KAZAKHSTAN

VOLUNTEER CAMPS IN KAZAKHSTAN

During the summer and autumn of 2013, Laboratory of Geoarchaeology (Faculty of History, Archeology and Ethnology, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University) is organizing archaeological investigations covering all periods from Palaeolithic to Modern times all over Kazakhstan. The programme of work consist mainly in mapping, land and aerial photography, collection of paleodata for analyses. Open-air lectures in the history, archaeology and geoarchaeology of Central Asia and visits of local sites will be included. Sessions will take place between July and October 2013 and are 15 days in duration. Volunteers and students of archaeology are welcome to join us. The participation fee is €250 (or 300 USD) per week and academic credit is given by the Kazakh National University. Interested volunteers and students of archaeology should contact the LGA to ask for full details on the various survey and excavation opportunities on offer.

Renewed information are also available on the Laboratory of Geoarchaeology web site: http://www.lgakz.org

Or you can check the updated announcement of our volunteer camps on the Fieldwork webpage of the Archaeological Institute of America.

There will 2 expeditions occurring from July 01, 2013 - October 31, 2013

1) Chu-Ili mountains (Petroglyphs sites), 15- 31 July, 15 - 31 August; 15-30 September, 15-31 October

2) North Balkhash region (Paleolithic and petroglyphs sites), 1 – 15 September, 1-15 October

Application Deadline: Not applicable

1. BRONZE AND IRON AGE OF PASTORAL SOCIETIES, SURVEY OF THE CHU-ILI MOUNTAINS AND NORTH-WEST BALKHASH REGIONS

Director:	Renato Sala
Site/Period:	Bronze, Early Iron, Wusun, Turkic
Volunteers:	5-10
Experience required:	No previous experience necessary
Excavation dates:	15 July to 31 October 2013
Application deadline:	ASAP
Minimum stay:	Two weeks
Cost:	USD300 per week
Fare:	Not included
Accommodation:	Provided
Food:	Provided (vegetarian and non-vegetarian)
Vaccination:	Anti-tetanus recommended
Passport/visa:	Valid passport; for visa contact organiser 6 weeks in advance.

The Chu-Ili mountains are smooth undulations of a maximum altitude 1500m in a semi-desertic landscape south-west of Lake Balkhash. Their springs and oases constituted a refuge and a corridor for cultures from Palaeolithic to ethnographic times, represented archaeologically by cemeteries, houses, steles and, most predominantly, petroglyphs. From the Middle Bronze to the Turkic periods the area was a crossroads for tribal migrations reflected in the character and range of petroglyphs, which now represent the most important monuments of the area and are among the most important rock art sites of Central Asia and Siberia.

Fieldwork will be directed by specialists from the Laboratory of Geoarchaeology. During this survey, the camp will be nomadic. You will work various sites including the recently discovered petroglyph sites of the southern border of the Chu-Ili range (site of Kuljabasy) and the disseminated petroglyphs sites located in the gorges around the Balkash lake.

The objective of this camp is to continue the survey and documentation of the petroglyphs sites existing in the region and to map the archaeological monuments. Volunteers will be introduced to modern techniques of preliminary geographical study using satellite, aerial photography and detailed maps. Documentation will be provided by traditional and new advanced methods (GIS, digital-video). The ecological features of the landscape (summer-winter camps, tracks etc.) will be studied.

Geological and trial trenches will be excavated to collect paleosoils for dating and paleoenvironmental reconstruction. The weather is extremely dry. Volunteers should bring a sleeping bag, a mat, a sweater, some strong shoes, and a flashlight. Further tours can be organised at the end of the fieldwork.

Useful reading

Sala R., Deom J.-M., 2005 Petroglyphs of South Kazakhstan. Almaty. (Available in English and Russian, link to sale online: Alibris.com. ).

Aubekerov B.J., Rogozhinskii A.E., Sala R, 2004 Pamyatniki Kazakhstana (Rock art sites of Kazakshtan) in: Rogozhinskiy A (ed) (2004) Rock Art sites of Central Asia: documentation, conservation, management, community participation. Almaty. (Available in English on CD-Rom, contact ispkz@yahoo.com for purchasing).

Contact: Jean-Marc Deom, Laboratory of Geoarchaeology (Faculty of History, Archeology and Ethnology, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University), av.al-Farabi, 71, 4^th Floor, room 4-8, 050060 Almaty, KAZAKHSTAN

Tel: +7 701 760 92 89

Fax:

Email: ispkz@yahoo.com

2. PALEOLITHIC AND PETROGLYPH SITES OF THE NORTHERN PRE-BALKHASH REGION

Director:	Renato Sala & Jean-Marc Deom
Site/Period:	Bronze, Early Iron, Wusun, Turkic
Volunteers:	5-10
Experience required:	No previous experience necessary
Excavation dates:	15 July to 31 October 2013
Application deadline:	ASAP
Minimum stay:	Two weeks
Cost:	USD300 per week
Fare:	Not included
Accommodation:	Provided
Food:	Provided (vegetarian and non-vegetarian)
Vaccination:	Anti-tetanus recommended
Passport/visa:	Valid passport; for visa contact organiser 6 weeks in advance.

The Northern Pre-Balkhash region consists in low hill ranges under 1000m altitude in a desertic landscape made of dried valleys and few springs. If it is today a largely uninhabited area, it sheltered numerous Paleolithic campsites and several Bronze to Ethnographic settlements and large rock art sites.

Fieldwork will be directed by specialists from the Laboratory of Geoarchaeology. During this survey, the camp will be nomadic. You will work various sites located at the north of Sayak in the Karaungur mountain and its neighbourhood.

The objective of this camp is to continue the survey and documentation of the petroglyphs sites existing in the region and to update the documentation of the Paleolithic sites. Volunteers will be introduced to modern techniques of preliminary geographical study using satellite, aerial photography and detailed maps. Documentation will be provided by traditional and new advanced methods (GIS, digital-video). The ecological features of the landscape (summer-winter camps, tracks etc.) will be studied.

Useful reading

A. Medoev, Gravyury na skalax (Rock engravings), Alma-ata, 1979 (in Russian)

Aubekerov B., Nigmatova S., Sala R., Prehistorical and historical stages of development of the Balkhash lake. In: Reconceptualizing Cultural and Environmental change in Central Asia. An historical perspective on the future, Kyoto, 2010, p.49-76 (online webpage: http://www.ilipro.com/page/18-publication/workshop-book/workshop-book_20090201-02.html)

Aubekerov B.J., Rogozhinskii A.E., Sala R, Pamyatniki Kazakhstana (Rock art sites of Kazakshtan) in: Rogozhinskiy A (ed) (2004) Rock Art sites of Central Asia: documentation, conservation, management, community participation. Almaty. 2004 (Available in English on CD-Rom, contact ispkz@nyahoo.com for purchasing).

O. A. Artiukhova, Derevianko A.P., Petrin V.T., Taimagambetov Z.K., Paleoliticheskie Kompleksy Semizbugu, Punkt 4 (Severnoe Pribalkhashe), Institut arkheologii i etnografii (Rossiiskaia akademiia nauk Sibirskoe otdelenie), Novosibirsk: IAE SO RAN, 2001 (in Russian)

Derevianko A.P., Aubekerov B. Z., Petrin V.T., Taimagambetov Z.K., Artiukhova O.A., Paleolit Severnogo Pribalkhashia (Semizbugu punkt 2, rannii-pozdni paleolit), Novosibirsk: IAE SO RAN, 1993 (in Russian)

Tel-GSM: +7 701 760 92 89

Fax:

Email: ispkz@yahoo.com