Çatalhöyük 1994 Archive Report

ÇATALHÖYÜK 1994 ARCHIVE REPORT

Çatal Hüyük palaeoenvironment project 1994

Neil Roberts

Introduction

This field research programme investigates the environmental history of the Konya plain in relation to new investigations at the Neolithic mounds of Çatal Hüyük and other archaeological sites, including the Epi-Palaeolithic site at Pinarbasi. Our particular concern is to examine the relations between changes in the natural environment (climate, vegetation, geomorphology, etc) and the domestication of plants and animals during the period between ca.13,000 and 7000 14C yr BP. This was a time when the global climate was changing from glacial to interglacial conditions, and the resources available to human populations in central Turkey would have altered substantially in response to external forcing.

A successful field research season took place between September 1 and 15, 1994 under the auspices of the Turkish Ministry of Culture, and with the financial support of the National Geographic Society. We are most grateful to both of these, to the British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara, to our government representative from Konya, Muzaffer Tunç, and to the main Catal Hüyük representative, Belma Kulaçoglu. The work involved the following personnel

- Dr C.Neil Roberts (Loughborough University)
- Dr H. Yigitbasioglu (Ankara University)
- Dr P.A. Barker (Lancaster University)
- Dr R. Parish (Sussex University)
- Mr W.J. Eastwood (University of Wales, Aberystwyth)
- Mr C.D. Sayer (Loughborough University)

The team was based at the Çatal Hüyük Kazi Ekibi in Çumra, and worked in two main areas:
- Near Suleymanhaci (at Pinarbasi and at Suleymanhaci gölü);
- At or near Çatal Hüyük.

Methods

Sediments of lacustrine, alluvial and archaeological origin were studied and sampled mainly by coring, although some deposits (palaeochannnel, Pleistocene lake shorelines) were exposed as sections. Coring employed either an Eijlkelkamp corer and Cobra motor (on land) or a 'Livingstone'-type stationary piston corer from a platform (on water). A Glew sampler was used for the upper 50 cm of soft lake sediments. Continuous sediment core drives up to 100 cm in length were either extruded into clingfilm inside cut downpipe or left in a core liner to be opened in UK. Sediments from open gouge augers were sub-sampled in the field into bags. Altogether over 50 metres of sediments were cored during the fieldwork, about half being retained as intact cores for export to, and analysis, in UK.

Sediment samples were subject to preliminary description and analyses in Çumra. This included scanning of wet preparation raw sediment slides under x 100 and x 400 magnification under a transmitted light binocular microscope, notably for diatoms, and measurement of whole core Magnetic Susceptibility using a loop sensor and a Bartington MS2 meter linked to a portable computer. Magnetic data were imported into Excel spreadsheets.

One of the most important facets of the work is the radiometric dating of the sediments, and samples were collected for both radiocarbon and luminescence. The latter may be especially important for the sediments around Çatal Hüyük which are typically lacking in organic carbon. Dr R. Parish undertook a systematic collection of samples for Optically Stimulated Luminescence and Thermoluminescence dating from both archaeological and non-archaeological contexts, with samples being taken and kept in containers which prevent light penetration.

Lake sediments at Suleymanhaci and Pinarbasi

These lake sediments were cored and/or sampled in order to undertake palaeolimnological analyses (pollen, diatoms, mollusca, etc) which indicate past vegetational and climatic conditions.

Suleymanhaci gölü is a small (ca. 1 km diameter), saline-alkaline residual lake at the base of the extinct volcano Kara Dag. Most of the lake catchment comprises hard dolomitic limestone; the remainder being trachy-andesitic volcanics. At the time of study the lake was at a low level (ca. 2 m lower than in September 1993), had a measured conductivity of 13,000 µS, a pH of 8.8 and a maximum depth of 2.5 metres. Parallel 'Livingstone' stationary piston cores (SH 94 A and B) were taken from near the deepest part of the lake, along with three short Glew cores (maximum length 48 cm, extruded at 1-2 cm intervals). The sediments comprised light grey-beige, inorganic, strongly reduced silts and clays, initially soft but becoming hard with gypsum crystals (up to 1 cm diameter) below 175 cm. The gypsum prevented coring below 252 cm sediment depth.

Coring continued using a Eijlkelkamp corer and Cobra motor on the salt-crusted bed of the northern arm of the lake which would normally be under 1-2 m of water (SH 94 C and D). The longer of these cores recovered 760 cm of sediment; the top 515 cm sampled continuously in plastic liners; the lower 245 cm subsampled at 2-4 cm intervals into bags from a 5 cm-diameter gouge auger head. The sediments comprised pale grey-beige silts and clays, locally sandy, with some mollusc fragments, ostracods and black (?charcoal) flecks above ca.500 cm. Below ca.500 cm, the silts alternate with pink, partly cemented salt crust layers.

A preliminary scan of diatoms from the lake sediments at Suleymanhaci indicates generally good preservation, with the saline taxa Campylodiscus clypeus, Amphora spp., Cymbella spp. and Epithemia spp.represented in the modern and upper 250 cm of sediments, and with A. sphaerophera and Navicula spp. replacing C. clypeus in some lower levels.

The Epi-Palaeolithic site at Pinarbasi lies ca.5 km west of Suleymanhaci, at the southern edge of Eski Hotamis gölü, at the end of a limestone ridge. Because of the dry conditions this year it was possible to core from land using the Cobra coring system. A number of sediment cores were taken near the spring below the archaeological site, to a maximum depth of 1076 cm. In summary these recovered alternating grey to beige silts with gastropods and diatomites, locally darker (more organic), and with a layer of black to dark brown silty humified peat between 647 and 785 cm. Examination of the diatoms under a binocular microscope indicates that these sediments were laid down in a freshwater lake of variable depth (C. kutzingiana, Synedra ulna, Cymbella spp., Fragilaria spp., Navicula oblonga, Epithemia spp., etc). The molluscan remains (Planorbis spp., Valvata piscinalis, etc) also indicate freshwater conditions. The age of these sediments is unknown at this stage, but if they should prove to be - in part - the same age as the adjacent Epi-Palaeolithic site, this would be of great potential scientific importance. It is rare for palaeoecological data to be available within 100 metres of an excavated prehistoric site in the Near East, and furthermore in this case the two types of study are being planned and undertaken in a coordinated way.

Sediment stratigraphy around Çatal Hüyük

Çatal Hüyük lies on the alluvial fan of the Çarsamba river and Holocene alluviation has partially or completely buried many mounds and other archaeological sites. It is important to establish geomorphological conditions at Çatal Hüyük prior to, during and after occupation, and also to understand how alluviation has differentially affected data from archaeological site survey on the fan. In order to assess these questions, Cobra coring was undertaken at four locations on a north-south transect on the main (east) mound at Çatal Hüyük. The very dry ground conditions this year meant that coring proceeded somewhat more slowly than anticipated, but in compensation it was possible to work on sections exposed in the dry irrigation channels around the site. Core stratigraphies may be summarised as follows:

ÇH 94 A: (701 cm long) Taken near the base of Mellaart's trenches, this confirmed a hand-augered core sequence undertaken in 1993 (ÇHE.93-1), but with proper stratigraphic control and sediment sampling. The core commenced 15.2 m below site datum and encountered ca.450 cm of in situ Neolithic deposits, underlain by ca.120 cm of 'natural' alluvial clay and 130 cm of pale grey-yellow lake marl.

ÇH 94 B: (350 cm long) This core was taken at the north-western edge of the main mound, in the area of the proposed future dig house. No cultural material was encountered (either derived or in situ), the sediments comprising brown silty clay (0-127 cm ) and heavy 'backswamp' clay (127-286 cm) over lake marl (286- >350 cm).

ÇH 94 C: (583 cm long) Immediately north of the present Bekçi's house, this core did not encounter any apparently in situ Neolithic deposits, although the top 200 cm included late (?Byzantine) cultural material. Beneath this were grey to brown silts and clays of alluvial/colluvial origin, including derived cultural material (notably charcoal) down to 451 cm, and with lake marl below 529 cm.

ÇH 94 D: (733 cm long) Further upslope and ca.2 m higher than core 94 C, the core at this location encountered apparently in situ Neolithic deposits to at least 453 cm. Between 475-500 cm was a layer of lake marl including charcoal, apparently used as fill beneath the first building layers. This was followed by grey-brown alluvial clay, with (?derived) charcoal present to 551 cm, over a dark (?organic) layer (651-687 cm) and in situ lake marl (690->733 cm).

The main result of an examination of irrigation channel sections was the discovery of a large, buried palaeochannel of the Çarsamba river cut into the underlying lake marl, ca. 0.5 km south of Çatal Hüyük. This section was cleaned, surveyed, recorded and the sediments sampled. The former river channel was 42.5m wide at the top of the marl horizon, and was filled with fine to medium grained clastic sediments; organics were notably absent. The palaeochannel deposits are represented by Units 4 to 6 (below). In order from the base up, the following lithostratigraphic units were recorded:

(Pre-palaeochannel)
Unit 1: light grey-yellow lake marl (maximum thickness >150 cm)
Unit 2: Dark (?organic) marl (max. 20 cm)
Unit 3: Backswamp clay (max. 160 cm)
(Channel fill)
Unit 4: Grey clay with manganese staining (max. 30 cm)
Unit 5: Matrix supported gravel, locally part-cemented (max. 30cm)
Unit 6: Fluviatile silts, sands and gravels, coarsening from west to east (max. 220 cm)
Sub-unit 6a: Red-brown silts
Sub-unit 6b: Buff silts
Sub-unit 6c : Grey to orange fluviatile sands containing large freshwater bivalve shells
Sub-unit 6d: Fluviatile gravels
(Post-palaeochannel)
Unit 7: Alluvial clay with manganese staining (max. 230 cm). This upper alluvium caps all the underlying units.

Apart from some unfired ?brick fragments in Unit 6, no cultural materials were found in these deposits. A second smaller probable palaeochannel containing a clay fill was exposed ca. 100 m west of the main one.

These sediment sequences will help to determine the extent and thickness of the Neolithic levels on the northwest side of the main mound at Çatal Hüyük, and they also offer strong support to the suggestion that Çatal Hüyük was founded on the eastern levée of the Çarsamba river, which appears to have been cut into and built up to form terrace-like features. The site was certainly located on Çarsamba fan soils as at present, although the soils may have been heavier and wetter than those which exist today. However, some important stratigraphic relations need to be established (e.g. is the palaeochannel contemporary with the Neolithic occupation at Çatal Hüyük?).

Conclusions

The sediment cores and samples obtained this year will provide a valuable basis for understanding the changing natural and cultural landscape of the Konya plain since the time of the last glaciation. Laboratory analysis and dating of these Late Quaternary sediments will indicate their age, significance and association with Epi-Palaeolithic and Neolithic archaeological sites. Further fieldwork is planned for 1995 on the Çarsamba fan in order to establish the three-dimensional sediment stratigraphy and history of the river.