Caucasus Archaeology Study Group
The Caucasus Archaeology Study Group was established in 2009, succeeding the North Caucasus Group, which had existed at the Institute of Archaeology since 1995. Its creation was driven by the heightened interest of many Institute specialists in the current issues of Caucasian archaeology, the particular importance of studying the region's rich history from prehistoric times to the Middle Ages, and the acquisition of scientific data and reconstruction of the historical and cultural processes that took place in the Caucasus, from the Old Stone Age to the formation of early state formations.
The group was headed by Professor R.M. Munchaev, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. It included approximately 20 staff members from various departments of the Institute, including two Corresponding Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences, five Doctors of Science, and 11 Candidates of Science. Among the group's key areas of work are the historiography of the archaeological study of the Caucasus, the study of its paleoecology, cultural genesis, the dynamics of material culture, religious beliefs and art, the analysis and reconstruction of social structures and processes, interregional connections, and contacts with the cultures of the Near East, Central Asia, and Europe.
An important task facing the group's members is the overall coordination of archaeological research on the Caucasus conducted at the Institute, strengthening and establishing new ties with higher education institutions and research centers in Russia and abroad.
The group's specialists hold meetings to discuss reports by Caucasus scholars from various archaeological institutions in Russia, publish works on the archaeology of the Caucasus, develop methodological manuals for field archaeology based on the experience of expeditionary work in the Caucasus region, and organize thematic conferences.
In the future, joint meetings of the group with other divisions of the Institute are also planned, where planned topics, dissertations, and reports on Caucasian issues will be discussed.
At the group's 2009 meetings, the first of which took place on November 18, S.N. Korenevsky presented reports on his trip to the South Caucasus and R.M. Magomedov and T.N. Mishina reported on the excavations of the crumbling Novogaptsy Early Bronze Age site in Dagestan. Scholars from Russia, France, and Slovakia participated in the group's meetings.
The group was headed by Professor R.M. Munchaev, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences. It included approximately 20 staff members from various departments of the Institute, including two Corresponding Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences, five Doctors of Science, and 11 Candidates of Science. Among the group's key areas of work are the historiography of the archaeological study of the Caucasus, the study of its paleoecology, cultural genesis, the dynamics of material culture, religious beliefs and art, the analysis and reconstruction of social structures and processes, interregional connections, and contacts with the cultures of the Near East, Central Asia, and Europe.
An important task facing the group's members is the overall coordination of archaeological research on the Caucasus conducted at the Institute, strengthening and establishing new ties with higher education institutions and research centers in Russia and abroad.
The group's specialists hold meetings to discuss reports by Caucasus scholars from various archaeological institutions in Russia, publish works on the archaeology of the Caucasus, develop methodological manuals for field archaeology based on the experience of expeditionary work in the Caucasus region, and organize thematic conferences.
In the future, joint meetings of the group with other divisions of the Institute are also planned, where planned topics, dissertations, and reports on Caucasian issues will be discussed.
At the group's 2009 meetings, the first of which took place on November 18, S.N. Korenevsky presented reports on his trip to the South Caucasus and R.M. Magomedov and T.N. Mishina reported on the excavations of the crumbling Novogaptsy Early Bronze Age site in Dagestan. Scholars from Russia, France, and Slovakia participated in the group's meetings.
