Abstract
Dry steppe region of eastern Kugitang Piedmonts (Southern Uzbekistan) provides uniquely preserved archaeological landscape mostly untouched by modern agricultural and settlement activities. Among diverse archaeological phenomena (settlement sites, irrigations, petroglyphs etc.) a large amount of various stone structures, predominantly mounds, was studied in pursuance of two-year surface survey.
The aim of the proposed presentation is to analyse an occurrence of identified stone mounds in the cultural landscape of foothill region of southern Uzbekistan, as well as to evaluate the patterns of their spatial distribution in relation to both natural and anthropogenic features in their vicinity. For this purpose, approaches of landscape archaeology were applied.
The main attention was paid on the spatial distribution of both individual object and whole clusters, relation of their location to the natural environment (elevation, slope aspect and gradient, distance from water) and other anthropogenic features (other mounds, settlements, petroglyphs), including their visual interconnectivity. Data collected in the database were processed using GIS integrating water stream network and digitalized elevated model, and thus allowing precise analysis of the selected area as an archaeological continuum.
The spatial analysis reveals a clear link between the occurrence of mounds and specific environment of gently sloping plateaus elevated above the surrounding landscape, where significant majority of the studied objects is located. Besides this preference, there is a certain connection between mounds and water streams flowing below the plateaus.
In regional scale, studied mounds occur mostly along the natural routes logically connecting mountain areas with lowlands, where historical settlements were concentrated as well. Despite the fact that several mounds belonging to the Early Iron Age Yaz I culture are situated nearby a settlement site of the same period, a spatial proximity to settlement of particular period doesn't seem to be a determining factor for their occurrence.
A possible link between mounds and potential transhumance routes is still to be verified.