Cetin Can Evirgen

• MMath (Hons) Mathematics
• Modelling networks of settlements in the Cucuteni-Tripolye archaeological culture

The Copper Age 'Cucuteni-Tripolye' culture, which flourised north of the Black Sea from 4800–3000 BC, built the largest settlements in pre-Bronze Age Europe, and engaged in long-distance trade.  Its settlement sites are dated into cultural 'phases' on the basis of archaeological remains, and the patterns of settlements change noticeably between the phases.  We propose to investigate these changes mathematically, with contemporaneous settlements modelled as nodes in connected networks, exploiting local resources and engaged in node-to-node interaction (trade).  The quantitative changes in the optimal networks identified from these models may be linked to changing environmental and cultural forces. 

Funding Source: Newcastle University