Collaborative Research - Investigation of an Ancient Industrial Landscape in Western Rough Cilicia

The Rough Cilicia Archaeological Project is investigating the role of Rough Cilicia (south coastal Turkey) as a production center for the ancient Roman Mediterranean economy. In peripheral areas such as ancient Rough Cilicia, evidence of native adoption of imported modes of economic production furnish a unique opportunity to view the development of an imperial world system through the lens of local societies. Apart from our reliance on post-colonial economic theory to articulate a likely mode of resource production for the region, our investigative methods include remote sensing of satellite imagery; surface, geomorphological, and maritime survey; charcoal analysis of ceramic production residue for timber identification; and biogeochemical analysis of regional terrestrial vegetation preserved in sediments.

Work to date has identified crucial indicators of economic production activities associated with the renewable resource of timber from Cilician mountain forests. To refine this question, the project is examining the basin of the Bckici River (modern Gazipasha, Turkey) as a zone of ancient industrial development. The multi-phased archaeological fieldwork includes pedestrian survey along with detailed architectural documentation, designed to yield information on the distribution, scale and style of architectural features as well as information on land-use intensity through time. The geomorphological survey is quantifying the effects of deforestation on the magnitude, the rates, and the timing of sediment deposition in the Bickici basin, while at the same time identifying areas of deposition for palynological, charcoal, and lignin analysis. From sediment, topographic, and bathymetric data acquired along the river valley, the team is constructing hydraulic, sedimentation, and soil erosion models capable of simulating historic changes in this watershed as a result of deforestation and/or agricultural use and abandonment. Through geological core-sampling, project collaborators are obtaining microscopic samples of woody and foliar tissue residues capable of identifying archaeological woods and charcoals. Tissues residues from grasses, woody angiosperms and gymnosperms found in sediments, for example, are differentiated using geochemical tests to distinguish among chemical forms of lignin and the stable carbon isotope composition of its chemical residues. The team is also obtaining samples of ancient charcoal residues through magnetometer inspection, auger sampling, and ceramic collection at the Bickici kiln site. Through laboratory analysis the team is matching these samples against wood from ship remains and archaeological sites in Turkey to identify the types of trees used in antiquity and their areas of origination. Along with palynological, macrobotanical, and Carbon-14 analysis, these strategies are enabling the team to obtain more precise data for the form, scale, and duration of Cilician deforestation. Simultaneously, the underwater survey is exploring the potential for ancient Cilician marine activity by examining the coastal platform and shallow continental shelf for remains of shipbuilding and maritime facilities. By combining these various methodologies and technologies, the research program holds the potential to identify salient modes of production and economic integration employed in western Rough Cilicia during the Roman era, thereby achieving a greater understanding of the economic transmutations that occur when native communities and external empires combine efforts to exploit a regional resource base.