By phrasing these questions somewhat less specifically, however, the archaeobotanical remains could provide some illumination as well. We all know that pots do not equal people, and archaeological cultures (typically recognized by pottery) do not equal ethnic groups. It is hard to think that plant remains could unequivocally distinguish Gordion’s place in the orbit of the Hittites (YHSS 8/9) from its independence during the heyday of the Phrygians (YHSS 7, 6, 5), or mark the Persian conquest (YHSS 4), the arrival of the Celts (Galatians) (YHSS 3), or contacts with the wider Islamic world (YHSS 1). Voigt (1994:276) suggests that certain kinds of domestic, relatively private, habits can help identify cultural markers. Examples include hearth and fireplace form, which could relate to food preparation customs; one archaeobotanical contribution to the discussion is food remains.
Cultural Affiliation
One of the results of the Gordion archaeobotanical study is that much of the evidence for environment and land use in the Sakarya valley shows incremental change that is not correlated in any obvious way with the apparent changes in the population or its cultural affiliation. As will be demonstrated in this study, the most significant change in agricultural strategy occurred during Early and Middle Phrygian times, when cultural continuity prevailed. Despite the dramatic history of population movement and replacement in the Sakarya valley, agricultural strategies appear to have been remarkably stable. I suggest that at a given level of technology within the Near Eastern agricultural tradition, the harsh environment of the Sakarya valley strongly constrains the agricultural possibilities, and that when any newcomers arrived, it behooved them to learn how to be successful farmers from the local population, if they did not already know. This is not to deny any agricultural innovation at all, but that of necessity it was cautiously applied. In conjunction with data and interpretations generated by other researchers, however, two possible expressions of Phrygian identity may be suggested (see discussion in concluding chapter): the consumption of einkorn and a possible “heirloom” artifact made of alder.
2
Environment, Vegetation, and Land Use
Preliminary archaeobotanical work (Miller 1999), geomorphological studies (Marsh 2005), archaeological survey (Kealhofer 2005), and ethnoarchaeological studies (Gürsan-Salzmann 2005) all show that the 20th-century landscape of the Sakarya valley is quite different from that of 3000, 300, or even 30 years ago. Even so, the present-day climate and vegetation provide a baseline against which one can assess the macrobotanical remains. Palynological studies from neighboring regions give independent information with some time depth.
Strong Mediterranean influence on the climate gives much of Turkey cool or cold wet winters and hot dry summers. Elevation, local topography, and distance from the coast create great variation—the climate becomes more continental in the interior, and there is some rain in the summer. Thanks to adequate rainfall, the natural vegetation of the coastal regions of Turkey is forest. Oak and pine dominate the Mediterranean forests of the west and south, and mixed hardwoods are characteristic of the Pontic (Black Sea coast) forests to the north (Zohary 1973:Map 7). Going inland past the coastal mountains ranges, overall precipitation declines; in general, lower elevations experience less rainfall. The lower boundary of the central Anatolian true steppe is approximately 700 m, depending on local conditions. Gordion straddles that elevation boundary, so short-term climate anomalies could have a disproportionately strong effect on the land and the agricultural economy. Even in the absence of climate shifts, normal interannual rainfall variability or human actions that alter such factors as the water table or drainage could affect the natural vegetation cover and moisture available for crops.
Topography, Soils, and Water
Some “natural” processes that might affect plant life occur regardless of human intervention, such as long-term and short-term climate shifts. More locally, down-cutting of the Sakarya River or its opposite, a shifting bed of aggrading streams, would alter the land. At the time scale considered here, the archaeobotanical record reflects predominantly human manipulation of the landscape—intentional earth movement as well as erosion that results from deforestation and overgrazing.
The Sakarya River originates in the western highlands of Anatolia; it flows north through Gordion toward its outlet in the Black Sea. The Porsuk river, which flows through Eskişehir, meets the Sakarya about 4 km north of the site. Over time, the bed of the Sakarya has shifted; with canalization in the late 1950s, it is now down-cutting, but through the first part of the 20th century it meandered and flooded annually. Ben Marsh’s geomorphological studies (2005) show several major shifts in the river over the occupation of the site. In fact, until sometime after 600 BC, the river flowed to the east of the Citadel Mound (Marsh 1999).
Gordion is situated in a fertile alluvial valley (Fig. 2.1). Within about 5 km of Gordion, the soils and geological substrate as mapped by Marsh (2000, 2005) occur in several different zones. Today, a narrow riparian strip supports an assortment of woody and herbaceous vegetation. The east side of the valley bottom, annually flooded before the river was straightened in the 1950s, consists of a strip of deep soils eroded from the eastern hillsides, at most 2 km in width but usually narrower. Just east of the floodplain are some marls and gypsum outcrops; further east is siltstone pediment with basalt intrusions (Marsh 2000, 2005). To the west of the river are marls and conglomerate plateaus. The arable soils of today include a relatively small area of alluvial marls that are not suited to dry-farming. To the east, marls and upland basaltic soils eroded from the hills above fill the valley (Marsh 2000, 2005). Alternate-year fallow allows the lighter soils to store moisture; the basalt-derived soils are “highly porous and permeable and holding and releasing groundwater throughout the year” (Marsh 2005:164). Most of the soils within 5 km of Gordion fit into this category, and prior to mechanized pump-driven irrigation, the major land use was dry-farmed cereal production and grazing (Gürsan-Salzmann 2005).
Fig. 2.1 Sakarya Valley and Gordion region (digitized by Nina Johnson).
Groundwater availability in antiquity would have been greater than it is under the eroded, devegetated conditions of today. According to Marsh, “The streams are shallower and they flow less in the dry (summer) season. Springs also flow much less through the year and they have also been buried if they were close to the streams” (2000); he also points out that recent massive irrigation is lowering the water table. Traces of ancient settlement tend to be located near springs and streams throughout the sequence (Kealhofer 2005).
Climate near Gordion
The nearest town for which meteorological information is available is the district center of Polatli, which is about 20 km northeast of Gordion at an elevation of 875 m (Meteoroloji 1974). For the forty-one years between 1930 and 1970, the average temperature was 11.9°C, with about 65.5 days/year with the lowest temperature below freezing. Average yearly precipitation was 346.6 mm, with a moisture deficit from June to October (Figs. 2.2, 2.3). The average number of days with snow was 12. These data suggest that Polatli is within the territory of reasonably secure rainfall agriculture (allowing for some variation hidden by the use of averages, 250 mm/yr is considered the minimum for dry-farmed cereals in the Middle East). The 61-year precipitation average for the July to June agricultural year is 347 mm, with a standard deviation of 62. This suggests fairly erratic rainfall, but generally enough for dry farming. Summers can be cool, and in contrast to much of the Near East, summer downpours are a normal, if occasional, aspect of the climate.
In inner Anatolia, precipitation tends to decline as elevation decreases. Available moisture for natural vegetation as well as for rain-fed crops would be somewhat less in the Sakarya valley near Yassihöyük, because it is nearly 200 m lower than Polatli in elevation. The relatively benign variability in Polatli, therefore, might indicate a high proportion of serious drought years at