"Michael D. Franchetti combines an analysis of newly documented archaeological sites in the Koksu River valley of eastern Kazakhstan with detailed paleoecological and ethnohistorical data to illustrate patterns in land use, settlement, burial, and rock art. His investigation illuminates the practical effect of nomadic strategies on the broader geography of social interaction and suggests a new model of local and regional interconnection in the third and second millennia B.C.E. Franchetti further argues that these early nomadic communities played a pivotal role in shaping enduring networks of exchange across Eurasia. Establishing the intricate links between geography and history, his study sheds new light on the societies and networks that led to such innovations as the development of the Silk Road, the spread of Indo-European languages, and the adoption of horseback riding."--BOOK JACKET.

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