Archaeological Geophysical and Geochemical Approaches to Investigating Late Bronze Age Khirigsuur Monuments in Mongolia

This paper will present the results of an archaeological geophysical and geochemical investigation of two Late Bronze Age (1400 – 750 BCE) khirigsuur monumental complexes undertaken by the Tarvagatai Valley Project in north-central Mongolia during the summer 2024 field season. Previous scholarship has identified the Mongolian Bronze Age (1800 – 750 BCE) as a transformative period wherein mobile forms of pastoralism increased, long-distance trade networks emerged, new technology and subsistence adaptations were achieved, and an overall increase in social interactions occurred. Notably, these developments appeared in tandem with the inaugural construction of stone monuments, including khirigsuurs – surface stone complexes that range in size from a few meters to several hectares. The Tarvagatai Valley Project implemented an innovative research design to test these monumental landscapes, employing complimentary geophysical and geochemical methodologies, including: (i) near surface geophysical surveys (fluxgate gradiometry, magnetic susceptibility, and electromagnetic conductivity) and (ii) soil geochemistry (multi-element analysis with portable XRF). The application of these remote sensing techniques, in coordination with more traditional archaeology surveying methods, provides an effective approach for examining how the construction and use of these monuments reflected changing patterns of social organization, territoriality, and social integration of dispersed pastoralist communities in the Mongolian Late Bronze Age.