Life rhythms and floor sequences: Excavating time in rural Rajasthan and Neolithic Catalhoyuk

Ethnographic data from rural Rajasthan in India demonstrate that the temporal rhythms of human life articulate with changes in the nature of village floors. Various temporal cycles, including the annual cycle, the lifecycle of the individual and the development cycle of the domestic group, find expression in this particular form of material culture. The varying experiences of the lifecycle by different groups within society are also, on some occasions, linked to variation in the changes undergone by house floors. The relevance of the ethnographic observations are demonstrated by an examination of soil micromorphological data emerging from the Neolithic site of Catalhoyuk in Turkey. Potential links between floor and wall sequences, and various temporal rhythms and associated rituals are outlined. The analysis of the Catalhoyuk data suggests that the study of temporal rhythms in archaeology is not only possible and interesting, but also methodologically and theoretically necessary.