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Conclusion

    The 2014 campaign at Aradetis Orgora proved extremely successful: not only it achieved most of its aims (to reach the virgin soil in Field B, to uncover well stratified sequences of pottery and materials for the Early and Late Bronze periods), but also brought some important unexpected discoveries. Among these, one should first of all mention the discovery of significant Kura-Araxes structures (round building with vertical stones and rectilinear wattle and daub building in quadrant 105.099c, Kura-Araxes platforms in quadrant 105.099d), some of them with in situ material, as well as of interesting Late Bronze installations (sequences of fireplaces and platform in quadrant 104.099c) in Field B. The season was also rather rich in pottery and small finds from both Fields A and B. Besides a very rich assemblage of Late Bronze pottery, which includes several complete vessels and a large repertory of decorations, it yielded a less numerous but still significant sample of Kura-Araxes vessels, including some in situ material. As for small finds, the discovery of remarkable items (golden foil bead, incised stone plaque) from the Late Bronze levels in Field A confirms the importance of the site and its long-distance connections during this period, and suggests the possibility that official buildings of this period might have been located in the vicinity of the stratigraphic sounding. The investigation of the Late-Hellenistic/Early Imperial palace in Field C was equally successful and rich of finds. Results are very impressive, and much new information will be provided by the results of interdisciplinary studies, which are under way in Georgia, Italy, France and Israel. For the first time, sampling for palaeoenvironmental analysis was extended to this important official building of the Antiquity period, in preparation for the future campaigns, the aim of which will be the reconstruction of the whole occupational history of the site and of its natural environment, as well as its future valorisation, in a closer interaction between the Georgian and the Italian components of the expedition.