The Multi-Period Settlement Dali in Southeastern Kazakhstan: Bronze Age Institutional Dynamics along the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor

ABSTRACT:Archaeological excavations at the Dali site complex located in southeastern Kazakhstan provide a rich picture of Bronze Age life spanning from the early third to late second millennia b.c. Nearly ten years of research at the site have produced an abundant assemblage of architectural remains, ritual and burial contexts, human and animal ancient DNA, and evidence for related economic practices and other material forms (ceramics, metallurgy). A systematic radiocarbon dating program provides detailed chronological context for the numerous stratigraphically documented phases of occupation, burial, and economy at the site. The settlement contexts at Dali provide some of the most varied and well-dated material assemblages known in the region and help illustrate how local pastoralist societies developed traditions of architecture, ceramic production, herd management, and ritual in the Early Bronze Age, while innovating and incorporating novel craft techniques, economic strategies, burial styles, and settlement construction in the Middle and Late Bronze Age. Taken together, the archaeological data from Dali allow for a detailed reconstruction of the local practices and regional interactions that engaged agro-pastoralist communities within diverse, shared institutional domains across the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor and beyond over a span of more than 2000 years.