- of the chamber. Three vessels were deceased along the south-western wall, sisted of a “standard” cromlech (diameter placed behind the deceased’s back, along and a final large jar was found on its side = 3.8m) type and a deep oval earthen pit the northern wall of the pit. A single white east of the deceased’s remains along the (1.26m x 1.02m x 1.66m). The pit con- paste bead was found underneath the cra- north-eastern wall. Three obsidian projec- tained a single primary inhumation of an nia. Based on preliminary bioarchaeologi- tile points and a single bronze button individual placed in a flexed position on its cal analysis, the skeletal sex of the de- were interred with the deceased. Based right side with the head in the south-east ceased was female and the age-at-death on preliminary bioarchaeological analysis, part of the chamber and facing east. Pre- was 35-55 years old. the deceased was a male individual aged liminary bioarchaeological analysis sug- Maureen is a bio-archaeologist whose work 40-50 years old at the time of his death. gests that this individual has an ambiguous focuses on early complex polities and empires skeletal sex and was approximately 40-50 Just south-east or down slope from in the South Caucasus and Eurasia. years old at death. Burials 01 and 04, excavations revealed 18

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

Jeanene Mitchell attended as an observer or conducted on trying to informally move the bilateral “At the Confluence of Transna- my own, I came to a nuanced understand- dialogue forward while promoting bilateral tional and Local Actors: Trans- ing of the complex negotiations over wa- projects to facilitate cooperation in the boundary River Management in ter management which occur between meantime. Azerbaijan” development organizations, state actors, In the areas where local communities local community members, and represent- have engaged in water and flood manage- atives of civil society (academia, communi- ment initiatives, it is because there are My research links multi-level governance ty members and formal NGOs). local “champions” which had the political initiatives to their effects on local partici- My major conclusion is that develop- and social capital to take matters into pation in transboundary resource manage- ment projects, in their efforts to connect their own hands, and to galvanize informal ment. Using the Kura river basin of Azer- local communities to national and transna- local action. Beyond water user associa- baijan and Georgia as a case study, I ex- tional policy processes, do create an epis- tions which deal exclusively with pricing plain the processes of negotiation which temic community with the capacity to issues, in practice, there are very few for- occur among the mélange of societal or- pursue policy and technical measures to mal local organizations dealing with water ganizations, state institutions, and devel- improve water management. and flood management issues. The UNDP opment organizations involved in trans- flood project I observed was trying to boundary river basin governance. I partic- However, in this process, development catalyze independent action and personal ularly focus on flood management pro- projects can simultaneously end up rein- responsibility for adaptation to flooding in grams in the Kura basin, and how devel- forcing the institutional structures which the face of climate change, but this is a opment organizations can both facilitate impede local involvement in the first place. major cultural change for villagers that and impede connections between local This is because development projects expect the state to meet their needs for communities and regional, national, and must collaborate with government minis- safety and water resource provision. transnational actors. tries in order to conduct their projects. Particularly in Azerbaijan, different objec- Jeanene is a PhD candidate in the Interdis- My research methods were primarily tives among ministries related to water ciplinary Program in Near & Middle Eastern qualitative, relying upon interviews, partic- management create obstacles not only to Studies at the Univ. of Washington, Seattle. ipant observation, process tracing, and transboundary water management in gen- content analysis. My research design was a eral, but to flood management specifically. combination of comparative political sci- For example, the Ministry of Energy wants ence and ethnographic observation. to keep high water levels behind dams, While in Azerbaijan, I was given the but the Ministry of Emergency Situations opportunity to conduct an ethnography of wants to keep water levels lower to re- the third phase of a UNDP-GEF aid pro- duce the need to spill water in case of a ject designed to implement integrated flood. Neither ministry officially trumps water resource management in the Kura the other. basin between Azerbaijan and Georgia. Any development project collaborating Over the summer, I was included in every with one of these ministries must be re- single meeting, interview, and email corre- spectful of that particular ministry’s inter- spondence conducted by the project lead- ests while trying to encourage dialogue ers. I was also invited to travel to Georgia with other ministries. Facilitating such for nine days with the project leadership dialogue, however, is a very delicate diplo- to observe how the development commu- matic dance, with only incremental gains nity negotiates with all parties in a trans- at the national level. boundary river project. I also traveled several times to the regions, once to ob- At the transnational level between serve a community engagement meeting Azerbaijan and Georgia, negotiations are of a UNDP flood management project in further complicated by delays in signing A tributary in the Kura basin prone to flooding, in the Gabala- the Ismayilli region, the other time to en- bilateral water agreements. These agree- ments affect flood management because Ismayilli region. gage in independent observation of flood- upstream countries’ retention and release prone tributaries to the Kura near Gabala and talk with local residents. Through of water for hydropower can cause unex- over 60 meetings and interviews I either pected droughts and surges downstream. Photo by Jeanene Mitchell The UNDP-GEF project I observed was 19

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 Collaborative Heritage Management Grant in Armenia This ARISC program, generously funded by Project Discovery! and private donations, seeks to foster joint work between Ameri- can and Armenian scholars and institutions dedicated to the proper curation and preservation of heritage materials.

Diana K. Ter-Ghazaryan locations, which included additional infor- map of OtherYerevan.am locations, with mation about each location, such as archi- the addition of walking tours, which were Sarhat Petrosyan tect, year constructed, as well as archive walked and timed by the research assis- photos (if applicable) of the locations. Be- tant ahead of the website launch. We ex- “OtherYerevan.am: A Virtual Mu- tween February 2015 and July 2015 we pect that this printed map will be of inter- worked with web designers and develop- est to tourists visiting Yerevan. seum of Yerevan’s Alternative Cul- ers at Helix to create OtherYerevan.am. One key challenge in heritage manage- tural Heritage” The website helps discover and docu- ment of urban and architectural sites in ment important sites of alternative cultur- Yerevan is the fact that many of them, With this project we proposed to while fully worthy of protection, are not gather, store, curate and display current “Our experience with ARISC has listed on official lists of cultural heritage and historical images, maps and other been extremely positive, and we and are therefore vulnerable. This pro- relevant information about important ject makes an important contribution to hope to be able to continue this cultural-architectural heritage sites pre- the preservation of Yerevan’s historical sent (as well as recently destroyed) in working relationship. We will con- cultural heritage by revealing and re- the landscape of Yerevan in a web- tinue interfacing with ARISC, and cording sites that might not be under based virtual museum, OtherYere- hope to be able to participate in the protection of the authorities, and by van.am. The primary goal of the project future grant competitions an- harnessing the power of social media was to create a list of heritage sites nounced by this organization.” and crowd-sourcing for the collection which have heretofore been excluded and showcasing of valuable local from official lists of protected sites and knowledge, which might have no other monuments, as well as to include both outlet. As a pilot study, we think this pro- authoritative and crowd-sourced content al heritage in the capital of Armenia. A ject has demonstrated the effectiveness of about those locations. great feature of the OtherYerevan.am utilizing social media, crowd-sourcing and Between May 2014 and January 2015 we website is the “Suggest a Location” capa- the geoweb for the storage, collection and sent out a questionnaire to over 70 local bility, and we hope that residents of Yere- curation of information about important architects, artists, art historians, cultural van continue to use this crowd-sourcing heritage sites. We plan to continue utiliz- preservation specialists and other similar capability to submit geographic coordi- ing the website for these purposes, and professionals to create an initial list of nates and photos of important locations. hope to replicate the concept in other locations for the website. During that pe- Since the completion of our ARISC grant cities and town in Armenia. riod co-PI Sarhat Petrosyan and head re- we have secured funding from the Swiss Sarhat is Director of urbanlab Yerevan and search assistant, Nvard Yerkanian, super- Cooperation Office South Caucasus for teaches at the National University of Architec- vised volunteers at urbanlab Yerevan, who the development of the OtherYerevan ture and Construction of Armenia. took photos of locations and recorded mobile app, which is now available for Diana is a Lecturer and Director of the their geographic coordinates. Upon com- download on the Android marketplace. Geospatial Technology Program at the Univer- piling the list, Nvard created a database of Within the project we also printed a sity of Miami.

OTHER YEREVAN

Download the latest version of Other Yerevan at http:// www.otheryerevan.am/files/pdf_map/OY_map.pdf?r=509

A presentation of the project at Innovate Armenia can be viewed at armenian.usc.edu.

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Kathryn Franklin phy. Also, our work would have been im- period were not arranged in a single line. possible without the immense support of Instead, these sites are arranged in a net- Astghik Babajanyan Dr. Husik Melkonyan who acted as pro- work through the valleys and along the ject consultant and supervisor. mountain slopes. We will continue to de- “Vayots Dzor Medieval Silk Road In the course of the project survey we velop new theories about the Silk Road recorded sites located along the expected culture of Vayots Dzor and the Silk Road Heritage Corridor Archaeological course of the Silk Route (i.e. within the Corridor as a phenomenon as we work Survey ” Arpa valley) as well as a number of sites with this coordinate data and combine it and settlements at some distance from the with ceramic data, inscriptions, and histor- The 2015 season of research by the valley, on mountain slopes and along river ical data. Vayots Dzor Silk Road Survey (VDSRS) tributaries. This year we focused our sur- Of the numerous sites and locales we Project took initial steps to research and vey studies around the villages of Chiva, recorded on the survey, we collected sur- record a sample section through the land- Areni (Arpa), Arpi, Aghavnadzor, Agara- face ceramic materials from 20 distinct scape of medieval sites and other archaeo- kadzor, Gnishik, and Khachik, recording sites. These surface collections ranged logical remains which constitutes the Cor- the medieval sites and remains in the sur- from a few sherds in some cases to exten- ridor of Silk Road Heritage in Vayots Dzor rounding areas. sive collections from eroded medieval and parts of Syunik, Armenia. These sites ranged from “isolated” settlements such as Anapat and Areni/ The Silk Road is a contemporary term khatchkars (cross stones) to cemeteries, Arpa. for the phenomenon of travel and trade settlements, and medieval fortresses. We All of the ceramic materials from these which articulated the Armenian highlands established a basis for discussing these and sites has been preliminarily analyzed, pho- with Europe, the Near East and Asia from other sites we recorded as ‘stops’ on the tographed and drawn and is currently ancient times to the Late Medieval period. Silk Road or, perhaps more accurately for stored in the medieval faculty of the Insti- The physical remains of this historical phe- our developing historical model, as nodes tute of Archaeology and Ethnography in nomenon form part of Armenia’s greater within the network of the Silk Road cul- Yerevan. The formal and stylistic proper- medieval archaeological landscape, which tural phenomenon, which we will be able ties of this ceramic assemblage (which was constitutes a foundation of both cultural to study in greater detail using the dated largely 12-15th century in date) will be identity and development in the country. ceramic materials we collected. explored in detail in our in-process publi- During the 2015 season we focused on A primary result of the survey season is cations; however, it is already possible to the northern section of the Silk Road Her- a collection of coordinate data from our observe a “local style” in red painted red itage Corridor, situated along the Arpa handheld GPS units. This data is new and ware pottery for late medieval Vayots River and between the Nakhichevan bor- very important, because it provides very Dzor, which stands in fascinating chrono- der and the town of Yeghenadzor. During accurate location information for sites the logical and typological relationship with the medieval period (AD 5th-15th C) the locations of which were previously un- ceramic types known from the same peri- routes which run along the Arpa River known, or known only in vague descrip- od from sites like Ani and Dvin. and connect the modern-day towns of tions recorded on unpublished Institute Franklin a Lecturer at the School of the Art Areni and Agarakadzor formed part of the lists such as “1-2 km N-NE from the vil- Institute of Chicago. Babajanyan is a PhD wider network of roads, trails and paths lage.” student at the Institute of Archaeology and which connected cities such as Partaw, Also, this data is important because we Ethnography NAS, RA. Dvin, Tbilisi and Tabriz, and the coasts of will use it to shift the Black and Caspian Seas. The valleys the way we un- and mountain slopes of this region there- derstand the Silk fore contain a dense assemblage of medie- Road as a phe- val sites and architectural remains, espe- nomenon both in cially dating to the Developed and Late the medieval pe- medieval periods (12-14th C AD) when riod and as it the Proshyan and Orbelyan families con- changed over structed castles, bridges, caravanserais time. For in- (road inns) and monasteries in the region. stance, it is al- The aim of this first season of the pro- ready apparent ject was to begin site-directed survey in that the sites and Vayots Dzor province, establishing a sense places in Vayots of the local landscape and a base for fur- Dzor which were ther research. We were based in Aghav- active and which nadzor village, and moved through the participated in surrounding region recording sites and the social world features with GPS coordinates and photo- of “Silk Road graphs. We were supported in the survey Culture” in the Vayots Dzor Survey Project. by Davit Davtyan, a junior researcher at Developed and the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnogra- late medieval Photo by Kathryn Franklin

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 CAORC Multi-Country Fellowships The Council of American Overseas Research Centers (CAORC) Multi-Country Fellowship Program supports advanced regional or trans-regional research in the humanities, social sciences, or allied natural sciences. Funding is provided by the State Department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Heather A. Badamo Christian-Muslim frontiers, char- “Images at the Frontiers of Faith: acterized by multi-ethnic and Warrior Saints, Religious Violence, multi-religious societies, facilitat- andInterfaith Encounter in the Medi- ed the production of images that eval Eastern Mediterranean” mobilize common iconographies, diverse styles, and a militarized My project examines Christian-Muslim visual vocabulary that promoted exchange as it is manifested in the cult of an inflexible stance towards reli- the military martyrs. In an era dominated gious rivals. Thus, I argue that by war, from the ninth through the thir- icons of warrior saints cannot be teenth centuries, image-makers in the fully understood without refer- eastern Mediterranean transformed ence to the various types of peaceable saints into fierce warriors cross-cultural contact that took armed for battle: St. Theodore might be place between local Christian seen brandishing his sword on amulets, St. communities and those they George slaying enemies of the faith in mu- deemed to be religious others. rals, or rescuing Christians from Arabs. Tales of their efficacious icons abound in This project moves beyond histories and hagiographic accounts. Thus, static disciplinary boundaries, in a Syrian narrative an icon of St. Theo- mobilizing a large corpus of imag- dore inspires a ghazi descended from Mo- es and texts to focus on dynamic hammad to convert to Christianity. networks of encounter and ex- change. The images at the heart As I argue, icons of these aggressive of this study constitute an expan- saints flourished especially at frontiers, sive category that includes both places where the dominance of rival reli- traditional objects of art histori- gions challenged the certainties of Christi- cal inquiry (such as murals, icons, anity and contested its status as “the one and manuscripts) and those EATHER ADAMO true faith.” By studying icons of military H B more commonly regarded as the saints at the frontier, this project uncov- GEORGIA purview of material culture stud- ers how material and visual culture medi- ies (coins, seals, weapons, and ated diverse modes of encounter both textiles) (8-9). Primary sources WARRIOR SAINTS, NAVE, within and between Christianity and Islam. ranging from hagiographic works TIMOTESUBANI, GEORGIA. To date, scholarship has treated the to religious polemic and geogra- warrior saints’ cult as a phenomenon that phies do not simply provide a was fundamentally Byzantine in its genesis historical context for visual ma- and orientation. Yet, the shrines of these terial. Rather, images and texts The Georgia warrior saints adhere saints and their most renowned miracles are approached as complimen- closely to Byzantine dress and icono- were located at or beyond the borders of tary phenomena, each of which graphy, but here the saint pairs his Byz- the empire. Such places may have been played a role in constituting the antine armor with Persian leggings. peripheral to Byzantium, but they were saints, establishing patterns of central to the cultural life and dissemina- interaction, and relaying an array tion of the cult. of cultural and religious norms. Photo by Heather Badamo Taking my cue from the images them- Heather is a postdoctoral fellow selves, this project studies the visual cul- in the Department of Art History at tures of Egypt, the Levant, and the Cau- the University of Chicago. cuses together with Byzantium. These 22

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resolving thorny legal issues for them- many see the stalled repatriation process Irina Levin selves and their loved ones. The data I as a failure on the part of their community have collected, in the form of recorded leadership and the international human “Uncertain Returns: Citizenship, interviews, photographs, and extensive rights legal order to effectively shape rele- Property and Law in the Caucasus“ fieldnotes, represent a forcibly displaced vant national laws. Finally, at a local level, I community’s lived experience of law in have found that it is interactions with My ethnographic research examines the the post-Soviet context. My theoretically agents of the law, rather than knowledge long-term consequences of forced migra- and historically grounded analysis of the of the content or intentions of legislation, tion. During the course of a 12-month data is focused on demonstrating how that leads to feelings of security and jus- fieldwork period, I have worked with overlapping legal regimes function to ex- tice or defenselessness and inequity. My Meskhetian Turks (sometimes known as acerbate or minimize uncertainty and vul- interlocutors had frequent and lively dis- Meskhetians or Ahiska Turks), a commu- nerability. cussions about their experiences with nity displaced from Georgia in 1944, in My analysis is currently in progress, but police, border guards, notaries, and public Turkey, Georgia, and Azerbaijan, 3 set- I have a number of working conclusions. service workers. Anthropology of law tings that reflect its competing under- Firstly, although there is a great deal of research on vulnerable populations in oth- standings of homeland, security, and be- debate within the community about their er contexts has had similar conclusions on longing. In all 3 contexts, the central goal own ethnic background and the concept this issue, but my research demonstrates of this project is to analyze how Meskhe- of ethnicity or nationality, there is a broad that the incorporation and exclusion that tian Turks’ return and reintegration ef- consensus about the provision and mean- comes out of these routine interactions, forts are shaped by their entanglements ing of citizenship. Many of my interlocu- and community members’ group analysis with local, national, and international legal tors have similar experiences of the gen- of them, form a constantly shifting land- orders, particularly in the domains of erous and restrictive aspects of Soviet scape. Community members are both property and citizenship. I approach these citizenship and have struggles with citizen- sensitive to unfair treatment and eager to issues not only through open-ended inter- ship issues in the post-Soviet context. find signs of objectivity and even partiality. views, but through the examination and These experiences and their understand- In Turkey, my research on Ottoman discussion of legal documents and exten- ing of how the relationship between citi- property regimes and the Turkish media’s sive participant-observer work. Through- zen and state works in western countries coverage of Soviet WWII-era deporta- out my research period, I have accompa- define their understanding of citizenship as tions provided me with important per- nied my interlocutors to Public Service an institution. Thus, their own recent ex- spective for my ethnographic work in Halls, hospitals, notary offices, and Interi- perience with citizenship law is a source Azerbaijan and Georgia. In particular, or Ministry offices, as well as joining their of confusion, disappointment, and uncer- newspaper articles from the late 1980s dinner conversations that revolve around tainty. A related conclusion is that, for and early 1990s were sympathetic to Mes- those in Azerbaijan consid- khetian Turks as co-ethnics persecuted by ering a return to their the Soviets for their very Turkishness. homeland, a lack of trust in This sympathetic attitude has certainly the legal process that played a role in shaping migration to Tur- would, in theory, allow key over the last 25 years. In more recent them to become Georgian years, it has also led to the production of citizens is a key impediment a number of documentaries and human- to the return process. The interest stories on the “forgotten history” negligible number of “legal of the deportation and its aftermath. repatriates,” that is, those These have been produced for a Turkish who have come to Georgia audience within Turkey, but Meskhetian via the legal framework that Turks in Azerbaijan and Georgia, the vast the Georgian government majority of whom have satellite dishes created as part of its obliga- that give them access to Turkish channels, tion to the Council of Eu- have watched and subsequently discussed Ahiska Turkish women from Azerbaijan visiting Samtskhe-Javakheti and picking wild flowers. rope, is also a strong indica- these productions with great interest. tion that the process has Irina is a doctoral candidate in New York Photo by Irina Levin been ineffective. My re- University’s Department of Anthropology. search further suggests that

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- Tate, Richard (University of Florida) Awards 2015-2016 Junior Research Fellowships "Linking Cultural and Biological Con- servation in Adjara, Georgia" Graduate Fellowships With funding from a grant from the US Department of Education, ARISC offered ARISC members can look forward to In our seventh year of awarding Grad- the Junior Research Fellowships for the reports on these projects in forthcoming uate Fellowships, 3 awards of $1,500 were third year. The goals of the fellowship are newsletters. ARISC sends its best wishes made to graduate students enrolled in 1) to support research in and the study of to the awardees for a fruitful research degree-granting programs in the US. the South Caucasus; 2) to select, recog- season! These awards help cover travel to and/or nize and financially support individuals living expenses in the Southern Caucasus. early in their careers who demonstrate Collaborative Heritage Management Several highly qualified applicants applied. high potential to contribute to research in in the Republic of Armenia Grant Awards were made to the following this region; 3) to support a mentoring projects. relationship that will both develop the This is the sixth year we are offering - Bamberger, Benjamin (University of academic skills of the mentee and the Collaborative Heritage Management Illinois) "In the Mountains of Georgia: strengthen ties between the US and host Grant, whose purpose is to support col- Alpinism, Tourism, and the Making of country. laborative teams in the preservation and Soviet Georgia, 1923-1955" The following awards of up to $4,000 conservation of the Republic of Armenia’s - Fittante, Daniel (University of Califor- each were made: archaeological and historical heritage. Ap- nia, Los Angeles) "Connection with- - Czarnecki, Natalja (University of Chi- plications are being taken on a rolling basis out Engagement: The Paradoxes of cago) “Daily Encounters with ‘The with awards to be made the end of August North American Armenian Repatria- Informal’: Regulation and the Politics 2016. tion" of Trust at the Outdoor Food Market In our next issue, look for the report - Otruba, Ariel (Rutgers University) in Contemporary Tbilisi, Georgia” by ARISC CHM Fellows Alan Greene "The Elastic Geography of the South - Erb-Satullo, Nathaniel (Harvard Uni- (Stanford University, USA) and Roman Ossetian Administrative Boundary versity) "Forging Communities: Inves- Hovsepyan (Institute of Archaeology and Line: A Study of the Lived Geopolitics tigations of Early Iron Production at a Ethnography NAS Republic of Armenia): of Borderization and Creeping Occu- Late Bronze to Early Iron Age For- Website for the Institute of Archeology pation in Georgia" tress Site" and Ethnography NASRA.

Black Sea Cost Photo by Diana Lezhava

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MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015 In Appreciation

Donations of the National Academy of Sciences of In Georgia Dr. Timothy Blauvelt the Republic of Armenia: Pavel Avetisyan, (American Councils) and Natia Mestvir- ARISC is very fortunate and thankful to ishvili (CRRC Georgia). Without their Gayane Shagoyan, and Roman Hovsepyan; have received generous donations from help the Works-in-Progress series Ani & Robert Zakari, Ann Marie Kohl- Hamlet Melkumyan, Harutyun Marutyan, would not be possible. Many thanks to ligian, Anoush Miridjanian, MD, Ardash and Yulia Antonyan from Yerevan State Dr. Davit Aprasidze from Ilia State Uni- and Shirley Daronatsy, Carl and Valerie University; Nazenie Gharibyan from the versity for providing space for ARISC Narsasian, Prof. John F. Cherry, Mr. & Yerevan State Academy of Fine Arts; Zara and always supporting our endeavors; to Khatuna Ioseliani and Nino Kiknaveli- Mrs. Kevin Giragosian, Linda Shahinian & Khachatryan from the Institute of Molecu- lar Biology NAS RA; and Sarhat Petroysan dze from the Open Society Georgia Herb Schiff, Rouben and Lida Surenian, Foundation, and staff of the Center for from the National University of Architec- Sona Minakian, Susie and Reuben Jamhari- Social Sciences for co-sponsoring some an, and several Anonymous donors in ture and Construction of Armenia. of our events. support of our projects. Thank you! In Azerbaijan Ms. Shahla Khudiyeva, And our particular gratitude to Cheryl Gibbs, Program Officer at the Director of the Baku American Cen- ter, IRC, Dr. Fariz Ismayilzade, Vice- US Department of Education, and eve- In Appreciation ryone at Council of American Overseas Rector for External, Government and ARISC would like to thank all our 2014- Research Centers (CAORC) for all Student Affairs, and Dr. Anar Valiyev, As- their assistance and guidance. 15 representatives for their tremendous sociate Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs We would not be able to do any of work. Susan Marukhyan expertly carried from the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy the activities on these pages if not for out ARISC activities at our Armenia University. Dr. Maisa Ragimova, Director the constant assistance of our active Branch; Leyla Rustamli has been the stead- of the Institute of Archaeology and Eth- members! From preparing grant calls, to coordinating the symposium, to reading fast Azerbaijan Representative; and Diana nography, Azerbaijan National Academy of through applications, you are what Lezhava has been steadily working to cre- Sciences, and Dr. Najaf Huseynli - Deputy ate and maintain our Georgia Branch. keeps ARISC running! Thank you! Director for Scientific Affairs, Institute of Many thanks to staff members of the Archaeology and Ethnography, ANAS. Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography And Tural Aliyev as summer Intern. ARISC Events

Reading Groups Film Study Groups Writing Groups ARISC Reading Groups offer a unique In Spring 2015 ARISC launched a new ARISC coordinates writing groups for way to build bridges between US and project, Film Study Groups, where con- visiting and local academics. The first local scholars. Reading materials, select- temporary as well as Soviet era movies ARISC Writing Group was held in Ar- ed by group members, are always rele- are screened, usually followed by dis- menia in May 2013.The group discussed vant to the South Caucasus and are cussions. two short stories by Nairi Avedissian, widely available. Our Representatives The Film Study Group aims to brings ”School Lunch” and “Sherin,” about the also occasionally may bring in a scholar Georgian and international scholars to- author’s childhood in Egypt. Since these to enhance discussions. gether in an informal setting to discuss were unpublished the group had the The groups select from fiction and and explore Georgian, as well as South privilege to be among the first readers non-fiction pieces alike. Among the in- Caucasian cinema. As usual, the movie and critics. Are you interested in join- ternational list of authors whose works screenings are followed with very inter- ing? This is a great motivator and op- have been read are Hovhannes Tuman- esting discussion involving the audience. portunity to have peers offer their yan, Aksel Bakunts, Marilynne Robinson, The discussion concerns various topics unique perspectives on your work, be it Alexandre Dumas, Benjamin M. raised in the movie or hidden behind a publication, grant proposal, or other Wheeler, Ulviyya Mikayilova et al, Elene the images. The sessions are free and asyet unpublished writing. Contact our Japaridze et al, Stephen F. Jones, Kurban open to the public. Among the movies reps: [email protected], azerbai- Said, Abraam Goulbat, Azar Nafisi, Ma- screened with these series are: Felicita [email protected], [email protected] turin Murray Ballou, Anar, Mir Jalal by Nutsa Aleksi-Meskhishvili, In Bloom Pashayev and Afaq Masud. Please join by Nana Ekvtimishili and Simon Gross, us! For upcoming events, check our Mimino by Giorgi Danelia, and others. website www.arisc.org 25

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

ARISC Events News and Events from 2014-15

ARISC has held numerous events this past year in the South Caucasus! This section briefly lists the many, many talks held. To read the full descriptions, see our website www.arisc.org. We are grateful to all the insti- tutions that have co-sponsored events with ARISC. In Armenia: the American University of Armenia (AUA), and the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography. In Azerbaijan: the American Center, IRC, ADA University, the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Naxçivan Section, the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC). In Georgia: the American Councils for International Educa- tion: ACTR/ACCELS, the Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC), the Center for Social Sciences (CSS), and Ilia State University.

“Applying to Graduate Programs in the US” by Talin Lindsay, ARISC and Purdue University. June 3, 2014. Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Putin’s Salami Tactics, Annexation And Ukraine” by Richard W. Maass, Cornell University. June 4, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

“Applying to Graduate Programs in the US” by Talin Lindsay, ARISC and Purdue University. June 5, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia. The event was co- sponsored by ARISC and Center for Social Sciences

“Landscapes of Metal Production and Settlement in Kvemo Kartli, Georgia” by Nathaniel Erb-Satullo, Harvard University and ARISC Fel- low. June 6, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia. The event was co-sponsored by ARISC and Center for Social Sciences

WiP: “Bullies: Why Great Powers Exploit Weak Neighbors” by Eteri Tsintsadze-Maass, Notre Dame University. June 11, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

“U.S Foreign Policy During the Obama Era: American Decline or Skillful Global Management? By Klaus Larres, University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. June 17, 2014, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Stress-Testing Territorial Conflict” by Emily Knowles, University of Edinburgh. June 18, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Uncertain Returns: Meskhs and Ahıska Türkleri in Georgia and Azerbaijan” by Irina Levin, New York University and CAORC Fel- low. July 2, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

“Petrographic Analysis of Oğlanqala Ceramics” by Susannah G. Fishman, University of Pennsylvania and ARISC Fellow. July 5, 2014, Naxci- van City, Azerbaijan

WiP: “Women’s Political Representation in Democratic Transition of Georgia” by Ketevan Chkheidze, Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State Uni- versity. July 9, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Preliminary Results of the Tbilisi Archaeological Survey 2014” by Kathryn O’Neil Weber, Cornell University and ARISC Fellow. July 16, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

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Reading Group in Baku: “A Growing Issue: How Can We Secure Food Supplies?” by Byrn Smith. July 19, 2014, Baku, Azerbaijan

WiP: “Beyond the Binary of Exogenous and Endogenous Transitions: the International Governance of Transitional Justice in Georgia” by Anna Dolidze, University of Western Ontario. July 23, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

Joint Lecture of the Institute of Archaeology & Ethnography and ARISC: “Articulating Ancient Lives: Diet and Movement in Late Bronze Age and Iron I Period Societies” by Maureen E. Marshall (University of Chicago), “Late Medieval Archaeology in the Kasakh Valley Armenia: Recent and Ongoing Research on Trade, Politics and Daily Life” by Kathryn Jane Franklin (University of Chicago and ARISC Fellow) and “The Social Lives of Pottery in the Plain of Flowers: Object Biographies, Hidden Assemblages, and Political Economy in Late Bronze Age Armenia” by Alan F. Greene (Stanford University and ARISC Fellow). July 29, 2014, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Peculiar Problems, Peculiar Opportunities: Armenian Refugees, Relief and Reconstruction in Early Soviet Transcaucasia” by Jo Laycock, Sheffield Hallam University. July 30, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Practicing Stalinism in the Georgian NKVD” by Timothy Blauvelt, American Councils for International Education and Ilia State Univer- sity. September 17, 2014. Tbilisi, Georgia

Joint lecture of ARISC and the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography of Anas: “Views from the West: Eastern South Caucasia in Greek and Latin Sources” by Lara Fabian, University of Pennsylvania and ARISC Fellow. September 24, 2014, Baku, Azerbaijan

WiP: “Polling for Democracy in Kaspi: An Experiment on Quantitative Information and Citizen Behavior” by Aaron Erlich, University of Washington. September 24, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Baku: “Trading Culture: Practical Background for Azerbaijani-English Poetry Translation” by Alison Mandaville and Shahla Naghiyeva, September 29, 2014, Baku, Azerbaijan

WiP: “Transparency of Civil Society Organizations, and Why it Matters in Georgia and Beyond” by Hans Gutbrod, Transparify.org. Oc- tober 1, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Attitudes Toward the Judiciary in Georgia” by Koba Turmanidze, CRRC Georgia. October 8, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

Joint lecture of Center for Social Sciences and ARISC: “Spaces of Stalin: Hometown Effect, Historical Legacy and the Politico-Economic Land- scape” by Dr. Alexi Gugushvili, University of Oxford; Bremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences (BIGSSS); Center for Social Sciences (CSS). October 13, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “The Life of the Life of St. Nino” by Paul Crego, U.S. Library of Congress. October 15, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Constructing Social Identity: Silence and Argument in a Palestinian-Israeli Group Discussion” by Wendy Smith, California State University, San Bernardino and Visiting Fulbright Professor. October 22, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading group in Yerevan: “The Circassian Slave or The Sultan’s Favorite” by Maturin Murray Ballou. October 28, 2014, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Elite Perceptions and Georgia’s Foreign Policy Towards Russia: A Comparative Analysis” by Kornely Kakachıa, Levan Kakhishvili, Salome Minesashvili, Tbilisi State University. October 29, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia 27

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WiP: “Exploring Homphobia in Georgia” by Maia Mestvirishvili, Tinatin Zurabishvili, Tamar Iakobidze, Natia Mestvirishvili. November 5, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “The Circassian Slave or The Sultan’s Favorite” by Maturin Murray Ballou, continued. November 11, 2014, Yere- van, Armenia

WiP: “The Pains of Prison Reform: Violence, Trust and the Prisoner Society in Georgia” by Gavin Slade (Freie Universitat) and Vakhtang Kekoshvili (Ilia State University). November 12, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Known and Unknown: Progress Towards Mapping Tbilisi’s Past” by Kathryn O’Neil Weber, Cornell University, November 19, 2014 , Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “Reading Lolita in Tehran” by Azar Nafisi. November 25, 2014, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “The Role and Limitations of Non-State Actors in Influencing Public Policy in Georgia: Groups, the Media and the Public in Agen- da-Setting and Policy Formulation” by Nana Macharashvili, Ekaterine Basilaia, Nodar Tangiashvili, Tbilisi State University. November 26, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Women’s Representations in Georgian Soviet Silent Films: Agency, Social Class and Modification of the Images” by Salome Tsopurashvili, Tbilisi State University. December 3, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “The Rain” and “Bakarr the First, Tsar of Georgia” from A. Goulbat’s “Caucasian Legends”. December 9, 2014, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: ”State/Party Capacity and Constraints on State Action: Operationalizing and Indexing State Capacity in Georgia and Armenia” by Dustin Gilbreath, CRRC-Georgia. December 10, 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Stalin’s Russia vs. Georgia’s Stalin: Similarities and Differences in Public Attitudes” by Alexi Gugushvili (BIGSSS) and Peter Kabach- nik (CUNY). December 17, 2014 , Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Baku! “Me, You, Him and the Telephone“ by Anar, “Dried Up in Meetings“ by Mir Jalal Pashayev, and “Dormitory” by Afaq Masud. December 20, 2014, Baku, Azerbaijan

Reading Group in Tbilisi! “Tales of the Caucasus: The Ball of Snow” by Alexandre Dumas. December 26 2014, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “Mountains of Music: Musical Dialects and Hybridisms in the South Caucasus” by Benjamin M. Wheeler. Janu- ary 13, 2015, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Higher Education Admissions Reform and Access to University: the Case of Georgia” by Lela Chakhaia, European University Insti- tute, January 21, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “The Ball of Snow” from the “Tales of The Caucasus” by Alexandre Dumas. January 27, 2015, Yerevan, Armenia

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WiP: “Emigration and Return Migration of North Caucasian Muslims in 1860-1880” by Vladimir Troyansky, Stanford University, January 28, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Housing Inequalities in the South Caucasus – The Cases of Yerevan and Tbilisi” by David Sichinava, Tbilisi State University, CRRC Georgia. February 4, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “On Edgar Allan Poe” by Marilynne Robinson. February 10, 2015, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Defiant Discourse Under an Oppressive Regime and International Solidarity: The Case of Portugal and ‘the Three Marias’” by Vera Peixoto, Utrecht University, February 18, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Yerevan! “On Edgar Allan Poe” by Marilynne Robinson, continued. February 24, 2015, Yerevan, Armenia

WiP: “Japan’s Northern Borders: Spatial Epistemology and the State” by Edward Boyle, Hokkaido University, February 25, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Tbilisi! “Georgia – A Political History since Independence” by Stephen Jones. Thursday, 26 February 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “The Influence of Collective Memory on Reconciliation and Peace Building on the Caucasus” by Bartłomiej Krzysztan, University of Wroclaw. March 4 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Performing Soviet Literacies in the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic” by Jeremy Johnson, University of Michigan. March 11, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “From Discourse to Practice: The EUu’s Migration Management Strategy in Neighboring Third Countries” by Martine Brouillette, University of Poitiers, France, March 18, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Tbilisi! “Ali and Nino” by Kurban Said. March 19, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Ethnocentrism and the Use of Force in Georgia, 1990 to 2014” by Chris Anderson, University of Iowa, March 18, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Film Study Group in Tbilisi! “Felicita” by Nutsa Aleksi-Meskhishvili, March 26, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “The Myths and Realities of Being an Immigrant in Georgia: Policy and Societal Levels” by Mariam Chumburidze (IRC), Tamar Zurabishvili (ICMPD). April 1, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “The Georgians’ Discourses of National Identity in the Context of Europeanisation” by Lika Tsuladze, Tbilisi State University and Center for Social Sciences. April 8, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Specific Features of the Georgian Language and Alphabet” by Nana Shavtvaladze, University of Georgia, April 22, 2015, Tbilisi, Geor- gia

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“From Baku to Kars: Muslim Solidarity Across the South Caucasus, 1878–1922” by Alexander E. Balistreri, Princeton University and ARISC Fellow. April 28, 2015, Baku, Azerbaijan

Film Study Group in Tbilisi! “In Bloom” by Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Gross. May 4, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia.

WiP: “Security and Identity in the South Caucasus. A Case Study of the Armenian Minority of Samtskhe-Javakheti” by Lucile Bardin, Central European University. May 6, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Animating the City: Safavid Soundscapes in Socialist Tbilisi” by Paul Manning, Trent University. May 13, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

WiP: “Resource Flows, Politics and Instability in the Caucasus: a Discussion on Identifying Cause” by George Welton, GeoWel Research, May 20, 2015, Tbilisi, Georgia

Reading Group in Baku! “Education of the Children with Disabilities in Azerbaijan: Barriers and Opportunities” by Ulviyya Mikayilova et.al. May 22, 2015, Baku, Azerbaijan

Opening of ARISC Georgia Branch 5th Anniversary of the Works-In-Progress Series

On December 11, 2014, ARISC organized an event dedicat- In 2015 ARISC in conjunction with its partner organizations, ed to the opening of its Georgia Branch. The event was held at Caucasus Research Resource Center (CRRC) Georgia and Ilia State University. Attendance was free, the working lan- American Councils in Georgia, celebrated the 5th anniversary guage was English. The event had an academic character and of the Works-In-Progress Series. Talks are organized every involved a public talk on Sir Oliver Wardrop, one of the West- Wednesday, at 18:30 at the office of Eurasia Partnership Foun- ern Diplomats and academics who contributed to the recogni- dation and aim to provide support and productive criticism to tion of the first republic of Georgia in the beginning of the those researching and developing academic projects pertaining 20th Century and established one of the first Georgian Studies to the Caucasus region. W-i-P Series are free and open to the Centers at the University of Oxford. The event was co- public. It is an informal platform that gives an opportunity to sponsored by Education and Training International, Ltd., who local or international researches to present their ongoing re- provided funding for the joint small publication on Wardrop, search projects and receive feedback from the audience. as well as the Wardrop wine specially bottled for the recep- The 5th anniversary was marked by a presentation tion. The event was marked by the public talk of Professor by Professor Kevin Tuite from the University of Montreal on Stephen Jones, ARISC Vice President, and Mr. Beka Kobakhi- his research about St. George and the impact of his life on the dze, PhD student at Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, development of Georgian society. After the presentation a very who spoke about the role of Wardrop for South Caucasian interesting discussion was held that was followed by a small states and especially, Georgia. reception of cake and drinks.

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International Symposium “Education in the South Caucasus: Modernization, Innovation and Future Trends”

June 19, 2015 Ilia State University, Tbilisi, Georgia Co-sponsored by ARISC, Ilia State University, Open Society Georgia Foundation and a private donation

The international symposium, address topics that bridged the gap be- Azerbaijan’s Khazar University, and “Education in the South Caucasus: Mod- tween the current and future state of Angelina Hovhannisyan, Armenian Minis- ernization, Innovation and Future education relative to the opportunities try of Education. Stephen Jones of Trends” that took place at Ilia State Uni- and challenges for educational reform. Mount Holyoke College and Vice Presi- versity (ISU) on Friday, June 19, 2015, dent of ARISC moderated the ensuing examined past and current challenges as discussion. well as new directions and trends in edu- “The symposium, bringing The afternoon session addressed cational reform in the South Caucasus. together representatives “Promising Directions in Education.” Video of the day-long symposium, from Armenia, Azerbaijan Speakers for this session were scholars organized by the American Research known and recognized for their active and Georgia, showed how Institute of the South Caucasus (ARISC), engagement in topics ranging from inno- in cooperation with Ilia State University important higher vative approaches for faculty teaching (ISU) and Open Society Georgia Founda- educational reform is to and student learning to policy planning tion (OSGF), is now available at the economic and and strategy, including Simon Janashia www.arisc.org. political future of all from Columbia University, Joanna Reg- The symposium aimed to identify and three states. It showed us ulska of Rutgers University, Üzeyir advance an understanding of culturally Bağırov, Qafqaz University, and Samvel specific challenges facing higher educa- too, the need for regional Karabekyan, National Team of Higher tion in Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia cooperation in higher Education Reform Experts. Jane Britt by creating a forum for the discussion education - common Greenwood, AIA, of Prince Sultan Uni- and sharing of ideas among scholars, problems can be solved versity, moderated the discussion fol- practitioners and policy-makers. It also more effectively by lowing these presentations. sought to encourage an open dialogue of common effort.” This symposium was free and open best practices in developing cross- to the public. It was supported by a Title border cooperation. - Prof. Stephen Jones, VI grant from the US Department of Jones gave the symposium’s opening Education. Specifically, $6,140 or 69% of Vice President of ARISC remarks, followed by Giga Zedania, ISU the symposium was financed with these Rector, and Khatuna Ioseliani, Program funds, and an additional $2,697 or 31% Manager at OSGF, both of whom also was financed from Open Society Geor- provided words of welcome. The presenters at this session includ- gia Foundation, and by a private dona- The morning session focused on ed Giorgi Sharvashidze, Georgian Minis- tion. “Challenges in Education” and aimed to try of Education, Hamlet Isaxanli of

Video clips of the presentations are available at http://arisc.org/?page_id=2511 31

MEMBER NEWSLETTER ISSUE No. 6 2014-2015

Untitled Photo by Ketevan Jikidze

will have all rights and privileges of Indi- HOW TO BECOME A MEMBER CONTACT US vidual Members, and they will elect one The American Research Institute of I. Determine your level of membership. Student Director to the board. Annual 2. Complete the appropriate form and the South Caucasus student membership dues are $10. c/o Talin Lindsay email to [email protected] or mail to the Department of Anthropology address in the sidebar. Institutional Mem- Corporate Partnership 700 W. State St., Suite 219 bers will need to submit a hard copy of Any public or private corporation that is West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA their membership form. not entitled to Institutional Membership [email protected] 3. Submit annual membership fee. may participate in ARISC as a Corporate www.arisc.org 4. Memberships run from October 1st Partner. Corporate Partners may be rec- through September 30th. OFFICERS ognized at the discretion of the Directors upon submission of an application. Inter- PRESIDENT Membership Levels Stephen Rapp ested corporations should send inquiries Institutional Membership to [email protected]. Forms and Payment VICE-PRESIDENT Stephen Jones Any generally recognized academic or Options All membership forms are availa- educational institution in the US or Cana- ble online. Fees can be paid by check or SECRETARY Lauren Ristvet da, or any association of such institutions, credit card from the ARISC website may become an Institutional Member of www.arisc.org through the PayPal system. TREASURER Ian Lindsay ARISC, upon application and acceptance by ARISC. Annual institutional member- BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP REP. TO CAORC Adam T. Smith ship dues are $500. ARISC members receive access to an EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Overseas Institutional Membership online discussion group and an annual Talin Lindsay newsletter. Members can get in-country Any generally recognized academic or NEWSLETTER EDITOR support for the logistics of conducting Diana Lezhava educational institution in the South Cau- research and access to other scholars of casus, or any association of such institu- the South Caucasus. INSTITUTIONAL MEMBERS tions that hosts ARISC in its physical Brown University space for an agreed period, may become GIVING TO ARISC Cornell University an Overseas Institutional Member, upon Ilia State University, Georgia application and acceptance by ARISC. ARISC welcomes your gift contributions Inst. for Aegean Prehistory (INSTAP) Annual overseas institutional membership to support its mission! Checks can be Mount Holyoke College dues are $500. made payable to The American Research New York University Institute of the South Caucasus or ARISC and Purdue University Individual Membership mailed to: Stanford University Talin Lindsay University of California, Berkeley Anyone may become an Individual Mem- University of Chicago Department of Anthropology ber of ARISC, upon application and ac- University of Connecticut ceptance by ARISC. Annual individual 700 W. State Street, Suite 219 University of Illinois membership dues are $40. West Lafayette, IN 47907 University of Massachusetts You may also use a credit card at our Amherst Student Membership website, www.arisc.org. We use the Pay- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor Any undergraduate or graduate student Pal system for online contributions. University of Pennsylvania currently seeking a degree at an accredit- ARISC is a registered 501(c)(3) not-for- University of Texas, Austin ed university may be admitted as a Stu- profit, academic organization. Donations University of Washington dent Member, upon application and ac- to ARISC are tax-deductible to the ex- ceptance by ARISC. Student Members tent allowed by law

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