Bronze Age travel routes were revealed using leading research methods

Archaeologists at the University of Sydney have reconstructed the ancient seasonal migration routes of Bronze Age pastoralists in Xinjiang, northwestern China.

Published in high quality journals Plaza one, His research was the result of an innovative method. To determine the critical ice cover and vegetation cycle for the Bronze Age people and their flocks, they examined both satellite imagery and archaeological evidence, as well as visited modern pastoralists.

Together with researchers from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the Institute of Archeology in Beijing, they used this information to model how the landscape was used 3,500,000 years ago.

“This detailed model of how the people of the Bronze Age capitalized their environmental resources helps a lot in understanding the prehistoric Silk Road,” said lead author Dr. Said Peter Jia.

“For example, our ethnic study in an interview with local pastoralists – explained why certain locations are and still are chosen during Tuo: for the presence of early and late grasses, the best grazing in summer, and the absence of snow cover.

“Satellite image analysis with archaeological surveys and excavation results has enabled us to test these fictitious accounts and prove their accuracy.”

The study’s author, Professor Alison Bates, added: “According to previous archaeological evidence, it was difficult to determine how Bronze Age herders adapted to life in Xinjiang and used the landscape they settled.

“Now we have a new valid method for determining the tu in which people lived somewhere.”

Dangers at Step: Why season migration is important

The Eurasian plain / mountain region has a harsh climate. The main adaptation to this arid landscape took place in the Bronze Age with the introduction of pets. But even today, it is a place with inherent dangers to people’s livelihoods. With so much snow in the winter and animals not being able to find enough food, hundreds of people die in what locals call a ‘white disaster’. Too little snow and not enough water for humans and animals, fearing a ‘black disaster’. Management of the landscape through seasonal migration is the key to the survival and maintenance of an economic system based on livestock.

Pioneering method

The strength of the study lies in its interdisciplinary approach, which combines cutting edge satellite technology with ethnographic and archaeological field work.

Establishing a growth cycle for grazing land vegetation and estimating the depth of ice using satellite imagery allows researchers to assess the suitability of different parts of the mountains for grazing in different asons. Comparing these data with the accounts of local Mongolian and Kazakh pastoralists, they were found to be quite closely matched.

“Archeology is one of the few fields that provides insights into how humans have interacted with the environment in the past,” said co-author, Dr. Gino Caspari.

“Analyzing this history is crucial, given the increasing environmental conditions around the world.

“For this work we need to engage academic disciplines and cooperate internationally. Our study is a good example of this.”