Episodes in which technologies fall into disuse after a period of adoption, as occurred with the rapid decline of bronze tools and weapons beginning circa 1300 BCE, are informative for understanding the factors shaping technological development in ancient societies. However, it can be unclear whether an absence of artifacts signifies a cultural shift or is merely an effect of gaps in the archaeological record. A dataset of gold objects, including earrings and beads, recovered from Bronze and Iron Age sites at Simagre, Karmir Blur, and other places in the Caucasus reveals a steep drop in the total number of gold artifacts beginning around 1500 BCE in some locations. That this drop represents a genuine instance of cultural change is likely, given that __________
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hardWhich choice most logically completes the text?
A
there is a positive relationship between the number of gold objects found at Caucasus sites and the sites’ respective distances from nearby sources of gold, such as gold ore deposits.
B
the proportion of gold objects to other types of objects recovered is significantly higher at Simagre than at Karmir Blur despite the two sites’ close proximity.
C
far fewer gold objects dating to earlier than 1500 BCE have been recovered from sites in the Caucasus than have been recovered from comparably old sites outside the region.
D
a much larger number of Caucasus sites dating from after 1500 BCE are represented in the dataset than sites dating from before 1500 BCE are.