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Abstract

Palynological and archaeobotanical analyses were conducted on excavated sediments from Tse Dura, a Later Stone Age rock shelter in north-central Nigeria with the aim of reconstructing the environment conditions at the site within the last millennium. From 933 ± 29 BP to 802 ± 29 BP, the environment alternated between Guinea savanna with dry conditions, and secondary and riverine forests with humid conditions. During these periods of environmental fluctuations, the LSA populations engaged in the management of economic plants the most significant of which included Dioscorea spp. Pennisetum glaucum and Elaeis guineensis, and exploited wild plants such as Pavetta crassipes, Sarcocephalus latifolius and Lophira cf. lanceolata for dietary and ethnomedicinal purposes. Around 310 ± 30 BP cal, the environment became very wet after which it was succeeded by a drier period. It was during this period that Sorghum bicolor became prominent, and the environment attained its current status dominated by Guinea savanna elements and secondary forests.
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Authors and Affiliations

Orijemie Emuobosa Akpo
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Abstract

Archaeological and living tree data were used to construct tree-ring chronologies over the medieval (AD 1183–1430) and recent (AD 1812–2020) periods in Turku, which is historically an important population centre in Southwest Finland and the country. Comparisons between the two tree-ring assemblages, and between the previously built chronologies from the Åland (historical timber) and Tavastia (lacustrine subfossils and living trees) sites, provided ways of understanding the growth patterns and their linkages to climatic, environmental, and edaphic factors. Tree growth in and around Turku was affected by warm-season precipitation and winter temperature. Similar relationships were previously evident also in the Åland tree rings, whereas the data from a wetter Tavastia site did not exhibit similar precipitation signal. The site conditions influence also the correlations which are higher between Turku and Åland than between Turku and Tavastia chronologies. Construction of long continuous chronology is impaired by human-related activities, the Great Fire of Turku in 1827 and logging, which have diminished the availability of dead and living-tree materials, respectively. These conditions lead to hardships of filling the gap between the medieval and recent periods and updating the archaeological datasets with compatible living-tree data, which are both demonstrated by our results.
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Authors and Affiliations

Samuli Helama
1
Tanja Ratilainen
2
Juha Ruohonen
3
Jussi-Pekka Taavitsainen
3

  1. Natural Resources Institute Finland
  2. Turku Museum Center, Turku, Finland
  3. Department of Archaeology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
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Abstract

Vegetation changes in the Lower San Valley near Jaroslaw are reconstructed from the Younger Dryas to the present time on the basis of palynological analysis of the peat core. The pollen profile came from a an old riverbed and was supplemented by radiocarbon datings. The Younger Dryas and early Preboreal vegetation was characterised by a high proportion of forest communities with pine (Pinus sylvestris and P. cembra) and birch (Betula), while patches of open area were dominated by the steppe with Artemisia. Climatic amelioration during the Preboreal chronozone led to the rapid spread of elm (Ulmus), which was probably a dominant taxon on the lowest terraces of the valley. Terrestrialization of the water body existing in the palaeomeaner and the subsequent beginning of peat accumulation caused a deterioration in pollen preservation. Hence, the interpretation of the profile section spanning the period between the Boreal and Subatlantic chronozones was seriously disturbed due to selective corrosion and the overrepresentation of Pinus sylvestris type and Filicales monolete sporomorphs. Between ca. 336 and 1152 AD fluctuations in woodland cover were recorded. Important components in those forests, despite the domination of Pinus sylvestris, were Quercus, Carpinus betulus, Fagus sylvatica and Abies alba. The first pollen grains of cereals (Cerealia type) were found before ca. 1605-1414 BC and may be attributed to the agricultural activity of the Neolithic and/or early Bronze tribes. Periods of strong deforestation caused by humans were probably related to the time when the Tarnobrzeska Group of the Lusatian Culture and the Przeworska Culture were active. The first groups of Slavs did not significantly influence the environment, but the subsequent development of those groups led to more visible deforestation, which was triggered after the establishment of Jaroslaw in the 11 th century AD.

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Authors and Affiliations

Piotr Kołaczek

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