Didnauri ( ka, დიდნაური) is a

Late Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

Early Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology a ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, located in the steppes of the

Shiraki Plain The Shiraki ( ka, შირაქის ვაკე, ) is a plain on the Iori Plateau in Georgia, an interfluve between the river valleys of the Iori in the south and the Alazani in the north; its steep slopes in the east border on Mingachev ...

in the country's southeasternmost municipality of

Dedoplistsqaro Dedoplistskaro or Dedoplistsqaro ( ka, დედოფლისწყარო, , literally: ''Queen's spring'') is a town in Kakheti, Georgia with the population of 5,940. The town is located in the Shiraki Plain, eastern Georgia, and functions a ...

. The

National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation of Georgia The National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს კულტურული მემკვიდრეობის დაცვის ეროვნული სააგენტო, ''sa ...

, which supports the ongoing field works, has described it as "the largest ever ancient settlement" unearthed in the

South Caucasus The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...

. The site is inscribed on the list of the Immovable Monuments of Cultural Heritage of Georgia. The Didnauri site was discovered, in 2014, through satellite imagery in the western part of the Shiraki Plain used as croplands. Preliminary digs revealed ruins of a large settlement, which was dated by a team of Georgian archaeologists to the period of 12th to 9th century BC. The settlement is encompassed by a 1.5 km-long and 7 m-wide defensive wall made of clay and wooden logs, "unique in its scale and design", as described by the expedition led by the archaeologist Konstantine Pitskhelauri. The pattern of destruction of the wall suggests an unexpected natural disaster, presumably an earthquake. Among other ruined structures unearthed were several buildings, including those apparently used for religious rituals, a water supply system, and four tombs, which contained the early 10th-century BC artifacts such as ceramic vessels, stone tools, and bronze items. One of the tombs belonged to an upper-class warrior who was buried with his dagger and had an

arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...

, not of local origin, lodged in his stomach area.

References

{{Reflist Archaeological sites in Georgia (country) Buildings and structures in Kakheti Bronze Age in Georgia Bronze Age sites in Europe 2014 archaeological discoveries Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance of Georgia