Northern outpost of the Caliphate: maintaining military forces in a hostile environment (the Dariali Gorge in the Central Caucasus in Georgia)

Sauer, EW; Pitskhelauri, K; Hopper, K; Tiliakou, A; Pickard, C; Lawrence, Dan; Diana, A; Kranioti, E; Shupe, C

doi:10.15184/aqy.2015.80

Northern outpost of the Caliphate: maintaining military forces in a hostile environment (the Dariali Gorge in the Central Caucasus in Georgia)

Sauer, EW; Pitskhelauri, K; Hopper, K; Tiliakou, A; Pickard, C; Lawrence, Dan; Diana, A; Kranioti, E; Shupe, C

Authors

EW Sauer

K Pitskhelauri

Kristen Hopper k.a.hopper@durham.ac.uk
Assistant Professor

A Tiliakou

C Pickard

Professor Daniel Lawrence dan.lawrence@durham.ac.uk
Professor

A Diana

E Kranioti

C Shupe

Abstract

The strategic significance of the Dariali Gorge, the main pass across the central Caucasus, has long been recognised. It forms a border today as it has done for much of the past 2000 years. But how was an effective military force sustained in an isolated Alpine environment? Excavations, osteoarchaeology and landscape survey have revealed that the Early Middle Ages saw as much investment in controlling this key route as there was in Antiquity. Guarded by the same Muslim-led garrison for at least a quarter of a millennium, its survival in a harsh environment was made possible through military effort and long-distance food supplies.

Citation

Sauer, E., Pitskhelauri, K., Hopper, K., Tiliakou, A., Pickard, C., Lawrence, D., …Shupe, C. (2015). Northern outpost of the Caliphate: maintaining military forces in a hostile environment (the Dariali Gorge in the Central Caucasus in Georgia). Antiquity, 89(346), 885-904. https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2015.80

Journal Article Type	Article
Acceptance Date	Nov 2, 2014
Publication Date	Aug 1, 2015
Deposit Date	Oct 5, 2015
Publicly Available Date	Sep 17, 2017
Journal	Antiquity
Print ISSN	0003-598X
Electronic ISSN	1745-1744
Publisher	Cambridge University Press
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	89
Issue	346
Pages	885-904
DOI	https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2015.80
Public URL	https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1421479

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Copyright Statement
Revised version Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd 2015. This paper has been published in a revised form, subsequent to editorial input by Cambridge University Press, in ''Antiquity (89: 346(2015) 885-904) http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=AQY