N EOLITHIC T RADITIONS ON THE N ORTHERN P ERIPHERY OF THE D ALMATEPE C ULTURE

determine the


INTRODUCTION
The study of the transition from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic period in the South Caucasus and the factors that caused it is one of the most important problems.The existence of numerous centers in this region during the Neolithic period suggests that the transition to the Chalcolithic period was accompanied by the emergence of diverse cultures.From this perspective, the sites discovered in Nakhchivan recently are of great importance.The research1 that began here in 2017 made it possible to trace the process of transition from the late Neolithic to the Chalcolithic in the South Caucasus, using the Dalmatepe culture as an example.
It is known that the Dalmatepe culture is associated with the site of the same name, registered 2 in the Urmia basin, 5 km south of the Hasanly settlement.The site is characterized by a rectangular architecture and children's burials in a bent position.Its distinctive characteristic is reflected in ceramics with surface-manipulated and painted ornaments.This type of pottery was later found in more than a hundred sites in the area from the south of the Urmia basin to the north of Mesopotamia.These finds are represented In the South Caucasus by a small amount of terrestrial materials obtained from sites on the territory of Mil-Karabakh in the last century.Many of these finds were replenished with materials from sites registered on the territory of Nakhchivan at the beginning of the 21 st century.Their comprehensive study is important for determining the northern border of the Dalmatepe culture.The settlement of Nakhchivantepe is the main center for the formation of this culture among these 14 sites.It is important for tracing the transition from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic in the South Caucasus.The settlement is located southeast of the city of Nakhchivan.This area is located at an altitude of 853 m above sea level.There were a group of employees of the Nakhchivan branch of ANAS, including the author, on a local archaeological expedition led by V. Bakhshaliyev 3 , which started the first studies here in 2017.The excavations continued until 2022, and four building layers were discovered.Three of them (Nakhchivantepe 1-3) reflect the Chalcolithic period, and the lower building layer (Nakhchivantepe 4) reflects the Late Neolithic period (Table 1).Bone, obsidian and numerous pottery items were found in these building layers.The basis of the finds are ceramic products.
The purpose of this study is to examine the Neolithic traditions that have influenced the Dalmatepe culture since the Neolithic, utilizing the Nakhchivantepe ceramics as an example. 2 Нариманов И.Г.

METHOD AND MATERIAL
The main object of research is the archaeological materials of the Nakhchivantepe settlement.The settlement was explored, under the guidance of prof.V. Bakhshaliyev by an archaeological expedition consisting of the author, by dividing into squares.When examining ceramics found in areas A, B, C, D, D, visual, visual-technological and comparative methods of analysis were used.According to the stratigraphy of the settlement, the pottery was divided into 4 stages and C14 analyzes were used in its dating.Ceramics were grouped according to the method of surface treatment, 4 groups were identified.İn the first of them they are similar to the Neolithic pottery Kültepe.To determine the percentage distribution of plain ceramics in layers, a vertical research method was used.Their comparison was made on the basis of material sources found in the settlement of Kültepe I, graphically illustrated by the author.In comparison with the archaeological materials found around Lake Urmia and the Mil-Karabakh region, literary materials were used.
Research work is focused on ceramic products that were found in 2017-2019 in the settlement of Nakhchivantepe.These materials are stored in the I Fund of the Department of the Archaeological Service at the National Library of ANAS.There are four main groups of ceramics: simple ceramics, painted ceramics, ceramics with surface-manipulated and painted ornaments (Fig. 1-4).Simple chaff-tempered pottery belonging to group I, is one of the main attributes5 of the Kültepe culture and is represented in a high percentage (95%).In the Neolithic layer (Nakhchivantepe 4) of Nakhchivantepe, associated with semi-dugouts.In the same layer, ceramics with Dalmatepe-type surface-manipulated ornaments were found in small amounts (Fig. 2, 8).
1286 fragments were selected to determine the distribution of 4 groups of ceramics in the layers of the Chalcolithic (Nakhchivantepe 1-3).These fragments were discovered in 2017-2018 (Table 2).Approximately half of the pottery in all layers belongs to group I (625 fragments).The 19 specimens examined exhibit relief ornamentation, seven specimens exhibit an arcuate protrusion, two specimens exhibit a round hole, and nine specimens have combed ornament from the inside (7) and sometimes outside (2).The predominance of group I ceramics in all layers allows us to trace the Neolithic traditions that passed into the Dalmatepe culture from the Neolithic.

SIMPLE CHAFF-TEMPERED CERAMICS OF NAKHCHIVANTEPE (I GROUP)
The method of making ceramics.Simple chaff-tempered pottery of Nakhchivantepe was made by laying clay layers on top of each other and overlapping them in a ribbon-like form.A gray layer is observed in the cross-section of some of these ceramic specimens.The vessels burned in red and orange tones, and traces of straw remained on the surface (Fig. 1, 1).Pottery with an admixture of coarse chaff was found in the Tepe Siahbid and Choga Maran6 sites.Dalmatepe-type pottery from Lavintepe contains a significant admixture of chaff and a small amount of sand 7 .However, technologically, our samples are closer to the Late Neolithic pottery of Kültepe I. Ceramic manufacturing techniques, as well as vessels with a heel-shaped protrusion and a cylindrical base, demonstrate these features 8 .Chaff-tempered ceramics were widely represented in the sites of Mil-Karabakh9 .Some ceramic products of this group have round holes represented by individual samples (Fig. 2, 7) The tradition of using round holes to surround the neck of vessels is known from Kültepe I 10 , Shomutepe 11 , and other Neolithic sites.Typological classification of vessels.Large-sized and thick-walled braziers, pots, frying pans, and jugs are usually made of simple chaff-tempered ceramics.Some braziers are made of clay mixed with straw and a small amount of sand (Fig. 2, 1).The thickness of the walls is 1.5-2.5 cm, the diameter of the mouth varies between 35-50 cm.The surface of some samples is covered in red paint, and a 3 cm wide stripe of paint appears to be present on the inner surface of the mouth.Such a vessel, found in a pit in the NB area, is 44 cm in diameter.A simpler version, with an admixture of coarse chaff 12 , was found in the early Neolithic layer of Sheh Gabi (B).
The mouth diameter of the jars is between 26 and 40 cm.They are represented by 2 types.Those belonging to the first type have a spherical body.Some of them have red-orange paint on the outside.One of these specimens has an oval relief ornament on the neck (Fig. 2, 2).Simple bowls with a convex body are sometimes found 13 in materials of the Dalmatepe type in Sheh Gabi.Vessels belonging to the second type have a conical neck structure.A wide border along the edge of the mouth distinguishes one of them, which is gray and made of chaff-tempered clay (Fig. 2, 3).Its analogue was found in Sheh Gabi 14 .The Neolithic layer of Kültepe I represented 15 four types of relief belts around the neck of the vessels.
Pan-type vessels are shallow inside, made of chaff-and sometimes sand-tempered clay.The surface of most of them is colored yellow, sometimes red.One such vessel was registered near a pottery kiln.The central wall of the bowl, which is undamaged, measures 29 cm, and the opposite wall measures 24 cm.This difference is caused by the narrowing of the corners at the edges.The height of the bowl is 10, the length of the side walls is 20, the thickness is 2.5 cm (Fig. 2, 4).A gray layer remained on the cross-section of some large vessels (Fig. 2, 5).Pitchers are funnel-shaped with short or long, narrow necks.Short-necked pitchers have a small volume.They are yellowpink in color and are without ornaments.Some have a spherical handle in the neck area, while others have an upwardly directed ear-shaped protrusion on the shoulder (Fig. 2, 6).A round hole is open in the shoulder part of one specimen (Fig. 2, 7).Its analogue without a bail was found 16 in the early Chalcolithic materials of Tepe Siahbid.The earliest known examples of such jugs are found in the Neolithic layer of Kültepe I.The second type exhibits a high cylindrical neck.One such specimen has a cylindrical neck that is somewhat widened towards the mouth (Fig. 2, 8) Such vessels were found 17 at site A of the Lavintepe stage II.Pitchers with a funnel-shaped neck coincide in shape with the Late Neolithic jugs from Kültepe I (Fig. 3, 3, 6).Such vessels were found in Lavintepe, Tepe Siahbid 18 .A cone-shaped bowl with a flat base that protrudes outwards shows this similarity better (Fig. 3, 1, 4) Such types of bases are widespread in Kültepe I 19 .The same analogy is also confirmed in jug-type vessels with a narrow base (Fig. 3, 2-5).The South Caucasus Neolithic sites are known 20 for their ear-shaped protrusions, round, oval, and belt-like relief ornaments, which are found in some simple vessels (Fig. 2, 2-3, 6).
Although other ceramic groups in Nakhchivantepe exhibit characteristics similar to those of the Dalmatepe culture in terms of surface treatment and ornamentation, surface-manipulated ceramics exhibit similarities to those of the Neolithic period of Mil-Karabakh.The covering of the surface of the vessels with an ornament in the form of seeds (Fig. 4, 1, 3) can be seen as evidence of this.There is also some similarity observed in samples with fingerprints.The ornaments of light and unevenly located fingerprints on the surface of a bowl found in Kamiltepe are found in Nakhchivantepe ceramics in a more regular and deep form (Fig. 4, 2, 4).This type of pottery was recorded in the last century as individual samples from the sites of Mil-Karabakh.They are represented by ground materials from the sites of Khantepe, Chiraglytepe, Azginnitepe, Kültepe (in Mirashelli), Chardagtepe, Beybabalar, Ajiztepe, Ismailbeytepe.I. Narimanov, who characterized the surface-manipulated ceramics of these sites, emphasized 21 that it is mainly represented by chaff-tempered ceramics.Some samples are engobed in dark red or light cream color, and its inner and outer surfaces are polished.Since these sites had not been excavated, the finds were restricted to ground materials.In 1967-1968, excavations were carried out only in Ilanlıtepe, and rectangular and round houses were discovered.In such houses, dark red chaff-tempered ceramics were found with ornaments from oval recesses and 21 Нариманов И.Г.Культура древнейшего земледельческо-скотоводческого населения… С. 42-45.triangular, trapezoid, and incised ornaments.The polished surface is covered with a light cream and dark red engobe.Although Ilanlytepe replicates the Neolithic traditions of Kültepe I, such as chaffed pottery, narrow-base 22 biconical vessels, and white marble vessels, it is notable for its surface-manipulated ceramic group.Ceramics with surface-manipulated ornaments were discovered in the Mil-Karabakh sites in the 21 st century.The application technique is partially similar to that of the Dalmatepe ceramics of Nakhchivantepe.

DISCUSSION
Studies indicate that the Nakhchivantepe site was one of the first and oldest centers of the Dalmatepe culture in the South Caucasus.It was previously believed 23 that the distribution area of this culture was limited to Yanıgtepe in the north and Tepe Giyan in the south.Nonetheless, studies carried out in the Nakhchivantepe site 24 22 Ibid.C. 48. 23Mellaart J.The Neolithic of the Near East.London: Thames and Hudson Ltd, 1975.Fig. 41. 24Baxşəliyev V. Naxçıvan arxeologiyası yeni tapıntılar işığında.Naxçıvan: Əcəmi, 2022.372 s. made it possible to expand the boundaries of the Dalmatepe culture by 300-400 km to the north.Traces of this culture can be found 25 in 3 sites of Nakhchivan: Uchan Agıl (4690-4450 BC), Uzunoba (4620-4370 BC), Bülovgaya and Godedzor site in the Zangazur region.The aforementioned factors support the conclusion that these regions constitute the northern periphery of this culture.
Nakhchivantepe is different from the other sites of the northern periphery by the richness of its archaeological material and stratigraphy.The main criteria for determining the nature of the site were four groups of ceramics, which form the basis of materials.Based on a total representation of both the painted and surfacemanipulated (II-IV) ceramic groups, the site of Nakhchivantepe is comparable to the sites of Dalmatepe, Dava Goz, Sheh Gabi, Siahbid, Haji Firuz, Pisdeli, Godun Tepe, Salmas, Sokha Chay, and Aranjan Tepe 26 .It occupies a special place in the group of "characteristic sites of the Dalmatepe culture".In the sites of Julfa Kültepe, Hasanly, Gavra, Lavin, and Dinha, only one of these ceramic groups was found, and the other was missing.Additionally, ceramics with surface-manipulated ornaments were found at the Khasek-Khoük and Korujutepe 27 sites in Eastern Anatolia.Although there is a gradual decrease from Lake Urmia to the south.Thus, these vessels make up 68% in the Kangavar Valley and 24% 28 in Makhidasht located southward.All that indicates the concentration of characteristic sites of the Dalmatepe culture mainly in areas stretching from the south of Urmia to Nakhchivan (Fig. 5).Nakhchivantepe is different from others in terms of its clear traceability of stratigraphy and the thickness of the cultural layer.This is why it is only compared with Dalmatepe.A clear trace of the stratigraphic sequence in these sites and a rich assortment of pottery types suggest that they are the main centers of the origin of this culture.
The transition from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic is continuously traced in Nakhchivantepe.The process is clearly demonstrated in the simple chaff-tempered ceramics of Nakhchivantepe.Chaff-tempered pottery, which was the main component of the Neolithic layer, continued to exist at later stages.Although J. Mellaart referred to this ceramic as an "Iranian characteristic" 29 , we believe that Iran-Azerbaijan was meant here.The widespread distribution of this type of pottery is evident in the Urmia basin 30 sites and adjacent northern regions.At one time, A. Jessen, linking the sites of Mil-Karabakh with the culture of Kültepe, and R. Munchaev, giving a joint description of the Nakhchivan-Mil-Karabakh group, based 31 their conclusions on the chaff-tempered ceramics.It is worth noting that older samples of chaff-tempered ceramics were found in the Neolithic layer of Kültepe I. Some studies indicate that the Dalmatepe culture was formed in Nakhchivantepe under the continuation of some Kültepe culture traditions.The predominance of chaff-tempered ceramics and the coincidence of the shapes of some vessels with the vessels of the Neolithic period of Kültepe indicate that the Neolithic and Chalcolithic traditions existed in parallel in Nakhchivantepe for a certain period of time.
The traditions that had passed into the Dalmatepe culture from the Neolithic were also evident in samples of ceramics with surface-manipulated ornaments.This is particularly noticeable in ceramics with painted ornaments.One of the two methods used in this process, the tradition of drawing patterns with black paint directly on the clay of the vessel, is widespread in the sites of the south of Urmia.In the second method, the ornament is applied to a red engobed surface and then polished.This method is widespread 32 in sites north of Urmia, such as Khalaj 33 , Kamiltepe, Kabirli, Alikomektepe, Chalagantepe 34 , Julfa Kültepe 35 .This difference is also evident in their distribution across the layers.Contrasting with the sites of the south of Urmia, Nakhchivantepe exhibits a predominant use of painted ceramics in the upper layers and surface-manipulated ceramics in the lower layers.We previously mentioned that the oldest samples of surface-manipulated ceramics were found in the Neolithic sites of Mil-Karabakh, and two copies are known from Kültepe I 36 .Ceramics with surfacemanipulated ornaments were also found 37 at the Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites of Devebatyrantepe in the Aghdam region, Goshatepe 38 , Evtepe, Gabristanl;gtepe (Kichikli), Chalagantepe, Gonshutepe No. 2, Imamgulubeyli, Küllütepe, Goshatepe No. 2, the settlement of Tainag, Bashirtepe in the Agjabedi region.Based on these finds, pottery with surface-manipulated ornaments of the Dalmatepe culture is currently associated 39 with the Late Neolithic culture of the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan.The discovery of printed ceramics from the Neolithic layer of the Mil-Karabakh sites, as well as the identification of elements similar to Kültepe I in chaff ceramics and some types of vessels, confirm the influence of the Neolithic cultures of Azerbaijan on the northern periphery of the Dalmatepe culture.
What factors could be responsible for the formation of the northern periphery of the Dalmatepe culture?First, these are the factors that contributed to the spread of the Dalmatepe culture.Some researchers attribute this spread to the movement of nomadic tribes, while others rely on wider connections and rely on Mesopotamia, Kermanshah and the surrounding regions 40 .Observing the location of the sites on the northern periphery, it is clear that the settlements of Julfa Kultepe, Salmas, Nakhchivantepe, Uchan Agyl, Godedzor are located along the road from Dalmatepe to the north, to the raw materials deposits of the South Caucasus (Fig. 6).In addition, the percentage of Caucasian obsidian in the sites of Nakhchivan, Mil-Karabakh and the Urmia basin is much higher than that of East Anatolian obsidian (Table 4).The use of raw material deposits played a decisive role in the economic relations between ancient civilizations, including the spread of various cultures.One of the main factors determining these relations is the deposits of raw materials in the territory of Nakhchivan 41 .Moreover, this South Caucasian obsidian was also transported through the territory of this region to the Urmia basin.Nakhchivan was an advantageous geographical position for transportation of Zangazur obsidian to the settlements south of the Araz, as well as to the countries of the Middle East 42 .It appears that obsidian was the predominant medium of exchange at that time.The occurrence of Khalaf-type ceramics in the South Caucasus as single samples is highly probable as a result of this exchange.These facts demonstrate that the main factor determining the spread of the Dalmatepe culture is the presence of natural raw materials.

CONCLUSION
The discovery of pottery, which is characteristic of the Dalmatepe culture, in Nakhchivantepe and surrounding sites allows for an expansion of the culture boundaries by about 300-400 km from Araz.Since extensive archaeological excavations have not yet been carried out at other sites, the samples obtained are limited.However, Nakhchivantepe stratigraphy shows that the northern periphery of the Dalmatepe culture formed in the South Caucasus.The predominant form of chafftempered pottery facilitates the examination of the transition from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic.The presence of a few similar samples to the vessels of Khalaf and Kültepe I in the layers of Nakhchivantepe from the Dalmatepe period, as well as a certain similarity in ceramics with surface-manipulated and painted ornaments, suggest an influence from Neolithic cultures.Considering these factors, it is possible to conclude that the Dalmatepe culture is a unique hybrid culture formed by the ancient civilizations of the South Caucasus and the Near East during the transition from the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic.The primary factor responsible for its widespread distribution is its proximity to the abundant natural resources of the South Caucasus.

Table 1 .
Stratigraphy of Nakhchivantepe settlement (The table was compiled by the author based on excavation reports) 4 .

Table 2 .
Distribution of ceramic groups by layers.