Göltepe Excavations
Tin Production at an Early Bronze Age Mining Town in the Central Taurus Mountains, Turkey

Description

This volume presents over fifteen years (1981-1996) of archaeometallurgy surveys and specifically the excavations of an Early Bronze Age miners’ village, Göltepe and its associated tin mine, Kestel. The results of the surface surveys, test pit operations, profile trenches and excavation finds demonstrate that processing of cassiterite-rich ore was the primary function of activities at Göltepe. The variety and density of tin-rich vitrified crucibles as well as ground, powdered tin-rich ore from excavated contexts were only some of the several lines of evidence. Other finds indicated that the site was profoundly associated with metal production. Weighty evidence came in the numbers of multifaceted molds, ingots and tin bronze artifacts. Furthermore, 50,000 ground stone tools for ore dressing and vitrified material grinding were estimated on the site surface, while 5,000 came from excavated contexts. Early Bronze Age Göltepe and Kestel Mine represent the as-yet unique example of the highland production model, that is, the industrial tier 1 of the extraction and processing of raw materials for the production of metal artifacts. This model entails the mining and smelting operations in the metalliferously rich ore deposits and forests, usually located in the mountains, in this case, the central Taurus Mountains in southern Turkey.

Contents: 1. Background, by K. Aslıhan Yener. 2. Sampling Strategies at Göltepe, by K. Aslıhan Yener. 3. Horizontal Exposures, by K. Aslıhan Yener. 4. Ceramics, Methodology, by Abdullah Hacar, Early Bronze Age Pottery Wares, by Abdullah Hacar and Müge Bulu, Shape Typology, by Abdullah Hacar and Müge Bulu, Comparative Material and Dating, by Abdullah Hacar, Contexts of Use in Areas A and B, by Alexandra Fletcher. 5. Small Finds, by K. Aslıhan Yener. 6. Ground Stone Tools, Introduction, by K. Aslıhan Yener, Göltepe Surface Collections, 1988 and 1989 (Survey Site Ç13), by Ergun Kaptan†, Grinding Experiments and Survey Analyses, by K. Aslıhan Yener, based on an unpublished report by Robert J. Hard, Catalog, by K. Aslıhan Yener. 7. Palaeozoology, Preliminary Palaeozoological Observations, by Allan S. Gilbert, Patience Ann Freeman, Haskel J. Greenfield, Tina L. Greenfield, and Talisha Chaput, Butchering Technology at the Early Tin Metal Producing Site of Göltepe, by Haskel J. Greenfield and Talisha Chaput, Conclusions, Catalog, by Haskel J. Greenfield. 8. Human Remains Collected from the Mortuary Chamber (Area VIII, Mine 2) of the Kestel Tin Mine in 1992, by Jennifer E. Jones. 9. Archaeobotanical Reports,
Archaeobotanical Sampling and Recovery, by K. Aslıhan Yener, based on a report provided by Mark Nesbitt, Pilot Study of Phytoliths from Göltepe, by Arlene M. Rosen. 10. Remote Sensing Resistivity Surveys 1990–1991, by Mahmut G. Drahor. 11. Summary and Conclusions, by K. Aslıhan Yener. Appendix A. Methods of Excavation and Recording Procedures, by K. Aslıhan Yener. Appendix B. Technological Analyses, Introduction, by K. Aslıhan Yener, Metallographic Examination of Awl M10, by Michael L. Wayman, Ceramic Crucible Fragments from Göltepe, by K. Aslıhan Yener, based on anunpublished report by Thomas J. Chadderdon. Appendix C. Pottery Catalog, by Abdullah Hacar and Müge Bulu. Appendix D. Concordance of Main Registration/MTA Numbers, Catalog Numbers, and Contexts, by K. Aslıhan Yener. Appendix E. Contexts and Main Registration Numbers, by K. Aslıhan Yener. References. Index. Figures. Plates.

Hardback: 540 pp., 26 tables, 103 figures, 84 plates.
(Prehistory Monographs 64, INSTAP Academic Press, 2021)

ISBN 978-1-931534-27-7