Stone Age in Azerbaijan

The lifestyle of the people living in the Lower Paleolithic period in Azerbaijan was studied in the Guruchay valley, based on materials from the Azikh cave.

Distinguished by its unique features of the techniques and typology of material-cultural samples, they were entitled as “Guruchay culture” at the end of the investigation conducted in Azikh cave in 1974.

Mousterian people spread to the southern slopes of the Lesser Caucasus, from the Mil lowland to Jeyrancol in a large area.

Men were engaged in hunting, while women were controlling fire, sewing clothes, raising children, and managing the household.

The Mesolithic period in Azerbaijan was mainly studied on the basis of Gobustan (near Baku) and Damjili (Qazakh) caves.

Mesolithic period findings from the Damjili cave consist of triangular spikes, big circular cutting tools and nuclei which are considered to be used for hunting.

Material and cultural examples of the Neolithic period of Azerbaijan were found in Damjili cave, Gobustan, Kultepe in Nakhchivan, Shomutepe, Toyretepe, Haci Elemxanli Tepe and other settlements.

The newly excavated settlement of Osmantəpə in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic seems to cast light on the intermediate stage between the Mesolithic and Neolithic era.

[12] According to Bakhshaliyev, who excavated the settlement, the early Neolithic settlers of Nakhichivan tapped the local obsidian deposits from the Gegham and Zangezur Mountains in South Caucasus which, together with the local ceramic production, created conditions for indigenous development of obsidian production during Early Neolithic.

Ceramic, obsidian and basalt, pottery specimens, bone-based labour instruments, plant and animal remnants were found from the Neolithic cultural sequence of the cave.

Many Eneolithic settlements as in Shomutepe, Toyratepe, Jinnitepe, Kultepe, Alikomektepe and IIanlitepe have been discovered in Azerbaijan, and carbon-dated artefacts show that during this period, people built homes, made copper tools and arrowheads, and were familiar with no-irrigated agriculture.