Spindle Whorls and Textile Production in the Caucasus During the Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age (ca. 3800-2500 BC)

This dissertation seeks to create a foundational knowledge of textile production in the Caucasus during the Late Chalcolithic-Early Bronze Age (ca. 33800-2500 BC), utilising statistical and spatial analysis of changes in functional attributes of spindle whorls over time and space, experimental textile archaeology, and supplemental zooarchaeological and archaeobotanical data. Key research aims are to ascertain the main types of fibre(s) utilised in the Caucasus, the role of the Caucasus as a conduit for knowledge or technology transfer between Europe and the Near East, the organisation of textile production in the Caucasus, and to see what insight textile manufacturing can shed on sedentariness or mobility of societies. This project would fill in a large research gap in both Caucasian and textile archaeology, especially in light of recent textile research on Southeastern Europe and Mesopotamia during this time period.