ZOOMORPHIC ORNAMENTS OF KHOJALY – GEDABEY CULTURE CERAMICS

Keywords: Late Bronze Age, Khojaly-Gedabey culture, zoomorphic ornaments, ceramics, pottery

          The Bronze Age is an important period of Primitive Communal System, lasted more than three thousand years in Azerbaijan territory.Some essential changes in human’s life took place over this historical stage.It has to notice as the beginning human’s ability to learn pottery techniques with the help of pottery wheel and decoration of ceramics with certain descriptions by painting or carving among these changes.Generally, Bronze Age, which divides 3 periods are represented four great cultures itself. Naturally, differences among the cultures are observed on ceramic patterns.Khojaly-Gedabey, Nakhchivan and Talysh-Mughan archaeological cultures are spanned in The Late Bronze Age in the territory of Azerbaijan.

          Khojaly-Gedabey culture covers the period from the middle of II millennium till the beginning of I millennium B.C. More than 150 monuments of this culture have been found in the result of the archaeological excavations.Archaeological research of The Late Bronze and Early Iron age of Lesser Caucasus region of Azerbaijan has begun in the late XIX century. Archaeological sides and necropolis of this period were learned much better.

          As the first monuments were found around Khojaly and Gedabey this culture has been namedKhojaly-Gedabey culture. At the Soviet science literature, there were attempts to name this culture as “Bronze Age culture of Central Transcaucasia”. Also, this culture was used to call as Ganja-Garabagh culture for that most monuments of the culture have been found in the territories near Ganjachayriver and Garabagh region. But later there were found new archaeological sides to The Caspian Sea. In the middle of the XX century there were found archaeological materials near Oghuz region at the south endings of The Greater Caucasus mountain range, ceramic patterns of Khojaly-Gedabey culture in Mil step, Late Bronze age Absheron graves and other.These findings are evidence of spreading Khojaly-Gedabey culture to the eastern regions of Azerbaijan, and also mountainous regions of Georgia and Armenia.So, as rule of archaeological science it is right to name this culture Khojaly-Gedabey for the first findings.

One of the main specifications of Khojaly-Gedabey culture was that the people had nomadic life and they were changing their places seasonally. So, the archaeological materials of this culture found in mountainous and lowland territories are unique.During the archeological excavations, the monuments belonging to this culture were found not only from Azerbaijan territory, but also from Georgia and the present-day Republic of Armenia’s territories. The main monuments consist of necropolis and settlements. In this period ceramics differ with its diversity and originality of their ornaments. During the excavations, various potteries were found.There were many new innovative changes in the daily life of humans and of course in their craftsmanship. For that, we can observe new methods of making ceramics. The potteries mostly were red and black polished. They began to make potteries with incrusted ornaments.Jugs, jars, churns and ritual potteries are included in these findings. Patterns and different ornaments depicted on these potteries. They differ from each other by themes and types.

          Geometric, zoomorphic, anthropomorphic ornaments are depicted on The Late Bronze Age ceramics. If all these artifacts are classified for the historical phases it will be possible to observe the variety of zoomorphic ornaments on pottery samples.Role of these descriptions is undeniable to learn the spiritual outlook, worldly and aesthetic pleasure and lifestyle of Bronze Age human. For the conception of some researchers, the forming of zoomorphic potteries and decorated potteries closely linked with the religious beliefs, outlooks, at the same time with the daily life of prehistoric people. Such as, prehistoric human copied their daily life events on the ceramics and by this way they rewarded the development of primitive art. Here in this slide, we can see hunting seen on the ceramic found in Gillikdagh near Ganja.

Hunting scenes were depicted on pottery patterns, too. Because, although the formation of cattle-breeding, hunting had not lost its importance entirely. So, we can observe such kind of scenes in Late Bronze Age pottery. In addition, we can observe agricultural life of Late Bronze Age human. Generally, descriptions of wild and domestic animals as wolf, deer, horse, bull and etc. are seen on ceramics samples. Bird depictions on ceramics reflect their religious beliefs.

          Bird drawings on the ceramics commonly were used as the symbol of the sky. Ancient people worshipped sky and processes in the sky, like thunder, storms, rain. They could not explain these processes, so they considered sky as a holy thing. We can observe depictions of wolf, deer, goat on the Khojaly-Gedabey culture pottery also. These animals used to be totems in ancient human`s life. So, they created the ornaments of these animals on ceramics, believing that their ancestor came from the root of the depicted animal. Vessel found from Garajemirli kurgans is made of sand-mixed clay and black polished. There is drawing of deer on it. Also, there are four circles or wheel-shaped ornaments. One of these wheels depicted on the backside of deer. M. Huseynova (Khojaly-Gedabey culture researcher) wrote that this is a composition of the cart. The two-wheel cart is hooked up to deer. Also, we can see horse drawing on this vessel, and swastika symbol. The swastika is the symbol of Sun.

          We observe sheep ornaments on some ceramics. As mentioned above carriers of Khojaly-Gedabey culture were nomadic tribes and they were engaged in cattle-breeding. So, sheep played big role in the life of human and maybe it was the symbol of fertility. They used milk, wool, meat and etc. of sheep. Creating sheep ornaments on potteries Late Bronze Age human wanted his farm to be productive. Also, spiral-shaped horns of the sheep is depicted on ceramic samples. Some scientists think it is the symbol of Sun. Goat drawings are considered as the symbol of the Sun, too. Sun was one of the main things in human life. Ancient human worshipped the Sun and drew its symbols on pottery patterns, rocks, metals and etc.

          The Khojaly-Gedabey culture monuments were discovered in Gedabey, Goygol, Shemkir, Tovuz, Dashkasan, Gubadlı, Lachin, Aghdam and other regions. One of the main importance of this culture is that Khojaly-Gedabey culture gives the direct response to the unfounded claims of Armenia.  The location of Khojaly-Gedabey culture monuments both in lowland and mountainous Karabakh is the indicator of the existence of unique culture and society in this area from those times.

Aslan Gasimov

-          Zoomorphic Ornaments Of Khojaly-Gedabey Culture Ceramics. Qarabağın Arxeoloji İrsi Beynəlxalq Elmi Konfransın Materialları. Bakı. “Xəzər Universiteti” Nəşriyyatı. 2016