The planned study will be based on a comprehensive multidisciplinary geoarchaeological approach: Complex geoarchaeological surveys involving aerial photogrammetric shooting, drilling and trial trenching; Hydro modelling of paleochannels; Geomorphologic field and laboratory studies and construction of chronostratigraphic profiles. The main goal of the proposed project is the diachronic reconstruction of late Holocene paleoenvironmental conditions and prehistoric settlement patterns in the Shiraki region in eastern Georgia in order to: (i) shed light on significant environmental changes in the region during the last millennia, (ii) identify possible natural and/or anthropogenic drivers of these changes, (iii) identify the response of human societies to these changes, (iv) estimate available natural resources for possible early state formation in this region.

Principal investigator: Mikheil Elashvili