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Vegetational and environmental history during the Holocene in the Esbjerg area, west Jutland, Denmark
Abstract
A pollen diagram from a site in the Esbjerg area, western Denmark, is used for reconstruction of the Holocene vegetational
and environmental history there. During the Atlantic there was a parallel development of the landscape to that of other areas
in Jylland (Jutland). From the late Neolithic onwards the development took its own course related to the approaching North
Sea, which periodically inundated parts of the Esbjerg area. The record reflects landscape development in a formerly marine
valley where sediments seem to be missing from parts of the Bronze Age and the early Iron Age. Consequently the landscape
development during these times is only reflected in glimpses in the vegetation record, which shows gradually more open woodland
and increasing human impact. During the late part of the Iron Age, Viking period and Middle Ages, the woodland was diverse
in taxa but became increasingly open, finally reaching a stage during which there may have been too little wood even for daily
use. At the same time the use of the land intensified. During the Sub-Atlantic, the Esbjerg area offered good natural resources
with extensive grazing areas in the marine marshes in addition to good possibilities for farming and use of the woodland on
higher ground, but devastating floods occurred.
... Verschillende pollendiagrammen van boven zeeniveau gelegen locaties in het laagland van West-Europa, het noorden van Duitsland en Polen geven een stijging van de percentages te zien in het eerste deel van het Subboreaal (Hayen 1961;van Zeist 1964;van Zeist en van der Spoel-Walvius 1980;Wiethold 2000;Peglar et al. 1989;Ralska-Jasiewiczowa et al. 1998). In andere delen van dat laagland laat taxus duidelijk verstek gaan, zoals in de Siedlungskammer Flögeln in het noorden van Duitsland, de Oder-vallei in het noordoosten van Duitsland, de noord-en westkust van Denemarken en de Baltische staten (Behre en Kučan 1994;Hackens et al. 1996;Kolstrup 1988;Jahns 2000;Kolstrup 2009). Behoudens een enkele uitzondering manifesteren de pollendiagrammen van het heuvel-en bergland van Midden-Europa voor de periode van het Subboreaal ten hoogste een iets grotere frequentie van taxus (Stalling 1987;Knipping 1989;Rösch 1993;Mitchell et al. 2001). ...
... Killarney behoort tot de gebieden met de hoogste dichtheden van taxus in Europa. Ook in pollendiagrammen van het Deense kustgebied is taxus vanaf het Subboreaal met lage aantallen vertegenwoordigd (Kolstrup 1988;Kolstrup 2009). ...
Of plants and snails. A collection of papers presented to Wim Kuijper in gratitude for forty years of teaching and identifying. Festschrift for Wim Kuijper, written by his former students and colleagues. Edited by C.C. Bakels, K. Fennema, W.A. Out and C. Vermeeren.
... The urnfields are primarily situated in south-west Jutland, where the landscape is characterized by outwash plains with primarily nutrient-poor sandy soil. The topography is low-lying and smaller rivers, lakes and bogs are scattered across the landscape, which to the west is bordered by the Wadden Sea (90). The urnfields are often constructed in the vicinity of Neolithic or Bronze Age burial mounds, continuing the Bronze Age tradition of demarcating major routes of transport by lines of burial mounds, but at the same time separate from contemporaneous settlements (91). ...
Chronological frameworks based on artefact typologies are essential for interpreting the archaeological record, but they inadvertently treat transitions between phases as abrupt events and disregard the temporality of transformation processes within and between individual phases. This study presents an absolute chronological investigation of a dynamic material culture from Early Iron Age urnfields in Denmark. The chronological framework of Early Iron Age in Southern Scandinavia is largely unconstrained by absolute dating, primarily due to it coinciding with the so-called ‘Hallstatt calibration plateau’ (c.750 to 400 cal BC), and it is difficult to correlate it with Central European chronologies due to a lack of imported artefacts. This study applies recent methodological advances in radiocarbon dating and Bayesian chronological modelling, specifically a statistical model for wood-age offsets in cremated bone and presents the first large-scale radiocarbon investigation of regional material culture from Early Iron Age in Southern Jutland, Denmark. Dated material is primarily cremated bone from 111 cremation burials from three urnfields. The study presents absolute date ranges for 16 types of pottery and 15 types of metalwork, which include most of the recognised metalwork types from the period. This provides new insights into gradual change in material culture, when certain artefact types were in production and primary use, how quickly types were taken up and later abandoned, and distinguishing periods of faster and slower change. The study also provides the first absolute chronology for the period, enabling correlation with chronologies from other regions. Urnfields were introduced at the Bronze-Iron Age transformation, which is often assumed to have occurred c.530-500 BC. We demonstrate that this transformation took place in the 7th century BC, however, which revives the discussion of whether the final Bronze Age period VI should be interpreted as a transitional phase to the Iron Age.
... The urnfields are primarily situated in south-west Jutland, where the landscape is characterized by outwash plains with primarily nutrient-poor sandy soil. The topography is low-lying and smaller rivers, lakes and bogs are scattered across the landscape, which to the west is bordered by the Wadden Sea [83]. The urnfields are often constructed in the vicinity of Neolithic or Bronze Age burial mounds, continuing the Bronze Age tradition of demarcating major routes of transport by lines of burial mounds, but at the same time separate from contemporaneous settlements [77,84]. ...
Chronological frameworks based on artefact typologies are essential for interpreting the archaeological record, but they inadvertently treat transitions between phases as abrupt events and disregard the temporality of transformation processes within and between individual phases. This study presents an absolute chronological investigation of a dynamic material culture from Early Iron Age urnfields in Denmark. The chronological framework of Early Iron Age in Southern Scandinavia is largely unconstrained by absolute dating, primarily due to it coinciding with the so-called ‘Hallstatt calibration plateau’ (c.750 to 400 cal BC), and it is difficult to correlate it with Central European chronologies due to a lack of imported artefacts. This study applies recent methodological advances in radiocarbon dating and Bayesian chronological modelling, specifically a statistical model for wood-age offsets in cremated bone and presents the first large-scale radiocarbon investigation of regional material culture from Early Iron Age in Southern Jutland, Denmark. Dated material is primarily cremated bone from 111 cremation burials from three urnfields. The study presents absolute date ranges for 16 types of pottery and 15 types of metalwork, which include most of the recognised metalwork types from the period. This provides new insights into gradual change in material culture, when certain artefact types were in production and primary use, how quickly types were taken up and later abandoned, and distinguishing periods of faster and slower change. The study also provides the first absolute chronology for the period, enabling correlation with chronologies from other regions. Urnfields were introduced at the Bronze-Iron Age transformation, which is often assumed to have occurred c.530-500 BC. We demonstrate that this transformation took place in the 7th century BC, however, which revives the discussion of whether the final Bronze Age period VI should be interpreted as a transitional phase to the Iron Age.
... 1650 AD in comparison to other parts of Europe due to low industrial and settlement development. Despite the presence of the Bogaczewo culture and Prusian tribes (Yatvingian) until the 13th century Marcisz et al., 2020), this region was not massively deforested unlike other areas of Europe such as Denmark (Kolstrup, 2009) or the mountainous areas in Germany (Beug et al., 1999;Knapp et al., 2013). Climate change and local factors such as edaphic conditions and groundwater level were likely the primary drivers of forest development in north-eastern Poland until human intervention in 1650 AD Marcisz et al., 2020). ...
Long-term ecological studies can provide useful information on forest ecosystem resilience against past climatic change and human caused disturbances. Here, we present a high-resolution 2200-year-long record of forest development in north-eastern Poland, Suwalki region, using paleobotanical proxies (pollen, plant macrofossils, and charcoal). We show that the pollen abundance of deciduous trees was higher than that of coniferous trees, indicating a near pristine state until 900 AD and a semi-natural forest state until 1500 AD. After 1500 AD, the proportion of coniferous tree taxa surpassed that of deciduous trees and have since remained the dominant forest component. The 17th century experienced massive deforestation coupled with a new phase of human colonization in the area that led to the continued and significant decline of deciduous tree cover, for example, Carpinus, Quercus, and Tilia. Cooling associated with the Little Ice Age may have played a role in Picea’s expansion in this area after 1450 AD. Despite significant climatic shifts associated with the warmer Roman Period or Medieval Climate Anomaly and colder Migration Period, as well as a more sustained human impact, Quercus remained a stable forest component until 1500 AD. The stability of Quercus is an important aspect for forest management strategies as future projections suggest warmer conditions and increased frequency of climate extremes will impact forest composition and structure. Our long-term data suggest that forests in the Suwałki region should contain more abundant deciduous tree species, that is, Quercus, whereas conifer cover should be reduced. We also show clear regional differences in the forest development in the Suwałki region, highlighting the importance of local hydrology, geomorphology, and degrees of human activity on the forest composition.
... Furthermore, coarse soils, such as those at Sønderris, provide less surface area for binding P than silty and clayey soils. The sandy soils of western Jutland are also easily exhausted from cereal cultivation and grazing, and both local pollen data (Kolstrup, 2009) and the preliminary archaeobotanical results from Sønderris (Grabowski in prep) show evidence of extensive heathland formation. This would have been a strong incentive for carefully collecting and transporting as much of the manure as possible from the farmsteads to the fields. ...
This paper describes analyses for understanding the general use of space on two Early Iron Age house sites on the site of Sønderris in South-West Jutland (South Scandinavia). The main method consists of the geoarchaeological techniques of soil P analysis by citric acid extraction, low frequency magnetic susceptibility analysis, and measurement of the soils organic content by loss-on-ignition. The results of these analyses are, moreover, interpreted alongside artefact distribution data, data on the dispersal of plant macrofossils, and an evaluation of the architectural details of the sites.
At both house sites, the geoarchaeological data shows patterning indicative of human activities. The main achievements are inference of outdoor areas which may have contained pyres or kilns, delineation of yard spaces with refuse deposition, and the characterisation of functional aspects of two small outbuildings. In general, the geoarchaeological results are consistent with the inferences attained from non-geoarchaeological sources. A notable exception is that few clear traces of stalling were identified in the geoarchaeological record, despite the presence of animal booth partition walls indicating the presence of byres in the longhouses. Possible reasons for this are discussed.
Overall, this study demonstrates the continued usefulness of long-established geoarchaeological methods for gaining insights about the nature, extent, and orientation of activities on prehistoric house sites. A key take-away from the study is that the potential of any individual method for reading activities (geoarchaeological or otherwise), increases when several techniques with overlapping, but not identical, scope for inferring activities are integrated. The resulting multiproxy analysis is, as a whole, more useful than the sum of its constituent parts.
The globalizing connections that defined the European Bronze Age in the second millennium BC either ended or abruptly changed in the decades around 1200 BC. The impact of climate change at 3.2 ka on such social changes has been debated for the eastern Mediterranean. This paper extends this enquiry of shifting human–climate relationships during the later Bronze Age into Europe for the first time. There, climate data indicate that significant shifts occurred in hydroclimate and temperatures in various parts of Europe ca. 3.2 ka. To test potential societal impacts, I review and evaluate archaeological data from Ireland and Britain, the Nordic area, the Carpathian Basin, the Po Valley, and the Aegean region in parallel with paleoclimate data. I argue that 1200 BC was a turning point for many societies in Europe and that climate played an important role in shaping this. Although long-term trajectories of sociopolitical systems were paramount in defining how and when specific societies changed, climate change acted as a force multiplier that undermined societal resilience in the wake of initial social disjunctures. In this way, it shaped, often detrimentally, the reconfiguration of societies. By impacting more directly on social venues of political recovery, realignment, and reorganization, climate forces accentuate societal crises and, in some areas, sustained them to the point of sociopolitical collapse.
Holocene sediments of three closed Danish lake basins (Solsø, Skånsø, Kragsø) were used for the inference of post‐glacial vegetational dynamics in former heathland areas in northern West Jutland, Denmark. The sites were selected to represent the major geomorphological units of West Jutland. The Holocene history of each lake basin was investigated by mapping of sediment distribution, analysis of loss‐on‐ignition, coarse inorganic matter, humus content, mineral magnetics, δ¹³C, pollen and selected other microfossils. These techniques were supplemented by plant macrofossil analysis at one site. Holocene terrestrial vegetational development was inferred at each site from analyses of pollen and microscopical charred particles. Chronologies were provided by numerous ¹⁴C dates. Stratigraphies of wet ground and terrestrial pollen and spore types were zooned by stratigraphically constrained cluster analysis. Based on the resultant site pollen asemblage zones (site PAZ), regional PAZ were proposed. Using modern analogues, Holocene floristic richness was estimated from pollen richness in the microfossil assemblages. The results support the hypothesis that disturbance is one of the most important mechanisms behind the maintenance of floristic richness. In particular, the response of estimated floristic richness to the intensity of vegetational fires followed the predictions of the Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis. A period of elevated palynological richness and inferred vegetational disturbance was identified at all sites between 6000 and 5200 BC (calendar years). Using correspondence analysis (CA), the major gradient in the terrestrial pollen sequences was identified as a light‐shade gradient, and CA first axis sample scores were used as a supplement to standard AP/NAP pollen ratios as an indicator of the shade‐tolerance/light‐demand of Holocene terrestrial plant communities. In spite of different vegetational developments since 4000 BC, the timing of major changes towards more light‐demanding vegetation types were broadly synchronous at the three sites. Using chord distance as a dissimilarity index, rales of palynological change suggest that the interval between 8000 and 7500 BC (calendar years) was the period of most rapid vegetational change during the Holocene, both in terrestrial as well as lacustrine ecosystems. While climatic forcing of the rapid events around 8000 BC is hypothesised, the synchronous timing of relatively rapid inferred change in lake and terrestrial vegetation around AD 600 may reflect changes in climate as well as in land‐use. Reducdancy analysis was used to develop a model between fire intensity (inferred from microscopical charred particles) and vegetational response, as reflected by pollen assemblages. Formulated at one site and tested at the two other sites, the model explains regional Colluna‐heathland expansions as a result of vegetational burning. Similarly, declines in heathland cover are explained by lack of maintenance by fire. Regional vegetational development in northern West Jutland is reconstructed and special consideration is given to heathland history. The Holocene heathland development is interpreted as resulting from its importance for grazing. It is hypothesized that on poor soils, Calluna‐dominated heathland was a better grazing resource than grass‐dominated pasture, due to the winter‐grazing offered by Calluna and the low palatibility of dominant grasses on poor soils. This hypothesis is relevant for the explanation of the variation in timing of heathland expansions on the different soil types represented by the study sites.
Analyses have been carried out on well-preserved carbonised rye and barley plants and associated plant remains preserved in iron smelting furnaces from southern Jutland, Denmark. The furnaces are dated archaeologically to the transition between the Roman and Germanic Iron Ages (ca. a.d. 400). The results of the analyses allow detailed reconstruction of the contemporary fields, revealing them as having been well tended with a dense stand of crop plants and few weeds. The composition of the weed assemblages suggests that the rye was autumn-sown. Analysis of the culm bases and roots showed that rye had probably been broadcast sown, followed by a light harrowing to cover the sown grain.
Behre, K.-E. 2007 (January): A new Holocene sea-level curve for the southern North Sea. Boreas, Vol. 36, pp. 82–102. Oslo. ISSN 0300–9483.
A new sea-level curve (MHW, mean high water level) for the southern North Sea is presented, spanning the last 10000 years and based on new data recently obtained along the German coast. The 118 dates were selected from basal as well as intercalated peats of the Holocene sequence and archaeological dates from the last 3000 years. Because of different MHW levels along the German North Sea coast, all data were corrected to the standard tide gauge at Wilhelmshaven to make them comparable. Special advantages of this area for sea-level reconstructions are negligible tectonic and isostatic subsidence and the absence of coastal barrier systems that might have mitigated or masked sea-level changes. Changes of water level had therefore immediate consequences for the facies and could be dated exactly. The chronostratigraphic Calais-Dunkirk system has been improved and adapted to the new data. Altogether seven regressions (R 1-R 7) have been identified, each of them characterized by a distinct decline in sea level. These fluctuations are in accord with the evidence from other parts of the North Sea region. A draft of former North Sea shorelines is presented on the basis of this sea-level curve.
During recent years finds from several prehistoric and medieval periods have thrown new light on the history of the spread of rye. It is now proven that wild rye is indigenous to Anatolia and was already domesticated there by the early Neolithic at the beginning of agriculture. Secale migrated to Central Europe as a weed among other cereals, and single grains of weed rye have been recorded there since the early Neolithic. The number of finds increased during the Bronze Age and Iron Age, and the status of rye changed from weed to crop plant, probably in the course of the early Iron Age. This acculturation of Secale cereale in central and eastern Europe was obviously independent of the earlier one in Anatolia. The first stages towards deliberate cultivation happened unintentionally through harvesting close to the ground, so that the rye was permanently represented in the seed corn. From this point rye was able to take advantage of its competitive strength on poor soils and in areas with unfavourable climate. The start of rye as a crop in its own right during the pre-Roman Iron Age and Roman period presumably took place independently in different areas. The expansion of intensive rye cultivation occurred in the Middle Ages. However, new finds from north-west Germany, which are presented here, show that in this area rye has been cultivated as a main crop on poor soils since the Roman period. In two maps all rye finds up to 1000 A.D. are shown, which after critical consideration can be regarded as cultivated rye.
Plant macrofossil analysis of soil samples from the grave-mound Skelhøj, western Jutland in Denmark, showed that heather sods
had been used as building material. The original vegetation horizon, which was still preserved within the sods allowed the
reconstruction of the original vegetation cover of the Bronze Age landscape. It was therefore possible to determine the land-use
systems of the Bronze Age societies there during the 14th century b.c. The sods derived from a dry to medium-dry heathland community previously used as pasture. Many grasses and herbs indicate
that it was not a very well developed (or old) heathland that was used for the building material of the mound, but a newly
re-established heath cover above an older one that had been burnt some years before the sod-cutting activities took place.
Charred finds of roots, twig fragments, flowers and seeds of Calluna vulgaris L. (heather) dominated the plant spectrum. Cuscuta epithymum L. (dodder) was found in 31% of the sod samples. This parasitic plant is known for successfully spreading on burnt heather
plants that have started to re-develop with new shoots.
The catalogue summarizes published finds of macrofossils from 551 taxa of Spermatophyta originating from 505 sites in Denmark, Schleswig, Scania, Halland, and Blekinge and dated to periods between 13,000 B.P. and 1536 A.D. The information is arranged in one map and three tables. The map shows the position of each find. Table 1 presents the sites by number and name, where the finds are published, their age, the dating method applied, and the media examined. Table 2 lists the finds of macrofossils in pollen assemblage zones I-IX and the periods Pre-Roman Iron Age, Roman Iron Age, Germanic Iron Age, Viking Age, Early Middle Ages, and Late Middle Ages. Table 3 summarizes by family the finds of macrofossils in these periods.
The North Sea region can be regarded as a laboratory from which various factors controlling relative sea-level can be identified. The interactions between regional eustasy, crustal movement, tidal factors and local salinity can be illustrated. Computer-based correlations are increasingly possible. -K.Clayton
Man's utilization of the nemoral broad-leafed trees in an early forest farming economy was most likely based on the same principle over extremely long periods in NW Europe: the forest should work for man and his livestock and function both as plough and manure-spreader. The forest was thus no 'enemy' which should be attacked and removed. Cultivation of cereals took place - on a small scale - during Atlantic (Late Mesolithic) as a luxury production. During the time-span between the end of Atlantic Time (the elm decline level - c5150 b.p.) up to the beginning of the Regeneration Phase (c4500 b.p.) the forests of nemoral broad-leafed trees were probably damaged by factors lying beyond man's control. The rhizomes of bracken Pteridium aquilinum must have been of great significance as a source of carbohydrate (starch) during Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic times. During the beginning of the Regeneration Phase (first part of the Middle Neolithic) utilization of the coppice woods was accomplished. -from Author
This published dissertation presents a detailed study of the late Holocene vegetation and settlement history of eastern Schleswig-Holstein, based on the study of three high resolution pollen diagrams from lake Belau, the bog of Ilewitt and the Treßsee. The main events of the Vegetation history from the beginning of the Atlantic period to nowadays are discussed in the light of the regional and local settlement history, evidenced by archaeological excavations, surveys and finds. The laminated sediments of Lake Belau provided detailed insight of Vegetation changes triggered by human Impact and a high resolution chronology based on varve countings (revised by Dörfler et al. 2013) of the post-glacial vegetation history.
Plant macrofossil remains have been analysed from two raised peat bogs in northern Germany and Denmark. The quantified vegetation reconstructions of each profile were subjected to multivariate analyses to extract records of changing bog surface wetness (BSW), which are interpreted in these rain-fed bogs as being proxy climate signals. Age/depth models were constructed using radiocarbon dates and a number of drier and wetter phases were defined. The records both register cooler/wetter conditions around 2700, 1800 and 1400 cal. yr BP, and at the beginning of the Little Ice Age around AD 1250–1350. These rising bog water tables must have been reflected in poorer conditions for agriculture, and in particular near Dosenmoor where the profile records a catastrophic change to such conditions culminating at 2750–2600 cal. yr BP.
Filsø, a large lake now almost dry, in the south-western part of Jutland has at its bottom marine mud which proves that at one time the sea invaded the basin. Pollen investigations show that the invasion took place towards the end of the pine- hazel forest period, zone VI. The marine period ended late in zone VII. Since then Filsø has been a fresh-water lake. The basin south-west of Filsø with its small lakes, Langsø and Mussø, and bogs is separated from the Filsø basin by a threshold at the farm "Kærgaard". On the east it is limited by a cliff, Grærupklinten, and like the Filsø basin separated from the sea by a belt of high dunes. Pollen investigations of bogs in the basin prove that sedimentation began in the later part of the oak forest period, zone VIII, and continued into the beech period, zone IX. In the western part sedimentation was stopped early in zone IX by drifting sand. Lake sand on top of peat east of Filsø, terraces round Filsø, and the cliff at Grærup indicate the highest level of the lake and show that the large lake existed for a short time in the beginning of the beech forest period, and that the southern basin was part of this larger Filsø. A comparison with investigations made by GUDMUND HATT of an iron-age village at Ringkøbing Fjord north of Filsø indicates that further up-and-down movements of the area may be the explanation of the alteration of Filsø. I sommeren 1933 havde jeg lejlighed til at deltage i prof. KNUD JESSEN'S mosegeologiske undersøgelser i egnen omkring Filsø i Ribe amt, nordvest for Varde. Undersøgelserne omfattede dels den tørlagte vestlige del af søen og dels moser i lavningen sydvest herfor. Det indsamlede materiale har KNUD JESSEN venligst overladt mig til bearbejdelse og publikation. For denne imødekommenhed bringer jeg her min hjerteligste tak såvel som for råd og vejledning under arbejdet. Filsø, som engang var en af landets største søer, — i 1848 da udtør ringen påbegyndtes 28 km 2, — er nu tørlagt bortset fra det fredede nordøstlige hjørne, Fidde sø (se kortet fig. 1). Udtørringen er sket i det sidste århundrede ved gentagne uddybninger af afløbet, Henne å, fra søens nordvestlige hjørne, samt ved kanalisering, udgrøftning og anlæg af fire pumpestationer (se herom ERNST TRANBERG 1954). Den tørlagte søbund ligger 1—2 meter over havet. — 11933, da de ovennævnte under søgelser fandt sted, var endnu betydelige dele af den oprindelige sø til bage. (Se kortet fig. 1). Imellem søen og klitterne i vest lå et kilometer bredt bælte af tørlagt søbund. Dette var det ene undersøgelsesområde. Den oprindelige sø lå i et bassin som mod nord, øst og syd er omgivet af Varde bakkeøs moræneland, der i nord når 64 m i Blaabjerg og mod øst
Pollen and plant macrofossil analysis of an 11-m sediment core from Dallund So, a lake situated in the plains of north Funen, Denmark, provide a record of the last 7000 years of vegetation history in response to changing land-use practices. Around 3900 BC, a distinct Ulmus decline is registered. The first agricultural activity is evidenced c. 400 years after the elm decline by the occurrence of cereal pollen (AvenalTriticum-type). Shortly after this, the Neolithic ‘landnam’ sensu Iversen was detected. Around the transition Late Bronze Age/Pre-Roman Iron Age (500 BC), extensive forest clearances followed by a major expansion of grazing areas, cultivated fields and meadows was inferred. The immigration time of Fagus is hard to identify but a threshold percentage > 2 was reached c. 700 BC, suggesting a local presence of Fagus woodland by then. In the Late Iron Age (AD 400-AD 1050), rising abundances of cereal and Cannabis-type pollen indicate increased arable farming. A contemporary Fagus/Quercus woodland expansion may be due to a change in the agricultural system. Linum-retting in the lake in this period is suggested by the macrofossil record. At the beginning of the Mediaeval period, new major deforestation was inferred, accompanied by a massive expansion of arable farming (cereals, Fagopyrum, Linum, Cannabis). Extensive Linum-retting in the Mediaeval period is documented by the macrofossil record and high values of Cannabis-type pollen in the sediments also suggest intensive retting of hemp plants. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the catchment probably witnessed the strongest agricultural impact of the last 7000 years.
The sediment and pollen stratigraphy of a radiocarbon-dated sequence from a lake on the eastern margin of Breckland is described. The record extends from 12620 to 1620 B.P. From 12620 to 9560 B.P. the vegetation was an open Betula woodland. Movement of sand by wind was one factor keeping the vegetation open. Between 9560 and 9255 B.P. a denser Betula woodland developed, to be replaced by a closed woodland dominated by Corylus avellana, with Pinus sylvestris, Ulmus and Quercus. During this period, Quercus gradually replaced P. sylvestris on the local sandy soils. Corylus avellana remained the woodland dominant until about 7140 B.P., when it was replaced by Tilia cordata. Alnus glutinosa expanded in response to raised water levels at about 6800 B.P., Fraxinus excelsior became an important component of the local woods, also replacing C. avellana. The elm decline occurred in two phases, at 6000 and 4500 B.P. Substantial forest clearance did not begin until about 2500 B.P. The spread of heath vegetation on the Breckland began at about 2250 B.P.
The focus of this paper is the conversion of radiocarbon ages to calibrated (cal) ages for the interval 24,000–0 cal BP (Before Present, 0 cal BP = AD 1950), based upon a sample set of dendrochronologically dated tree rings, uranium-thorium dated corals, and varve-counted marine sediment. The 14 C age–cal age information, produced by many laboratories, is converted to Δ 14 C profiles and calibration curves, for the atmosphere as well as the oceans. We discuss offsets in measured l4 C ages and the errors therein, regional 14 C age differences, tree–coral 14 C age comparisons and the time dependence of marine reservoir ages, and evaluate decadal vs . single-year 14 C results. Changes in oceanic deepwater circulation, especially for the 16,000–11,000 cal BP interval, are reflected in the Δ 14 C values of INTCAL98.
Holocene sediments of three closed Danish lake basins (Solsø, Skånsø, Kragsø) were used for the inference of post-glacial vegetational dynamics in former heathland areas in northern West Jutland, Denmark. The sites were selected to represent the major geomorphological units of West Jutland. The Holocene history of each lake basin was investigated by mapping of sediment distribution, analysis of loss-on-ignition, coarse inorganic matter, humus content, mineral magnetics, δ13C, pollen and selected other microfossils. These techniques were supplemented by plant macrofossil analysis at one site. Holocene terrestrial vegetational development was inferred at each site from analyses of pollen and microscopical charred particles. Chronologies were provided by numerous 14C dates. Stratigraphies of wet ground and terrestrial pollen and spore types were zooned by stratigraphically constrained cluster analysis. Based on the resultant site pollen asemblage zones (site PAZ), regional PAZ were proposed. Using modern analogues, Holocene floristic richness was estimated from pollen richness in the microfossil assemblages. The results support the hypothesis that disturbance is one of the most important mechanisms behind the maintenance of floristic richness. In particular, the response of estimated floristic richness to the intensity of vegetational fires followed the predictions of the Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis. A period of elevated palynological richness and inferred vegetational disturbance was identified at all sites between 6000 and 5200 BC (calendar years). Using correspondence analysis (CA), the major gradient in the terrestrial pollen sequences was identified as a light-shade gradient, and CA first axis sample scores were used as a supplement to standard AP/NAP pollen ratios as an indicator of the shade-tolerance/light-demand of Holocene terrestrial plant communities. In spite of different vegetational developments since 4000 BC, the timing of major changes towards more light-demanding vegetation types were broadly synchronous at the three sites. Using chord distance as a dissimilarity index, rates of palynological change suggest that the interval between 8000 and 7500 BC (calendar years) was the period of most rapid vegetational change during the Holocene, both in terrestrial as well as lacustrine ecosystems. While climatic forcing of the rapid events around 8000 BC is hypothesised, the synchronous timing of relatively rapid inferred change in lake and terrestrial vegetation around AD 600 may reflect changes in climate as well as in land-use. Reducdancy analysis was used to develop a model between fire intensity (inferred from microscopical charred particles) and vegetational response, as reflected by pollen assemblages. Formulated at one site and tested at the two other sites, the model explains regional Calluna-heathland expansions as a result of vegetational burning. Similarly, declines in heathland cover are explained by lack of maintenance by fire.
Regional vegetational development in northern West Jutland is reconstructed and special consideration is given to heathland history. The Holocene heathland development is interpreted as resulting from its importance for grazing. It is hypothesized that on poor soils, Calluna-dominated heathland was a better grazing resource than grass-dominated pasture, due to the winter-grazing offered by Calluna and the low palatibility of dominant grasses on poor soils. This hypothesis is relevant for the explanation of the variation in timing of heathland expansions on the different soil types represented by the study sites.
Coastal dunefields have developed on the west coast of Jutland in Denmark over the past 5000 years. The dunefields are situated in a temperate climate zone with frequent high energy wind events. Dunefield development was characterized by repeated periods of transgressive dune formation punctuated by periods of dune stabilization and soil formation. The chronology of dunefield evolution is based on Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating of peaty palaeosols (24 samples) and Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating of aeolian sand deposits (19 samples). These dates indicate that the completeness of the stratigraphic record varies considerably, but that the timing of aeolian activity events was identical in the dunefields examined here. Initiation of aeolian activity occurred around 2200 BC, 800 BC, AD 100, AD 1050–1200, and between AD 1550 and 1650. Proxy-climate data from bogs in southwestern Sweden suggest that these periods of dunefield activity were initiated during wet/cool summers. Most likely these climatic situations were associated with a more frequent passage of cyclones across Denmark in the summer seasons (increased storminess) causing aeolian sand movement and dune formation. The continued removal of vegetation in Jutland between 4000 BC and AD 1850 allowed the aeolian sand, when first activated, to move more and more easily across the coastal plains; the final phase of aeolian sand movement between AD 1550–1650 and 1900 had catastrophic implications for many coastal inhabitants in the region.
Four elm declines were found in a pollen diagram from a small lake in northwest Denmark. Matching consecutive radiocarbon dates with the dendro-chronological calibration curve indicated a reservoir effect of 120 years, and dates for the four elm declines were obtained (4530, 4130, 3870, 3410 cal B.C.). The occurrence of apophytes (native plants encouraged by human activities) and increased vegetation diversity during the four elm declines indicates human disturbance. The first and second elm declines coincide with traces of early agriculture in northern Germany. The third and fourth elm declines are contemporary with the transitions to the Early Neolithic and the Middle Neolithic Funnel Beaker Culture in Denmark. The possible influence of outbreaks of elm disease is discussed.
The coastal dunefield at Vejers (west coast of Jutland), which is now stabilized by vegetation, covers an area of approximately 120 km2 and occurs in a very high-energy wind regime. Along the coastline a narrow belt of 5–15 m high dune ridges occur. The dune ridges are gradually replaced inland by 10–20 m high parabolic or irregular dune forms. In the central part of the dunefield a large aeolian sand plain (ca. 50 km2) occurs at the windward side of a large and up to 20 m high parabolic dune.The 3D structure of the dunefield deposits have been studied by geomorphological analysis, sedimentological facies analysis of borings, trenches and natural exposures, and most importantly by georadar mapping. The aeolian deposits which overlie a middle to late Holocene barrier spit depositional system can be divided into a Lower unit that drapes the underlying barrier system topography, and an Upper unit that includes the present dunes. The boundary between the two aeolian units is a well-developed Phragmites peat. The Lower aeolian unit is composed of two aeolian subunits separated by an organic-rich horizon. Also the Upper unit is composite and composed of a basal aeolian sand cover and overlying dune or sand plain deposits. The dune deposits locally are composed of up to four depositional subunits separated by immature soils. The base of the Lower aeolian unit formed around 300 A.D., whereas the Phragmites peat at the base of the Upper aeolian unit has been dated to ca. 1000 A.D. From historical sources we know that the present dunefield primarily formed between 1550 and 1850 A.D.The sand content in the Upper unit is estimated to 550 × 106 m3, which yields sand transport rates between 25 m3 (m width)−1 yr−1 (accumulation in 1000 years), and 83 m3 (m width)−1 yr−1 (accumulation in 300 years). The sand in the dunefield originated from beach deposits. A large but pulsating supply of sand was supplied to the beaches by southwards running coastal currents.The composition of the Vejers dunefield deposits indicate that periods of dunefield growth alternated with periods of dunefield stabilization during the last ca. 1700 years. The final and most important phase of dunefield growth took place during ‘the Little Ice Age’. This period was characterized by an overall cold and stormy climate and a relative low sea level, and resulted in an increased availability of sand in the shorezone and a high influx of sand into the dunefield. Short periods of decreased storminess are recorded by the immature soils. Dunefield growth prior to 1000 A.D. was also linked to cold and stormy climatic intervals.
The decline in Ulmus pollen frequencies that occurred ca. 5000 14C years ago before present (BP) is a key biostratigraphic marker horizon in northwest European pollen diagrams, although its causes are still a subject of debate. To investigate this event further, fungal spore analyses were carried out across the Ulmus decline at Moel y Gerddi, north Wales, United Kingdom. The Ulmus decline was in three phases, with a primary decline with low cereal and Rumex pollen records as the only agricultural indicators. This was followed by a more significant decline, with general forest opening and the grassland/pasture indicator Plantago lanceolata. A third, less significant, decline was again accompanied by cereal-type pollen. Tree pollen frequencies subsequently recovered, with cereal-type pollen remaining well represented. The fungal data recorded woodland taxa and a background level of the obligate dung fungus Sporormiella, a proxy for local herbivore abundance. Sporormiella frequencies increased greatly after the main Ulmus decline, around which there were high percentages of the ascospores of the wood rot fungus Kretzschmaria deusta. The neoecology of Kretzschmaria deusta, and the behavior of its spore curve suggests the colonisation of local populations of already severely wounded trees. At this site Ulmus, and perhaps Tilia were infected at a time of markedly increased inferred herbivore concentrations. Neolithic farming techniques could have provided mortally wounded trees while enhancing livestock grazing, although the role of disease must also be considered. Elevated Kretzschmaria deusta values may be of ecological significance in the interpretation of the causes and nature of the Ulmus decline and similar forest disturbance events, and the indicator role of this fungus in forest paleoecology requires further study.
Stormfloder. [Storm floods, in Danish]. Scientific Report 91–1
- Gram
- Jensen
A pollen preparation procedure with soap wash-sieving for fine-grained unconsolidated sediments. Kvinner i arkeologi i
- Kolstrup
Folk og flora, vol 1–4
- Brøndegaard
Mennesket og naturen på Abkæregnen gennem 6000 år—resultater af et forskningsprojekt [People and nature in the Abkær area over 6000 years—results of a research project
- B Aaby
A palaeohydrological study of Krageholmssjön (Scania, south Sweden) Lundqua report 25
- M-J Gaillard
Stormfloder. [Storm floods
- I Gram-Jensen
Bidrag til Danmarks senglaciale Flora og Fauna [Contribution on Denmark’s Late-Glacial flora and fauna
- N Hartz
Tidevandskysterne [The tidal coasts, in Danish
- B Jacobsen
Catalogue of late- and post-glacial macrofossils of Spermatophyta from Denmark
- H A Jensen
- HA Jensen
Grazing possibilities in the Neolithic of the Netherlands based on palynological data Anthropogenic indicators in pollen diagrams
- W Groenman-Van Waateringe
The vegetation on the terp
- W Groenman-Van Waateringe
- Jc Besteman
- Jm Bos
- Da Gerrets
- Ha Heidinga
Beskrivelse til Geologisk Kort over Danmark (1:100.000) Kortbladet Blaavandshuk) [Description of the geological map of Denmark, map Blaavandshuk
- A Jessen
Marsk, strandeng og strandsump. Planterne. [Marsh, coastal meadow and coastal marsh. The plants
- Vm Mikkelsen
A pollen preparation procedure with soap wash-sieving for fine-grained unconsolidated sediments
- E Kolstrup
Ribe og omegns jordbundsforhold: en ingeniør-geologisk beskrivelse [The soils of Ribe and surroundings, an engineer-geology description, in Danish]. (By-geologi nr. 8-Ribe)
- E L Mertz
- EL Mertz