Archaeologists have uncovered the details of life in one of the first cities in the world

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Catalhoyuk was one of the first protogorodskoy communities in the world.

A study of one of the earliest urban centres in the world by the age of about 9000 years shows that people have struggled with the typical problems of urban life since time immemorial.

The scientists, led by anthropologist Clark Spencer Larsen of Ohio state University explored the ancient ruins of the Neolithic settlement Catalhoyuk in Turkey, writes the online edition of the Chronicle.info with reference for a New time.

Catalhoyuk was founded in about 7100 BC, and existed as a densely populated community for more than 1000 years, providing a relatively unique archaeological snapshot of a moment in human history when nomadic hunter-gatherers become urban people.

“Catalhoyuk was one of the first protogorodskoy communities in the world, and the inhabitants experienced what happens when you gather many people in a small area for a long time,” says Larsen.

Although the refusal of the desert for the relative safety of farming may seem like a good choice, it brought new dangers that hunters and gatherers had not experienced before, as people came together in an unprecedented form of marriage.

After a period of establishment of the settlement — from a small town with a few brick houses — Catalhoyuk slowly evolved to their peak, during which its population was 3,500 and 8,000 people. People living close to animals which they cared for, faced with new types of infectious risks: diseases, nomadic groups rarely met.

“They lived in very crowded conditions, with garbage pits and paddocks for animals near some of their homes. Thus, there are a number of sanitation issues that may contribute to the spread of infectious diseases,” said Larsen.

Analysis of the remains of the city Catalhoyuk shows the presence of bacterial pathogens — detected by bone lesions — which were highest in the early period. Although this problem has reduced over the next hundred years, it never went away.

In addition to diseases in the teeth of ancient inhabitants of the city were also visible cavity, which indicates the wrong diet, relying too heavily on grains and other plant foods.

And that’s not all. Researchers believe that overpopulation and related social stresses could serve as an impetus to violence in the city centre, and the analysis of skulls showed that the skull fractures were caused by blows to the head, often behind.

“Chronologically, the frequency of traumatic brain injury consistent with the hypothesis of an increase in interpersonal violence during the middle period due to changes in the size and density of the population,” the researchers explain.

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