Metals, society, and economy in the Late Prehistoric Eurasian Steppe

Abstract

This chapter builds on a previous publication by Hanks and Doonan (2009) that reviewed scholarship of early metallurgy in the central Eurasian steppe zone and presented recent field research on the development of the Bronze Age Sintashta culture (2100-1700 cal. BC) situated in the southern Ural Mountains of the Russian Federation. This chapter provides a revised discussion of these issues and outlines some of the important challenges that remain to be overcome in developing better understandings of the social and economic context of metal production, trade, and use. Additionally, a new section on recent field research at the Sintashta settlement site of Stepnoye and its local catchment zone are provided in the second half of the chapter. Since 2007, our collaborative field research has aimed to develop a better understanding of early mining, metallurgy, and socioeconomic change in the north-central steppe region. This has been accomplished through the application of theoretical and methodological approaches that highlight the unique characteristics of early mining communities, microregional resources, and the nature of local, in addition to long-distance, trade relationships.