A Chemical Fingerprint in Clay
In the ancient city of Afrasiab, the original site of Samarkand, archaeologists uncovered ceramic jars from a layer of earth dated to the 7th century BCE. The jars were not empty. The porous clay had absorbed and preserved organic molecules from their contents for over two millennia. Using modern analytical techniques like gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), scientists identified the chemical signatures left behind. The most definitive of these compounds is tartaric acid.
Tartaric acid is a biomarker, for grapes (Vitis vinifera). While present in other fruits, its high concentration in grapes makes it a strong indicator of wine when found in ancient pottery. The analysis of the Afrasiab jars confirmed the presence of tartaric acid, along with related organic acids like malic and succinic acid, providing the first direct, chemical proof of wine production in Central Asia around 2,700 years ago. This method of organic residue analysis has become a standard for confirming the contents of archaeological pottery worldwide.
Sogdian Viticulture on the Silk Road
The people who made and drank this wine were the Sogdians, an Iranian civilization that dominated trade routes in the region. Afrasiab was the capital of Sogdiana, a major urban center long before its eventual destruction by Mongol armies in 1220 CE. The discovery of a local winemaking tradition from such an early period shows a sophisticated level of agriculture and craft production. The Sogdians had cultivated grapes and mastered the process of fermentation a thousand years before the Arab conquest in the 8th century CE introduced Islamic prohibitions on alcohol.
This chemical evidence supports other archaeological findings. Terracotta figurines from Afrasiab dating to a later Kushan period often depict a fertility goddess holding a bunch of grapes. Historical texts from Chinese travelers also mention the quality of grapes and wine from this part of Central Asia. The wine was likely a valuable commodity for trade along the early Silk Road and an integral part of Sogdian social and possibly religious life. The discovery at Afrasiab firmly places the region within the ancient history of viticulture, a practice with a long history across the Near East and the Caucasus.