The implication of technology and chronology reflected in a group of iron objects from the archeological site at Talgar in southeast Kazakhstan

Abstract

Talgar in southeast Kazakhstan was one of the flourishing medieval towns in Central Asia that faced the Mongol invasion, which led to little textual or material evidence documented of subsequent human residence. A metal assemblage consisting of eight iron tools and a lighting device recently excavated from what is typically considered a medieval site at Talgar shed new light on Talgar's post-medieval history. Metallographic and radiocarbon examination showed that these objects were manufactured during the mid-fifteenth to the early seventeenth century AD period under a technological environment based on the production of bloomery iron and the implementation of carburization and quenching techniques. This particular iron-working tradition could not be established without the full understanding of material properties as determined by carbon concentration and thermomechanical treatments. This article characterizes the technology and chronology of the given iron objects. The outcome is then placed in comparative perspective to probe plausible continuity in technological traditions between the pre- and post-Mongol communities of the region.