Shengavit Settlement
Encyclopedia
The Shengavit Settlement (Armenian
: Շենգավիթ) is an archaeological site in present day Yerevan
, Armenia
located on a hill south-east of Lake Yerevan. It was inhabited during four distinct settlement phases from the late 4th millennium BC (Calcolithic period) to the early 2nd century BC. The town occupied an area of six hectares. It appears that Shengavit was a cultural center for the areas surrounding the town due to its unusual size and defensive nature. Four smaller village sites of Moukhannat, Tepe, Khorumbulagh, and Tairov have been identified and were located outside the walls of Shengavit. They formed a two-tiered settlement pattern like that of the ancient city of Dvin
to the south. Its pottery makes it a type site of the Early Transcaucasian or Kura-Araxes culture
.
In July 2010 Simonyan announced that the amount of revealed horse bones at the site had exceeded all expectations. German paleozoologist Hans Peter Wertman stated that he has not observed such a quantity of horses in the entire Ancient East.
and obsidian
stone tools, mace heads, hoes, hammers, grinders, spindle whorls, spearheads, flakers, needles, pottery, and crucibles (which could hold 10 kg of smelted metal). Storage containers for smelted metal were found as well that held far greater amounts than the town should have required. Large quantities of debris from flint and obsidian knapping, pottery making, metallurgy, and weapons manufacture indicate that the town had organized guilds which performed such tasks. Pottery found at the town typically has a characteristic black burnished exterior and reddish interior with either incised or raised designs. This style defines the period, and is found across the mountainous Early Transcaucasian territories. One of the larger styles of pottery has been identified as a wine vat but residue tests will confirm this notion.
A large stone obelisk
was discovered in one of the structures during earlier excavations. A similar obelisk was uncovered at the site of Mokhrablur four km south of Ejmiatsin. It is thought that this, and the numerous statuettes made of clay that have been found are part of a central ritualistic practice in Shengavit.
Armenian language
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
: Շենգավիթ) is an archaeological site in present day Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
located on a hill south-east of Lake Yerevan. It was inhabited during four distinct settlement phases from the late 4th millennium BC (Calcolithic period) to the early 2nd century BC. The town occupied an area of six hectares. It appears that Shengavit was a cultural center for the areas surrounding the town due to its unusual size and defensive nature. Four smaller village sites of Moukhannat, Tepe, Khorumbulagh, and Tairov have been identified and were located outside the walls of Shengavit. They formed a two-tiered settlement pattern like that of the ancient city of Dvin
Dvin
Dvin was a large commercial city and the capital of early medieval Armenia. It was situated north of the previous ancient capital of Armenia, the city of Artaxata, along the banks of the Metsamor River, 35 km to the south of modern Yerevan...
to the south. Its pottery makes it a type site of the Early Transcaucasian or Kura-Araxes culture
Kura-Araxes culture
The Kura-Araxes culture or the Early trans-Caucasian culture, was a civilization that existed from 3400 BC until about 2000 BC. The earliest evidence for this culture is found on the Ararat plain; thence it spread to Georgia by 3000 BC, and during the next millennium it proceeded westward to the...
.
History of excavation
Excavations at Shengavit began in 1938 under the guidance of E. Bayburdian who dug a trial trench at the hill which in turn led to further archaeological work to be done at the site. S.A. Sardarian resumed the excavations in 1958 but his work was poorly recorded. He left insufficient records to pinpoint exact locations where artifacts were found. Work began once again in 2000 under Hakop Simonyan, who dug stratigraphic trenches at the edges of Bayburdian and Sardarian’s old trenches to indicate the various strata levels at the town. He found four distinct strata levels, indicating four settlement phases at the town.In July 2010 Simonyan announced that the amount of revealed horse bones at the site had exceeded all expectations. German paleozoologist Hans Peter Wertman stated that he has not observed such a quantity of horses in the entire Ancient East.
Settlement plan
Archaeologists so far have uncovered large cyclopean walls with towers that surrounded the settlement. Within these walls were circular and square multi-dwelling buildings constructed of stone and mud-brick. Inside some of the residential structures were ritual hearths and household pits, while large silos located nearby stored wheat and barley for the residents of the town. There was also an underground passage that led to the river from the town. Earlier excavations had uncovered burial mounds outside the settlement walls towards the south-east and south-west. More ancient graves still remain in the same vicinity.Portable finds
Amongst the finds during archaeological excavations at Shengavit were chertChert
Chert is a fine-grained silica-rich microcrystalline, cryptocrystalline or microfibrous sedimentary rock that may contain small fossils. It varies greatly in color , but most often manifests as gray, brown, grayish brown and light green to rusty red; its color is an expression of trace elements...
and obsidian
Obsidian
Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock.It is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimum crystal growth...
stone tools, mace heads, hoes, hammers, grinders, spindle whorls, spearheads, flakers, needles, pottery, and crucibles (which could hold 10 kg of smelted metal). Storage containers for smelted metal were found as well that held far greater amounts than the town should have required. Large quantities of debris from flint and obsidian knapping, pottery making, metallurgy, and weapons manufacture indicate that the town had organized guilds which performed such tasks. Pottery found at the town typically has a characteristic black burnished exterior and reddish interior with either incised or raised designs. This style defines the period, and is found across the mountainous Early Transcaucasian territories. One of the larger styles of pottery has been identified as a wine vat but residue tests will confirm this notion.
A large stone obelisk
Obelisk
An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...
was discovered in one of the structures during earlier excavations. A similar obelisk was uncovered at the site of Mokhrablur four km south of Ejmiatsin. It is thought that this, and the numerous statuettes made of clay that have been found are part of a central ritualistic practice in Shengavit.