From Past to Present: Rediscovering the Legacy of Chemical Analyses of Metals and Glass in the South Caucasus, Georgia

Soviet and post‐Soviet scholars (ca. 1921–2000s) produced a substantial body of archaeological science data on the South Caucasus, much of it published in Georgian and Russian and largely inaccessible to the international research community. These legacy datasets, detailing the volumetric and spectroscopic properties of metals and glass, offer valuable insight into material composition, production techniques, and metallurgical practices from Early to Late Bronze Age (ca. 3500–1500 bce ), and glass production from Late Bronze Age to Medieval period. This paper reviews these early studies, highlighting their value and the need for standardized, reproducible methods to guide future research in the region.