Presentations on research conducted at the Azykh, Taghlar, and Garaja sites in Azerbaijan were delivered at the international seminar

Researchers from the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS), PhD in History, Associate Professor Azad Zeynalov, and Ajdar Babazade (head of the Azykh Archaeological Research and Analysis Laboratory at Karabakh University), participated in an international seminar held in Denmark.

The seminar focused on the results of the international THOCA project (Timing and Ecology of Human Occupation in Central Asia), funded by NordForsk and implemented by the Technical University of Denmark and Aarhus University.

NordForsk is an organization under the Nordic Council of Ministers that promotes research cooperation and infrastructure funding across the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, as well as the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland Islands). Its main objective is to strengthen research collaboration between Nordic countries and between Eastern and Western countries more broadly.

Research within the framework of the THOCA and CAUCUS projects aims to systematically investigate the history and environment (palaeo-ecosystems including climate, soil, and landscape changes) of early human settlement in Central Asia and the South Caucasus. The projects focus on understanding human dispersals out of Africa, initial migrations, early hominin settlement in Eurasia, and various stages of technological, physiological, cognitive, and anatomical evolution.

For the South Caucasus region, the primary goal is to comprehend the prehistoric “human–ecology–landscape” dynamics.

Within the scope of these projects, funding is provided for various absolute dating and analytical methods, such as: Radiocarbon dating, Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL), U-Th analysis of soil carbonates, Geochronological and magnetostratigraphic methods, Cosmogenic nuclide (beryllium-10) dating.

Additionally, research involves paleoclimatic reconstruction, dietary analysis, and human–environment interaction using biomarkers, isotopic analysis, micromorphology, mineralogy, palaeoproteomics, archaeometry, bioarchaeology, and ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis.

Samples for analysis include material from Azykh Cave and the open-air Palaeolithic Garaja site in Azerbaijan. Analyses are being conducted primarily at the Universities of Copenhagen, Aarhus, Oslo, and the Technical University of Denmark.

During the seminar, Azad Zeynalov presented preliminary results of excavations carried out by the Azerbaijani–Danish international archaeological team at the Azykh Cave (Khojavend), the open-air Garaja Palaeolithic camp (Mingachevir), and by the Azerbaijani–Japanese team at Taghlar Cave (Khojavend).

Ajdar Babazade discussed the research conducted by the Azerbaijani–German International Palaeolithic Expedition at Azykh Cave, launched in 2024. The research is being conducted within the framework of scientific collaboration between the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology (ANAS) and the Leibniz Institute for Archaeology (LEIZA).

The expedition team includes specialists from Azerbaijan, Germany, Portugal, Poland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Norway, and other countries, covering a wide range of archaeological expertise.

Ajdar Babazade also spoke about the Azykh Archaeological Research and Analysis Laboratory established at Karabakh University. The laboratory was founded based on a memorandum between the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology and Karabakh University, supported by the Azerbaijan Science Foundation grant project titled “Traceological and experimental analysis of the techno-typology of the Stone Age tool industry in Karabakh” (Grant code: AEF-MCG-2023-1(43)-13/13/5-M-13).

The THOCA and CAUCUS project leaders emphasized the potential of the Azykh Microscopic Laboratory in terms of its physical infrastructure, modern equipment, and strong researcher–student base, highlighting its vital role in ongoing and future projects.

During the seminar, participants visited several analytical centers, including:

The OSL (Optically Stimulated Luminescence) laboratory at the Technical University of Denmark, The Biomarker Laboratory at Aarhus University, The Aarhus Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Centre (C14 and cosmogenic laboratories). Additionally, participants toured the Moesgaard Museum—one of the world’s most advanced museum complexes—and the National Museum of Denmark.

Oxuma sayi: 38