Palaeoenvironments and economy of Iron Age

Saka-Wusun agro-pastoralists in southeastern

Kazakhstan
ARLENEMILLERROSEN,CLAUDIACHANG
& FEDORPAVLOVICHGRIGORIEV"
A detailed geoarchaeological and environmental study of southeastern Kazakhstan reveals
subtle changes of land use and environment during the Iron Age. Major economic changes
from pastoralism to agriculture over time m a y be reinterpreted from these newfindings.

Key-words: Kazakhstan, Central Asia, geoarchaeology, environmental archaeology, phyoliths, nomads, agriculture

Introduction Recent archaeological investigations, directed

The acquisition of agricultural goods among Iron
Age pastoralists of Central Asia is a topic cru-
cial for understanding the relationship between
the nomads and their sedentary neighbours.
Many authors have characterized nomadic
economies as imbalanced and dependent on
settled agriculturalists of the great civilizations
to the east and west of the Eurasian steppes
(Lattimore 1979;Khazanov 1984).This represen-
tation allows little place for intensive agricultural
pursuits (Kazanov 1984:17),and perceives Cen-
tral Asian environments as being largely hos-
tile to farmers since the end of the Mid-Holocene
Neolithic optimum (Yablonsky 1995a; 199513).
Di Cosmo (1994) challenges this view by dem-
onstrating the importance of cultivation among
Iron Age pastoral nomads in Inner Asia. He uses
historical, archaeological and ethnographic stud-
ies to demonstrate that farming was commonly
practised as a supplementary activity within re-
gions dominated by nomadic peoples. The no-
mads either grew agriculturalproducts themselves
or dominated small farming communities within
their domain. Evidence for agricultural pursuits
also comes from archaeological finds in kurgan
burial mounds which include cereal grains as
well as iron agricultural implements (Debaine-
Francfort 1988; 1989).
by Chang and Gregoriev at the site of Tuzusai
in southeastern Kazakhstan, have attempted to
elucidate the nature of agro-pastoral nomadic
economies among the Saka-Wusun Period no-
madic groups (Chang & Tourtellotte 1998). Here
we present regional geoarchaeological evidence
for climatic amelioration during the Saka (from
c. 750-300 BC) and Wusun Period (c. 300 BC-
AD 2 0 0 ) occupations which was favourable to
agricultural pursuits. Phytolith data at the site
of Tuzusai suggest agricultural intensification
during this time period as well. The environ-
mental shift occurred at a time when histori-
cal trends made agricultural intensification
socially and politically advantageous, demon-
strating the importance of converging environ-
mental and historical transitions in changing
agricultural strategies.
Natural setting
The site of Tuzusai is located on the Talgar al-
luvial fan, on the northern foothills of the Tien
Shan mountain range in the Semirechye region
of southeastern Kazakhstan (FIGURE 1).The
region as a whole is characterized by a richly
diverse mosaic of landscapes within a relatively
restricted area. Today the Talgar area is semi-
arid receiving an annual average rainfall of 463

* Rosen. Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London W C l H OPY, England
a.rosen@ucl.ar:.uk
(:hang, Department of Anthropology, Sweet Briar College, Sweet Briar VA 24595, IJSA.
Grigoriev, Archaeology Division, Kazakh Central State Museum, Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Received 20 July 1999, accepted 9 November 1999, revised 8 May 2000.
ANTIQU17Y 74 (2000): 611-23
612 ARLENE MILLER ROSEN, CLAUDIA CHANG & FEDOR PAVLOVICH GRIGORIEV
mm per year with heaviest precipitation in the
spring and autumn. To the south are the high
granitic mountains of the Tien Shan with peaks
reaching over 7000 m. The advance and retreat
of alpine glaciers have left a valuable record of
Pleistocene and Holocene climatic fluctuations.
Silts produced by these glaciers have washed
out onto the plain to the north, where they were
deposited in the semi-arid steppe and desert
zones. In the cool arid episodes of the late
Pleistocene and Holocene, these silts were en-
trained by the prevailing northerly winds, and
redeposited as the wind-blown loess which
blankets the northern Tien Shan foothills along
the margin of the uplift zone.
The transition from mountain to steppe is
abruptly defined by the northern Tien Shan fault
line which separates the horst features of the
Tien Shan mountains and the half-graben of
the Ily River Valley. The Talgar alluvial fan is
situated at the juncture between the mountains
and the plain. It is an approximately 30-km wide
strip of land composed of distinct sedimen-
tary units of coarse gravels, reworked loess and
poorly sorted sandy silts and gravels. These
sediment units record a rich history of Late
Holocene environmental change.
FIGURE 1. Location
m a p of study area.
The vegetation was once a bunch-grass steppe
dominated by Stipa capillata, S. caucasica and
Festuca vaiesiaca), with trees such as elm, maple
and willow growing along the stream banks
(ENVIRC 1995). Further north toward the Ily
river, precipitation drops and the steppe zone
rapidly transforms to desert. At the point where
the toe of the fan descends into the Ily River
valley, water tables are high, as indicated by
numerous stands of common reed (Phragmites
sp.) present even today. Under moister climatic
conditions the marshes of this area would have
had a greater extent than those of today, pro-
viding pasturage and areas possibly suitable
for wetland cultivation. This region has been
an attractive zone for settlement by agro-pas-
toral groups since the Iron Age because of its
great environmental diversity within a mere
80 km.
Background to the site of Tuzusai
Tuzusai is a Saka and Wusun period settlement
(c. 400 BC-AD 100) located on the edge of the
Talgar alluvial fan at an elevation of 740 m. It
has been excavated since the late 1980s by Fedor
P. Grigoriev and most recently by the Kazakh-
American Talgar Project from 1994-1996.
 PALAEOENVIRONMENTS AND ECONOMY OF IRON AGE SOUTHEASTERN KAZAKHSTAN
The site consists of four occupation periods
and at least six different archaeological hori-
zons. The radiocarbon dates for the earliest
period of occupation (here referred to as Oc-
cupation Period 4 or OP-4) approximately range
from 355 to 115 cal BC (2150+30 to 2350+ 40
BP). Occupation Period 2 (OP-2) is dated from
180 cal BC to 75 cal AD, and the latest Occupa-
tion Period 1 (OP-1) is dated from 1650 to 1950
AD.
There have been disagreements about the
nature of the architecture found at Tuzusai. In
1994 Chang identified fragments of mudbrick
walls, most likely associated with the latest Iron
Age occupation of OP-2 ( c. 100 AD), and also
evidence for the existence of semi-subterranean
houses. However, Grigoriev disagrees with this
interpretation of pit-houses at the site. The one
comparative example of semi-subterranean or
house pit dwellings described for the Eurasian
steppe comes from the Odessa area, Varvarovski
I, dating from the 4th to the 3rd centuries BC
(late Scythian) (Khazanov 1975: 70). In addi-
tion to occupation surfaces at the site, the ex-
cavators found a large number of ashy storage
and refuse pits as well as hearths.
In the vicinity of Tuzusai and along ancient
and current stream beds such as the Tuzusai
stream and the Tsiganka River, we identified
ceramic materials and grinding stones on the
surface of the plough zone. The artefact scat-
ters and ceramic finds indicate a Saka and
Wusun spatial pattern of medium to large set-
tlements (similar to Tuzusai and often associ-
ated with kurgans (burial mounds) of the period),
which are located in the steppe zones of rich
silts and chernozem-like soils in areas of the
highest agricultural potential.
Paleoenvironmental changes and their
influence on Saka-Wusun settlement and
economies
Although monocausal and environmentally
deterministic explanations are seldom satisfac-
tory for the explanation of culture change, it is
important to examine the effects of environ-
mental change as either an enabler or inhibi-
tor of other cultural transformations within a
changing social milieu. It is from this perspec-
tive that we examine the past environments of
the Semirechye and their influence on the agro-
pastoral pursuits of the Iron Age Saka-Wusun
nomadic peoples.
613
Palynologica1 evidence
Much of the early literature on Holocene palyno-
logical studies from Central Asia is summarized
by Khotinskiy (1984). Due to the agreement
between the classic European Holocene climatic
phases and the Siberian bog cores, Khotinskiy
correlates the pollen sequences and uses the Eu-
ropean terminology for climatic phases. For the
purposes of this paper all radiocarbon dates for
proxy paleoenvironmental data will be reported
with their calibrated equivalents in order to fa-
cilitate comparison with the archaeological record.
The Mid-Holocene Atlantic period, climati-
cally a warm-moist optimum, witnessed the
beginning of Neolithic communities in Central
Asia. Although there is little direct pollen in-
formation for the steppe and desert zone it is
likely that their overall steppe/desert charac-
ter was established during this period. According
to Khotinskiy the transition to the Subboreal
was marked by three distinct environmental
changes, a cool-dry early Subboreal from c. 4600
BP (3357 cal BC) to 4100 BP (2600 cal BC), a warm-
moister middle Subboreal from 4100 BP (2600
cal BC) to 3200 BP (1440 cal BC), and another cool
late Subboreal episode from 3200 BP (1440 cal
BC) to 2500 BP (c.660 cal BC) (see TABLE 1).This
last cool phase corresponds to the first appear-
ance of the Saka peoples in the Semirechye re-
gion. Yablonsky (1995a; 1995b) suggested that
a dry episode was responsible for an initial
migration southward. Finally, the Siberian pol-
len data point to warmer moist conditions pre-
vailing at the beginning of the Subatlantic from
c. 660 BC (Khotinskiy 1984).
An environmental sequence for the Holocene
has also been outlined by Krementski (1997) for
Kazakhstan and Western Siberia based on pol-
len from lake cores (TABLE l).He points out that
the scenario is roughly consistent with the se-
quence of transgressions and regressions fiom Lake
Balkhash (Venus 1985;Khrustalev & Chernousov
1992, both cited by Krementski 1997), yet his
interpretation for the period beginning at 650
BC conflicts with that of Khotinskiy.
In addition to these conflicts in interpreta-
tion, one must use caution when comparing
pollen data to archaeological phases. It is dif-
ficult to interpolate calendar dates on pollen
sequences because of variations in sedimenta-
tion rates. One also must consider the lag-time
between actual climatic change and the colo-
nization by new vegetation communities.
614 ARLENE MILLER ROSEN. CLAUDIA CHANG & FEDOR PAVLOVICH GRIGORIEV

:alendar Date!
1500 AD
-
‘algar Fan

1400
1300
1200
1100
1000 Unit 2
900 Semi-Arid
800
700
600 -~
500 Erosion
400
300
200 Landscape
100 Stability
0 BCIAD sot1 2
100 BC VarmlMoist
200
300
400 ~ ~~

500 m
Y

600 ul Unit 3
700 Alluvial Silt
800 CoollMoist
900
1000
1100
1200
1300
1400
1500
1600
1700
1800
1900
2000

TABLE1. Graphic representation of’selected palaeoenvironmental reconstructions. Data are derived

from the following sources: * Savoskul 6.Solomina 1996; Krementski 1997; “hotinskiy 1984; O Venus
+

1985; Khrustalev & Chernousov 1992. The calendar dates come from calibrated ‘+’Cdates.

Geomorph ological evideri ce 6’ is dated to 380+30 (1483 AD). When calibrated

Evidence for later Holocene climatic change can
be found in Alpine glacial advances and re-
treats in the Tien Shan range. Savoskul &
Solomina (1996) used radiocarbon dates of soils
on end-moraines and lichenometric dating of
till deposits to establish a sequence of glacial
advances and retreats in the alpine areas which
reflects distinct climatic changes within the
Holocene (see TABLE1).Two soils identified
by Savoskul & Solomina (1996) are indicative
of warm-moist intervals between the glacial
advances and can be tentatively correlated with
two soil horizons identified on the Talgar fan.
The soil from Savoskul & Solomina’s (1996) ‘Site
5’ yielded two radiocarbon dates, 1740k70 BP
(calibrated as 264,281 or 329 AD), and 1710i240
BP (347, 360 or 374 AD). A later soil from ‘Site
this last date immediately precedes the ‘Little
Ice Age’ alpine glaciation.
Geoarch aeological investigations on the
Talgar alluvial fan
Geoarchaeological reconnaissance was under-
taken in the region of the Talgar alluvial fan in
the interest of three main goals:
1 to find evidence for landscape evolution
which would provide information on cli-
matic and micro-environmental changes
during the Late Holocene period:
2 to assess the landscape potential for agri-
cultural and pastoral pursuits through time;
and
3 to look for evidence of human manipula-
tion and impact on the landscape.
 PALAEOENVIRONMENTS AND ECONOMY OF IRON AGE SOUTHEASTERN KAZAKHSTAN
FIGURE 2. Location
m a p of sections on
the Talgar alluvial
fan.
Along the extent of the Talgar fan we were
unable to locate evidence for Holocene depos-
its that were earlier in date than the Late Holo-
cene. A number of sections along the fanhead
and niidfan revealed approximately 4 m of al-
luvium dating from c. 8th century BC-AD 17th
century. At the base of these sections there was
a thick gravel deposit (Unit 4) which is most
likely dated to the Middle or Late Pleistocene,
based on our finding of a handaxe fragment on
a similar deposit to the east of the Talgar fan.
This sequence of Late Holocene sediments re-
peats itself in all of the sections we observed
and described from the area (see FIGURE 2). A
suitable type-section for this sequence is the
Tsegonka River section of GS-VI described in
TABLE2 and illustrated in FIGURE 3. These de-
posits form a fill-terrace adjacent to the mod-
ern course of the stream. To summarize, the
Late Holocene Unit 3 deposits are dated by ar-
tefacts to the Saka-Wusun period. They indi-
cate a slow accumulation of fine silty alluvium
in the form of stream overbank deposits or fine-
6
grained sheetwash. The slow accumulation of
silty sediments over the fan suggests fine-grained
outwash from advancing alpine glaciers, im-
plying a cool environmental regime as also
proposed by Khotinskiy (1984) from the pol-
len data.
Ultimately, however, the meaning of Unit 3
for land use is important regardless of its cli-
matic implications. The deposition of fine-
grained sediment for an extended period of time
over the surface of the fan would provide a fer-
tile medium for both agricultural and pastoral
pursuits. The fields would be moist for long
periods of time within a given year and the silts
would be continually renewed, thereby elimi-
nating the problem of soil exhaustion.
In many exposures Unit 3 is truncated, with
an abrupt erosional contact between it and the
overlying Unit 2. However, at GS-VI the top of
the unit is capped by a weakly developed soil
A-horizon (Soil 2) (FIGURE 3). Soil 2 constitutes
important evidence for hundreds of years of
relatively warm moist environmental stability
616 ARLENE MILLER ROSEN, CLAUDIA CHANG & FEDOR PAVLOVICH GRIGORIEV

unit depth crn colour texture structure inclusions boundary depositional

(moist) environment

0-5 3 black silt loam platy soil rootlets, wavy & modern soil 1 A-horizon
(10YR 2/11 structure sparse snail abrupt
shells
53-80/147 dark brown loam; with cut- gley, Mn & -
irregular & fine-nrained alluvium
(10YR 3/31 and-fill channel Fe stains, abrupt with small gravel cut-and-
deposits consisting animal tooth, fill channel deposits
of moderately small cut-and- occurring from 108 cm to
well-sorted fill channels 147 cm. Equivalent to
discoidal and c. 10 cm deep Unit 2 in GS-VII and VIII.
spherical, well- x 40 cin long Possibly Medieval in date
rounded to sub-
rounded gravels
up to 3 cm
80/147-215 brown well-compacted massive Saka period wavy & fine silty alluvium,
(10 YR 4/31 silt with small sherds, snail graded to overbank or sheetwash
silt; YO sand; shells, bone, abrupt deposits. Approximately
very dark silt loam gley and some dated to the Saka period;
greyish A-horizon Fe stains, Soil 2 formed at the top of
brown at top of unit truncated this unit in a period of
(10 YR 3/21 buried landscape stability
A-horizon soil A-horizon
at the top of the
unit (-80 cm)
4 215-263 large well- graded granite not alluvial fan bedload
rounded, bedding gravels visible deposit date unknown;
discoidal channel equivalent to Unit 4 in
gravel up to 18 GS-VII and GS-VIII
cm in length,
grading upwards
to 2-5 cm
spherical and
discoidal,
rounded to
well-rounded gravels

TABLE2. Description of sediment sequence from geological section GS-VI.

at some time between the later Saka-Wusun
period and the Medieval period. It is possible
that it corresponds to the highland soil dated
by Savoskul & Solomina (1996) to c. 300 AD.
The boundary between Unit 3 and Unit 2 is
distinctly unconformable arid irregular, repre-
senting an intensive erosional phase that prob-
ably occurred in post-Wusun, early Medieval
times. Since an alluvial fan is primarily an
aggradational feature, it is possible that the ero-
sional episode can be attributed to neo-tectonic
subsidence of the Ily basin and a subsequent
drop in base level, or perhaps drier climatic
conditions in which lower water tables led to
stream incision on the fan. An apparent increase
in channel density on the Talgar fan during
Medieval times resulted in broad erosion chan-
nels forming in places where no streams had
existed before. The end result of this episode
was a patchwork of surfaces of different Late
Holocene ages over the face of the fan.
At the end of the erosional episode which
marks the Unit 3/2 boundary, the hydrological
regime returned to an aggradational episode
rather than one of stability. This suggests that
either climatic change or human-induced ero-
sion upstream might have been involved. The
deposits are typical of fan sediments in semi-
arid environments composed of many small
scour-and-fill structures. These deposits filled
in the erosion channels which had previously
dissected Unit 3. This massive deposition in-
dicates that the sediment yield had increased.
Such a depositional situation could be caused
 PALAEOENVIRONMENTS AND ECONOMY OF IRON AGE SOUTHEASTERN KAZAKHSTAN 617

by several variables working in concert. One

factor could be a decrease in vegetation upstream
due to drier climatic conditions, human defor-
GS a
estation, or both. Another important factor may
have been a change in rainfall regime from the 1 l - - - - - i UNIT 1
more stable situation of gentle rains evenly
distributed throughout the year to more ero-
sive conditions of heavy rainfall events at fewer
intervals in a given year. The latter situation is UNIT 2
often associated with an overall decrease in
annual rainfall and a more arid climate.
Unit 2 is stratigraphically dated to the Me-
dieval period, being bracketed by the Saka- loo 1
Wusun ceramic dates of Unit 3 below, and a
radiocarbon date of c. 1500 AD (calibrated) from
Unit 1 at GS-VII. Additionally, Medieval pe- UNIT 3
riod (c. loth-12th-century AD) archaeological
pits appear in Unit 2 on the plain to the south
of Medieval Talgar City (Rosen 1997a). A pre-
liminary assessment of the early Medieval en-
vironmental situation near Talgar is a drier
climate with a less stable rainfall regime than
in the Saka-Wusun period. Landscape degra-
dation might have been exacerbated by defor-
estation on the hillslopes and overgrazing by UNIT- 4
flocks belonging to the urban residents of the
area. This would seem to contradict evidence
from the Balkhash Lake cited by Krementski
(1997) [see TABLE I),but different environmental @ SOIL A-HORIZON
variables control lake levels than alluvial fan
sediments. SllT SNAILS
Unit 2 grades gradually into Unit 1,which
is capped by Soil 1. The radiocarbon-dated SAND GCEY
hearth from Unit 1 in GS-VII is 1447-1634 cal
AD (RT-2333, 380+90 BP). This would place it
GRAVEL SHERDS
directly into the time-period of the Little Ice
Age event (with a cooler environment prevail- FIGURE 3. Schematic geological section drawing of
ing), and with Soil 1 signifying a return to a GS-VI.
more stable rainfall and vegetation regime and
a cessation of aggradation. The modern erosional madic peoples in the region. In the later phases
regime has led to renewed channelization of of the Saka-Wusun occupation, warming cli-
the fan. This, however, might be due to the di- mate and the subsequent development of sta-
version of much of the river water for wide- ble land surfaces with a rich topsoil allowed
spread irrigation, thus artificially lowering the more intensive cultivation of cereals.
base flow of the streams.
To summarize, geoarchaeological evidence Phytolith evidence for agricultural activities
from the Talgar fan suggests that the buildup of the Saka-Wusun communities
of alluvial silts during the earlier part of the Previous evidence for agriculture among Saka-
Saka-Wusun period created an attractive locality Wusun period peoples has come from finds of
for pastoral and agricultural exploitation. How- iron agricultural implements and small amounts
ever, cool climates and short growing seasons of grain, primarily wheat, within burial kurgans
would have limited yields of wheat and en- (Debaine-Francfort 1989).These finds afford us
couraged the cultivation of millet by semi-no- only a limited view of the diversity of Saka-
618 ARLENE MILLER ROSEN, CLAUDIA CHANG & FEDOR PAVLOVICH GRIGORIEV

lab no. quadrat depth cm occupation context TABLE

3.
surface Archaeological
proveniences of
Ty -9 5-2 B6 70 2 lens of ash in bricky fill phytolith samples
Ty-95-3 v5 135 3 ashy midden from Tuzusai.
Ty-95-4 A3 135 4 ashy midden
Ty-95-5 BQ 60 1 ash from floor
Ty-95-6 v9 65 1 ash from floor
Ty-95- 7 v9 32 1 ash from pit base
Ty-95-8 A4 225 4 base of pit
Ty -9 5-9 G9IV8 - 1 pit fill
Ty -9 5-10 V8 80-100 2 debris on floor
5-95-11 B6 100 3 pit fill
Ty- 95- 12 - 15 2 hearth fill
Ty-95-13 - - 3 pit #17 fill
Ty-95- 14 - - 3 pit #18 fill
Ty-95-15 - - 3 pit #17 fill FIGURE 4 (below).
Ty- 95- 16 - - 3 pit #18 fill Percentage
Ty -9 5-17 - - 3 pit #17 fill frequencies of
Ty-95-18 - - 3 pit #18 fill panicoid versus pooid
5-96- 2 10-D 60-100 4 pit #24a grass phytoliths. The
5-96-3 D-10 100-120 4 fill from pit #24b samples ore arranged
Ty-96-7 D-10 100-1 20 4 pit #24b in general
Ty-96-14 145 c m to bottom 4 pit #27a;west half chronological order
Ty-96-15 12-G 120-340 4 pit #28b from oldest (left) to
Ty-96-16 12-G 120-140 4 pit #29 youngest (right).
Tuzusai 199511996

35 , occ. 4 occ. 3 occ. 2 occ. 1

. ._
- 1
30 - -- . I;II Total Panicoid L
I
.Total Pooid I
25

20

--i
15

10

0
w m . -

Sample No.
 PALAEOENVIRONMENTS AND ECONOMY OF IRON AGE SOUTHEASTERN KAZAKHSTAN
Tuzusai 199541996
occ. 4
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0
0.5
2
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
Wusun agriculture. During the 1995 and 1996
seasons at Tuzusai, samples were collected from
living floors, pits and hearths from within the
four occupation phases at the site (TABLE3 )
(Rosen 1996; 1997b) (see Rosen 2000 for a de-
tailed description of phytolith methodology).
The results of these analyses testify to agricul-
tural activities and imply variations in the in-
tensity of agricultural pursuits throughout the
period of site occupation.
A general summary of trends suggests a strong
dominance of panicoid grasses in the earliest
occupation period (OP-4) (FIGURE 4). This grass
sub-family includes the cultivated millets as
well as weed grasses which favour warm dry
environments. There is a much larger contri-
bution of weed grasses to the assemblage of OP-
4 than in later periods (FIGURE 5). Cereals were
identified according to methods outlined in
Rosen 1992. Although the cereal component
of OP-4 included both millet (Setaria sp.) and
wheat (Triticum sp.), the percentage of millet
61 9
was significantly higher in this level than in
Occupation periods 3 and 2 (FIGURE 6). The
dominance of millet is consistent with, although
not limited to, a semi-nomadic settlement pat-
tern under cool climatic conditions since mil-
let is produced in a short growing season. Wheat
remained relatively constant in all periods with
a slight increase in later phases.
From OP-4 to OP-3 there was a shift in phytolith
percentages which may be indicative of a chang-
ing focus in the agro-pastoral economies at the
site. In OP-3 there was a sharp decrease in the
weed grasdcercal ratio (FIGURE 5) indicating a
large increase in cereals at the expense of weed
grasses. This trend continued also in OP-2. Per-
centages of silica skeletons from wheat (Triticum
sp.) increased and millet (Setaria sp.) declined
in importance (FIGIJRE 6). This could indicate a
larger investment in cultivation.
Another notable observation was the chang-
ing relationship between weed grasses and ce-
reals (FIGURE 7). In OP-4 there was no correlation
620 ARLENE MILLER ROSEN, CLAUDIA CHANG & FEDOR PAVLOVICH GRIGORIEV

Tuzusai I99511996

20
1
. ~ . .............
.
CJAverage % Millet
.. .. ... ... ... ...

1-
ElAverage % Rice
16 .. ..... ....... ... .. ...
.. ... ... .. ... ... ... ..
......
... . ... . .... .... .... .... ...
14 . .. .......... .... . .
. .. . .. . .. . . . .. .
... .. ... .. .._.. ............_..
U
E . .. ... .. ...... ...
0 12
2
Q
n
Q 10
v,
eQ
a
h
6

0
4 3 2 1
Occupation Period
FIGURE6 . Average percentages of silica skeletons from cereals by occupation phase.

between the two, strongly suggesting that the
sources of cereal and weed grass phytoliths
differed. Thus weed grasses came to the site
from different locations from the cereals and
at different rates, perhaps indicating again that
the weed grasses were from the dung of ani-
mals grazed outside agricultural areas. In OP-
3 this relationship began to change and in OP-2
and OP-1 there was a distinct coincidence be-
tween the presence of cereals and the occurrence
of weed grasses. These relationships imply that
the weed grasses came to the site as field weeds
or as dung from animals grazed on agricultural
fields. This can be further evidence for an in-
crease in agricultural intensification and suggests
that herds were kept close to the settlement.
Several of the silica skeletons were from the
husks of cultivated rice (Oryza sativa) (FIGURE
8). Other phytolith forms (fan-shaped keystones)
(FIGURE 9) were derived from the leaves and
stems of the rice plant (Pearsall et al. 1995; Zhao
et al. 1998).The presence of rice is rare in Iron
Age sites of this region and poses the interest-
ing question of how the rice was obtained,
through trade or on-site cultivation. The per-
centages of these husk phytoliths were low in
the earliest OP-4 phase, and greatly increased
in OP-3 and OP-2 with a drop-off again in OP-
1 (FIGURE 6). This was the opposite distribu-
tion from that of millet. In the last phases of
occupation in OP-1, millet increased in impor-
tance again.
Throughout the entire occupation of the site
there was a notable quantity of phytoliths from
sedges (Cyperaceae) and horse-tail rushes
(Equisetum)indicating the presence of marshy
areas and high water tables. This suggests a
generally moist climatic regime throughout the
duration of occupation.
Given the environmental conditions of the
Saka-Wusun period discussed above, it might
have been possible for the occupants of Tuzusai
 PALAEOENVIRONMENTS AND ECONOMY OF IRON AGE SOUTHEASTERN KAZAKHSTAN 621

Tuzusai 1995/1996

Sample No.

FIGURE7. Graph showing the relationship between phytoliths from weed grasses and those from
cultivated whent.

to produce a rice crop on the alluvial fan un- Discussion

der conditions that were moister than those of
the present. However, the Talgar fan settlements
are relatively close to the Fergana valley where
contemporary Kushan towns had sophisticated
irrigation systems and were themselves produc-
ing rice among other crops (Mukhamedjanov
1994: 274). Given the political connection of
the Wusun peoples with the Yueh Chih and
other peoples to the west in the 1st and 2nd
centuries BC, it is also possible that rice could
have been obtained from there.
Generally, the trends in the phytolith data
suggest an agro-pastoral adaptation in OP-4 with
a shift to a more intensive agricultural focus
within the two middle occupation periods, OP-
3 and OP-2. The latest occupation (OP-1) ap-
pears to represent a period of somewhat less
intensive agricultural activity.
With the above archaeological, environmental
and agricultural information we can suggest a
scenario for Saka-Wusun settlement and
economy. In the Early Iron Age, Saka tribes
moved into the area from the north (Yablonski
1995b) at a time corresponding to a cool-moist
Subboreal period. The first settlers at Tuzusai
had an agro-pastoral economy in which ani-
mals were grazed at least part of the year on
the panicoid steppe grasses to the north of
Tuzusai, and agriculture was characterized by
a dominance of millet.
Due to a short growth period, millet is fa-
voured by semi-sedentary pastoralists because
the crop can be planted and harvested while
maintaining a semi-sedentary seasonal round.
This is especially significant given the short
length of the summer growing season and in-
622 ARLENE MILLEK ROSEN, CLAUDIA CHANG & FEDOR PAVLOVICH GRIGOKIEV

FIGURE a.
Photomicrograph of a
possible rice-husk
silica skeleton from
Tuzusai.
Scale bar = 20 m m .

FIGURE 9.
Photomicrograph of a
fan-shaped bulliform
phytolith from
Tuzusai which is
probably derived
from the leaf of a rice
plant.
Scale = 10 mm.

crease in frost-days during the Subboreal pe-
riod. Millet would have been better adapted to
this environmental regime than wheat.
In the vicinity of Tuzusai the early Iron Age
landscape was an actively aggrading alluvial
fan. The alluvial silt originating from the out-
wash of extended alpine glaciers would have
provided a rich agricultural environment with
high water tables, aggrading streams, and fresh
silts deposited in moist fields each spring.
The middle and later phases of occupation
at Tuzusai coincided with the onset of the
warmer Subatlantic period. The agricultural
growing season would have been longer than
that of the preceding Subboreal phase. There
was a cessation of alluviation on the fan, a sta-
bility in the landscape and the beginning of
soil formation as indicated by Soil 2.
Historically, it was an interval in which
Wusun peoples increased their presence in the
region due to political and economic pressure
from newly consolidating tribes of the Xiongnu
to the east and alliances with the Yueh Chih to
the west (Enoki etal. 1994;Zadneprovskiy 1994;
Ishjamts 1994).There were elite segments which
commanded large armies (Ishjamts 1994) and
 PALAEOENVIRONMENTS AND ECONOMY OF IRON AGE SOUTHEASTERN KAZAKHSTAN
it follows that they would find it necessary to
have some measure of control over agricultural
production and surplus. The emergence of com-
plex nomadic confederacies might have provided
the 'push' factor leading to the intensification of
the agricultural sector at the same time that en-
vironmental amelioration offered a 'pull' factor.
The phytolith remains from Tuzusai appear
to represent a small but significant shift from a
more pastoral orientation to a more intensive
agricultural focus, aided by both environmen-
tal and historical factors.
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