Human and climatic impact on the environment as derived from colluvial, fluvial and lacustrine archives—examples from the Bronze Age to the Migration period, Germany

Zolitschka, Bernd; Behre, Karl-Ernst; Schneider, Jürgen

doi:10.1016/s0277-3791(02)00182-8

Cited by 228 publications

(164 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…In agreement with the quantitative estimates of climatic variables reconstructed in this study, Tinner et al (2003) have also pointed to the fact that, during climate reversals, an increase in precipitation probably had a more decisive impact than a temperature decrease on former settlements in marginal elevated areas like the Alps. Likewise, in Germany, Zolitschka et al (2003) observed that from the Bronze Age to the Migration period, there are reasons to assume that, at least within the margin of error in the dating methods used, a coincidence appears between phases of unfavourable climatic conditions (cool and moist) and a decrease in human activities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…After the expansion of a new subsistence strategy based on farming and animal breeding during the Neolithic, the diffusion of the metallurgy and its associated technological efficiency marks a second step towards a possible increase in anthropogenic disturbances of the natural environment. However, despite this general context of economic and technical advances, recent investigations have suggested that Bronze Age societies in Central Europe were relatively sensitive to the climatic variations which punctuated the late Holocene (Tinner et al, 2003;Zolitschka et al, 2003). In the middle 20th century, German archaeologists pointed to apparent synchronisms between a climatic reversal at the Subboreal-Subatlantic transition and the cultural transition from the Bronze to the Iron Ages (Smolla, 1954; see also Millotte, 1963 and references therein).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, while multiple Holocene climate records have been established in Central Europe from various archives (Haas et al, 1998;Schmidt et al, 2002;Heiri et al, 2003;Zolitschka et al, 2003;Magny, 2004;Nicolussi et al, 2005), quantitative reconstructions of seasonal changes in both temperature and precipitation are still rare. However, such seasonally resolved quantitative records are nevertheless needed for a better understanding of possible links between variations in the climate and the history of societies during the Bronze and early Iron Ages.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantitative reconstruction of climatic variations during the Bronze and early Iron ages based on pollen and lake-level data in the NW Alps, France

Magny

Peyron

Gauthier

et al. 2009

Quaternary International

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Vegetation and lake-level data from the archaeological site of Tresserve, on the eastern shore of Lake Le Bourget (Savoie, France), are used to provide quantitative estimates of climatic variables over the period 4000-2300 cal BP in the northern French Pre-Alps, and to examine the possible impact of climatic changes on societies of the Bronze and early Iron Ages. The results obtained indicate that phases of higher lake level at 3500-3100 and 2750-2350 cal BP coincided with major climate reversals in the North Atlantic area. In west-central Europe, they were marked by cooler and wetter conditions. These two successive events may have affected ancient agricultural communities in west-central Europe by provoking harvest failures, more particularly due to increasing precipitation during the growing season. However, archaeological data in the region of Franche-Comté (Jura Mountains, eastern France) show a general expansion of population density from the middle Bronze Age to the early Iron Age. This suggests a relative emancipation of proto-historic societies from climatic conditions, probably in relation to the spread of new modes of social and economic organisation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantitative reconstruction of climatic variations during the Bronze and early Iron ages based on pollen and lake-level data in the NW Alps, France

Magny

Peyron

Gauthier

et al. 2009

Quaternary International

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“…5000 yr ago (Renssen et al, 2009), southern European ecosystems experienced great changes, as observed in glacier dynamics (Matthews and Dresser, 2008), lake-levels , fire activity and flood records (Macklin and Lewin, 2003). In addition, the Bronze Age (4200-2800 cal BP) in Italy and across Europe was a crucial period for societal development, involving important technological innovations and changes in land-use strategies (Zolitschka et al, 2003;Valsecchi et al, 2006;Vannière et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Orbital changes, variation in solar activity and increased anthropogenic activities: controls on the Holocene flood frequency in the Lake Ledro area, Northern Italy

et al. 2013

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Abstract. Two lacustrine sediment cores from Lake Ledro in northern Italy were studied to produce chronologies of flood events for the past 10 000 yr. For this purpose, we have developed an automatic method that objectively identifies the sedimentary imprint of river floods in the downstream lake basin. The method was based on colour data extracted from processed core photographs, and the count data were analysed to capture the flood signal. Flood frequency and reconstructed sedimentary dynamics were compared with lake-level changes and pollen inferred vegetation dynamics. The results suggest a record marked by low flood frequency during the early and middle Holocene (10 000–4500 cal BP). Only modest increases during short intervals are recorded at ca. 8000, 7500, and 7100 cal BP. After 4500–4000 cal BP, the record shows a shift toward increased flood frequency. With the exception of two short intervals around 2900–2500 and 1800–1400 cal BP, which show a slightly reduced number of floods, the trend of increasing flood frequency prevailed until the 20th century, reaching a maximum between the 16th and the 19th centuries. Brief-flood frequency increases recorded during the early and middle Holocene can be attributed to cold climatic oscillations. On a centennial time scale, major changes in flood frequency, such as those observed after ca. 4500/4000 and 500 cal BP, can be attributed to large-scale climatic changes such as the Neo-glacial and Little Ice Age, which are under orbital and possibly solar control. However, in the Bronze Age and during the Middle Ages and modern times, forest clearing and land use probably partially control the flood activity.

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“…Vinther et al (2009) recorded higher temperatures in Greenland at exactly the same time span. The timing and extent of this dry period can be well correlated to the Roman Warm Period (RWP) (Zolitschka et al, 2003;Ljungqvist, 2010). Warmer and drier conditions in South America during that period have been found by Jenny et al (2002), based on geochemical, sedimentology and diatom assemblage data derived from sediment cores extracted from Laguna Aculeo (central Chile).…”

Section: Mid-holocene and Late Holocene Palaeoenvironmental Changesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Holocene environmental changes in the highlands of the southern Peruvian Andes (14° S) and their impact on pre-Columbian cultures

et al. 2015

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Abstract. High-altitude peatlands of the Andes still remain relatively unexploited although they offer an excellent opportunity for well-dated palaeoenvironmental records.To improve knowledge about climatic and environmental changes in the western Andes of southern Peru, we present a high-resolution record of the Cerro Llamoca peatland for the last 8600 years. The 10.5 m long core consists of peat and intercalated sediment layers and was examined for all kinds of microfossils. We chose homogeneous peat sections for pollen analysis at decadal to centennial resolution. The inorganic geochemistry was analysed in 2 mm resolution (corresponding > 2 years) using an ITRAX X-ray fluorescence core scanner.We interpret phases of relatively high abundances of Poaceae pollen in our record as an expansion of Andean grasslands during humid phases. Drier conditions are indicated by a significant decrease of Poaceae pollen and higher abundances of Asteraceae pollen. The results are substantiated by changes in arsenic contents and manganese/iron ratios, which turned out to be applicable proxies for in situ palaeoredox conditions.The mid-Holocene period of 8.6-5.6 ka is characterised by a series of episodic dry spells alternating with spells that are more humid. After a pronounced dry period at 4.6-4.2 ka, conditions generally shifted towards a more humid climate. We stress a humid/relatively stable interval between 1.8 and 1.2 ka, which coincides with the florescence of the Nasca culture in the Andean foothills. An abrupt turn to a sustained dry period occurs at 1.2 ka, which is contemporaneous with the demise of the Nasca/Wari society in the Palpa lowlands. Markedly drier conditions prevail until 0.75 ka, providing evidence of the presence of a Medieval Climate Anomaly. Moister but hydrologically highly variable conditions prevailed again after 0.75 ka, which allowed re-expansion of tussock grasses in the highlands, increased discharge into the Andean foreland and resettling of the lowlands during this so-called late Intermediate Period (LIP).On a supraregional scale, our findings can ideally be linked to and proved by the archaeological chronology of the Nasca-Palpa region as well as other high-resolution marine and terrestrial palaeoenvironmental records. Our findings show that hydrological fluctuations, triggered by the changing intensity of the monsoonal tropical summer rains emerging from the Amazon Basin in the north-east, have controlled the climate in the study area.

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Human and climatic impact on the environment as derived from colluvial, fluvial and lacustrine archives—examples from the Bronze Age to the Migration period, Germany

Cited by 228 publications

References 19 publications

Quantitative reconstruction of climatic variations during the Bronze and early Iron ages based on pollen and lake-level data in the NW Alps, France

Quantitative reconstruction of climatic variations during the Bronze and early Iron ages based on pollen and lake-level data in the NW Alps, France

Orbital changes, variation in solar activity and increased anthropogenic activities: controls on the Holocene flood frequency in the Lake Ledro area, Northern Italy

Holocene environmental changes in the highlands of the southern Peruvian Andes (14° S) and their impact on pre-Columbian cultures

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