2007] FARFALLE NELL’EGEO 11 ABOUT RECENT EXcavations at A BRONZE AGE SITE IN MARGIANA (Turkmenistan) Sandro Salvatori Abstract A recently published book on the Adji Kui 9 Bronze Age site excavation (Murghab Delta, Turkmenistan), deserves close inspection in the context of the 3rd millennium BC history and archaeology. Introduction Central Asia republics, of western archaeologists 5 and the beginning of joint archaeological projects A full-scale overview of Central Asian archaeo- with local institutions and researchers. It soon be- logy, from the beginning of the research to the ear- came clear that different, irreconcilable, excavation ly 1980s, was published in 1984 by Ph. L. Kohl. A methods and theoretical approaches were being few years later, an appreciable synthesis was pub- used by the two schools. lished by H.-P. Francfort 1 on the Shortughai ex- As for excavation methods, two main opposing cavations in north-eastern Afghanistan. The most and antagonistic approaches were and still are at interesting book on Turkmenistan is by Fred Hie- work: Approach 1 is an uncontrolled approach to bert 2 and provides a good updated survey of the excavation of architectural complexes without con- archaeological research in Margiana up to the early sidering stratigraphic procedures and recording. 1990s. Approach 2 points to understanding and recording Since that date, fieldwork has been carried out cultural variability using archaeological stratigra- at a number of new and old sites, both along the phic methods as dictated by the evolution of the Turkmenistan piedmont and in Margiana 3. In ad- discipline all over the world. dition, an international project aimed at providing A third, apparently harmonising behaviour (Ap- an updated Archaeological Map of the Murghab proach 3), pays some attention to record stratigra- delta 4 has been ongoing since 1990. phic sections (in the geological sense of the term) As one can perceive from the references quoted, of the archaeological sites without employing pro- the collapse of the Soviet Union has favoured the per stratigraphic excavation methods. increasing presence in Turkmenistan and in other V. I. Sarianidi, both in Margiana (Togolok and 1 Francfort 1989. 2 Hiebert 1994. 3 Jeitun: Harris et al. 1993, 1996; Masson and Harris 1994; Coolidge 2005; Anau: Hiebert and Kurbansakhatovn 2003; Par- kai II: Khlopin 1997; Altyn-depe: Berezkin 2001; Kircho 1988, 1994, 2000, 2001b, 2001c, 2004; Kircho, Salvatori, Vidale n.d.; Alekshin and Kircho 2005; Ilgynly-depe: Solovyeva 1998, 2000, 2005; Solovyeva et al. 1994; Kasparov 1994; Korobkova, Sha- rovskaya 1994; Masson Berezkin, Solovyeva 1994; Berezkin, Solovyeva 1998; Ulug-depe: Boucharlat, Francfort, Lecomte 2005; Lecomte 2004a, 2004b, 2005, 2006, 2007; Lecomte, Francfort 2002; Lecomte et al., 2004; Togolok 21: Sarianidi 1986, 1990a, 1990b; Togolok 24: Sarianidi 1998; Adzhi Kui 8: Sarianidi 1990; Gonur 1 South: Sarianidi 1993, 1998; Gonur 1 North: Saria- nidi 2002a, 2002b, 2004, 2005; Gonur Middle Bronze Age graveyard: Salvatori 1993, 1994a, 1994b, 1995; Sarianidi 2001, 2007; Dubova 2004; Rossi-Osmida (ed.) 2002 a book we critically reviewed in the past (Salvatori 2003); Adzhi Kui 1 and 9: Salvato- ri 2002; Site 1211-1219: Cattani 2008a; Site 999: Bonora, Vidale 2008; Takhirbai 1: Cattani 1998; Takhta Bazar: Udeumuradov 1993; Merv: Herrmann, Masson, Kurbansakhatov (eds.), 1993; Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov (eds.), 1994, 1995; Herrmann, Kurbansakhatov and Simpson (eds.), 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999; Williams, Kurbansakhatov (eds.), 2001, 2002, 2003. 4 Gubaev, Koshelenko, Tosi (eds.), 1998; Salvatori, Tosi (eds.), 2008. 5 The new path was paved by former initiatives by French and American scholars and institutions (Deshayes (ed.), 1977; Kohl 1981; Gardin (ed.), 1985, 1988). 12 SANDRO SALVATORI [RdA 31 Gonur sites) and Southern Bactria (Northern Af- 3) - Regional studies and their methodology; ghanistan) 6, and Rossi-Osmida, and Udeumura- 4) - Archaeological and historical interpreta- dov’s excavations at Adzhi Kui 1 and 9 7, followed tions; Approach 1. 5) - Anthropomorphic figurines. Approach 2 was employed at Hiebert’s test tren- ches along the southern slope of Gonur 1 North and Coherence and incoherence or “about the contra- at his excavations at Anau; Cattani’s excavations at diction” Takhirbai 1 and Sites 1211-1219, in the Murghab delta; Salvatori’s test trenches at Adzhi Kui 1 and As for the methods of archaeological excava- 9; Anglo-Turkmenian excavations at the Neoli- tion dealt with on p. 18, the author writes that: thic site of Jeitun; University College of London “The most difficult problem we have had to deal with is (UCL) excavations and restoration work at Merv; the re-education of technicians and workforce regarding French excavations at Ulug-depe; and excavations correct archaeological excavation procedures” because at Altyn-depe and Ilgynly-depe carried out by the they were trained under the “… old Soviet frontier last generation of Russian archaeologists from the school, which considered it superfluous to dig stratigra- Academy of Sciences of Saint Petersburg. phic trenches …”. This statement would seem shara- Imil Masimov’s test trenches at Kelleli 1, 3 and ble, but what does “correct archaeological excavations 4 and Adzhi Kui 3 8 followed what has been iden- procedures” mean if, a few lines above, he writes tified as Approach 3. that “it is obvious [!!!] 10 that, in these borderline con- The volume we are reviewing here 9 explains dition it is not possible to carry out a text-book exca- why stratigraphic excavation, an approach almost vation”?. Many examples would provide opposite universally accepted in archaeology, should be evidence, but it seems enough to refer to the work abandoned. A further considerable message of this of Kircho at Altyn-depe and Solovyeva at Ilgynly, book concerns the interpretation of historical pro- in an equally difficult environment, as well as that cesses. It contends that interpretation must not be of Salvatori 11 at Adzhi Kui 1 and 9, Cattani at Site derived from verifiable data, but rather from free 1211-1219 and Vidale at Site 999 in Margiana. Be- use of the researcher’s fantasy. sides, proper stratigraphic excavations are usually Although the content of this book needs many carried out in even worse environments, and the more pages of commentary, this review should be list would fill hundreds of pages. A few among the enough to give the reader an idea of why archae- many possible examples are in the western desert ological research should be shielded from unpro- of Egypt 12 or at the excavations at Shahr-i Sokhta fessional and untrained treasure hunters. For this in the Iranian Seistan 13. reason only, some of the book’s main topics will Furthermore, when asserting that “… the old So- be discussed: viet frontier school … considered it superfluous to dig 1) - Coherence and incoherence or “about the stratigraphic trenches” (p. 18), the author reveals that contradiction”; he does not know that Soviet archaeologists exca- 2) - Archaeological research methods and prac- vated a large number of “stratigraphic trenches” in tice (about archaeological excavation); Turkmenistan, both in the Meana-Chaacha 14 and 6 Sarianidi 1977. 7 Rossi-Osmida 2007. For AK1 see Rossi-Osmida 2006. 8 Masimov 1979, 1981a, 1981b, 1984. 9 Rossi-Osmida 2007. We prefer to use Adzhi Kui because it is the most commonly used spelling of the name in the scien- tific literature. 10 Sentences in square brackets are mine as well as the bold in reported sentences. 11 Readers will excuse me for this personal remark: Rossi-Osmida writes that I was at Adzhi Kui 1 and 9 “… for a few hours, time enough to dig two small stratigraphic trenches in AK1 and AK9 …” (p. 39). To be precise, I was there for days, with Masimov, Udeumuradov, Gubaev and the Italian team digging stratigraphically in two test trenches. His words not only are ignomini- ous but also denote his ignorance and rather scarce field experience as he thinks that a few hours are enough to dig two test trenches in a proper stratigraphic way. 12 Wendorf, Schild, Associates 2001. 13 Tosi 1968, 1969, 1983; Salvatori, Vidale 1997. 14 For example at Altyn-depe: see Kircho, Salvatori, Vidale n.d. and Alekshin, Kircho 2005: 13-78 and fig. 1. 2007] ABOUT RECENT EXCAVATIONS AT A BRONZE AGE SITE IN MARGIANA (TURKMENISTAN) 13 in the Murghab area 15. Unfortunately, “stratigraphic at micro-periodization of AK9 must be purely an aca- trenches” does not always mean “stratigraphic exca- demic exercise, concentrating on individual habitations vation”! and structures, rather than taking the complete urban The author may not know that “text-book exca- pattern of the citadel into consideration” (p. 68). Single vation” (cf. p. 18) means “correct archaeological exca- houses and structures and the urban organisation, vation procedures”. as a whole, are two complementary and equally important aspects of the archaeological reasoning. Archaeological research methods and practice What is evident, reading the book, is that Rossi- Osmida emulated Sarianidi in his methodological A discussion on archaeological excavation me- approach to digging Bactrian and Margiana settle- thods cannot be considered complete after having ments. The similarity also can be appreciated by examined the above contradictions. Many archa- comparing the section he published on p. 69 with eological textbooks 16 have been written since the that presented for Gonur North by Sarianidi 18. last century which also can be used to trace a hi- Furthermore, the excavation methods and the story of archaeological methods and practices. Also graphic recording used at Adzhi Kui are not a sur- known to archaeologists is that the practical use of prise, knowing that excavations at the site were the word “stratigraphy” is different if is used in a mainly carried out by V. Udeumuradov. The Rus- geological or archaeological context. Furthermore, sian archaeologist, in fact, considers the use of the this word has had different meaning through time stratigraphic method very disappointing 19 and sup- in archaeology.