A site formation history of Obishir-5, the earliest Neolithic site in the Fergana Valley (Kyrgyzstan)

Obsihir-5 holds some of the earliest evidence for the utilization of livestock in the mountainous regions of Central Asia. However, direct evidence of herding is lacking at the site. Geoarchaeological investigations, including textural, geochemical, mineralogical and micromorphological methods, have focused on the reconstruction of site formation and the search for direct evidence of herding activities. The sedimentary sequence at Obishir-5 has been divided into three facies: (1) SU0-SU1 (Bronze Age and Middle Ages), (2) SU2-SU3 (Obishirian), and (3) SU4-SU5 (Mesolithic/Epipaleolithic). SU1 formed through colluvial processes and was reworked by human and human-related activities. It is likely that these activities included herding and burning. Given the presence of herbivore dung and trampling in the sedimentary record, SU1 could include fumier-style accumulation. SU2-SU3 formed from the accumulation of coarse debris and fine particles originating from colluvial processes, physical weathering, aeolian processes and anthropogenic activity, such as burning. The archaeological material, including bones, charcoal and herbivore dung is intermixed with geogenic sediments and shows evidence of reworking. SU4-SU5 formed from colluvial and aeolian processes with low sedimentation rate. Human activity here was of low intensity and sporadic. The study of the sedimentary record has shown evidence of the use of dung and wood as fuel during the Obishirian period. However, it is not clear whether the sediments represent fumier deposits and therefore herding, as they have been heavily reworked. Nevertheless, the study opens up perspectives for the presence of livestock at the site during the Obishirian occupation. The methodology employed has allowed the reconstruction of the site formation history.