Southwest Asian cereal crops facilitated high-elevation agriculture in the central Tien Shan during the mid-third millennium BCE

PLoS One. 2020 May 20;15(5):e0229372. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0229372. eCollection 2020.

Abstract

We report the earliest and the most abundant archaeobotanical assemblage of southwest Asian grain crops from Early Bronze Age Central Asia, recovered from the Chap II site in Kyrgyzstan. The archaeobotanical remains consist of thousands of cultivated grains dating to the mid-late third millennium BCE. The recovery of cereal chaff and weeds suggest local cultivation at 2000 m.a.s.l., as crops first spread to the mountains of Central Asia. The site's inhabitants possibly cultivated two types of free-threshing wheats, glume wheats, and hulled and naked barleys. Highly compact caryopses of wheat and barley grains represent distinct morphotypes of cereals adapted to highland environments. While additional macrobotanical evidence is needed to confirm the presence of glume wheats at Chap II, the possible identification of glume wheats at Chap II may represent their most eastern distribution in Central Asia. Based on the presence of weed species, we argue that the past environment of Chap II was characterized by an open mountain landscape, where animal grazing likely took place, which may have been further modified by people irrigating agricultural fields. This research suggests that early farmers in the mountains of Central Asia cultivated compact morphotypes of southwest Asian crops during the initial eastward dispersal of agricultural technologies, which likely played a critical role in shaping montane adaptations and dynamic interaction networks between farming societies across highland and lowland cultivation zones.

Publication types

  • Historical Article
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Archaeology*
  • Asia
  • Crops, Agricultural / growth & development
  • Crops, Agricultural / history*
  • Edible Grain / growth & development
  • Edible Grain / history*
  • History, Ancient
  • Hordeum / growth & development
  • Millets / growth & development
  • Triticum / growth & development

Grants and funding

This project has received funding from European Social Fund (project No 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0002) under grant agreement with the Research Council of Lithuania (LMTLT). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.