Glass from Teniky (Madagascar): Geochemical Evidence for Multiple Production Systems and Long‐Distance Exchange in the Mediaeval Indian Ocean

ABSTRACT

The inland rock‐cut site of Teniky, located in the Isalo massif of southern Madagascar, represents an exceptional archaeological context recently dated to the 11th–12th centuries

, corresponding to the early phases of settlement on the island. Unlike most contemporaneous sites concentrated along the coast, Teniky is situated deep inland and is characterized by a unique monumental architecture, raising important questions about the nature of its occupation and its connections to wider exchange networks. This study presents the first large‐scale compositional analysis of glass vessels from Teniky and Madagascar, examining 218 vessel fragments and one bead using LA‐ICP‐MS. All samples correspond to plant‐ash glass but display marked chemical variability. Nine compositional groups can be identified, which likely reflect at least six distinct production systems. Comparison with published reference data suggests several probable regions of origin, including the Levant, Mesopotamia, Central Asia and possibly the northwestern Indian subcontinent. Rather than pointing to a single supply network, this diversity suggests that the Teniky assemblage reflects the convergence of multiple exchange circuits within the Indian Ocean world. Compared with the few data available on contemporaneous sites along the East African coast, Teniky stands out for the diversity of its glass assemblage, with production types rarely documented together at a single site. This pattern may reflect different processes, such as the inland movement of populations already connected to coastal trade, the arrival of new groups, or more sustained indirect links with coastal exchange hubs. Although the current dataset does not allow these scenarios to be clearly distinguished, the results show that inland regions of Madagascar were not isolated but were already integrated into wider exchange networks during the mediaeval period.