Urban-like Evidences of Large Agglomerations in Bronze Age Central Kazakhstan

Abstract

This paper reconsiders the archaeological picture and the involved historical narratives proposed by important seasons of excavations at the secondmillennium BC site of Kent (Kazakhstan). Thanks to these intensive efforts the site is and will remain crucial for the reconstruction of the evolution of social complexity in Central Asia and the neighbouring civilizations; however, we question the validity of some assumptions and interpretations concerning the urban character of the discoveries. Finally, the paper proposes some new hypotheses which might be tested by future fieldwork.