E&G Quaternary Science Journal Vol. 66/1
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issn 0424-7116 | DOi 10.3285/eg.66.1 Edited by the German Quaternary Association Editor-in-Chief: Margot Böse & EEiszeitalter und GegenwartG Quaternary Science Journal Vol. 66 LifE in DOggErLanD – paLynologiCaL invEstigatiOns Of thE EnvirOnMEnt No 1 Of prEhistOriC huntEr-gathErEr sOCiEtiEs in thE nOrth sEa Basin 2017 spring fED raisED pEat huMMOCks with tufa DEpOsits at thE farBEBErg hiLLs (nOrthwEst-gErMany) pLEistOzänE (ELstEr- unD saaLEzEitLiChE) gLaziLiMnisChE BECkEntOnE unD -sChLuffE in niEDErsaChsEn/nw-DEutsChLanD thE MOrphologiCaL units BEtwEEn thE EnD MOrainEs Of thE pOMEranian phasE anD thE EBErswaLDE iCE-MarginaL vaLLEy (urstrOMtaL), gErMany GEOZON & EEiszeitalter und GegenwartG Quaternary Science Journal Volume 66 / number 1 / 2017 / DOI: 10.3285/eg.66.1 / iSSn 0424-7116 / www.quaternary-science.net / Founded in 1951 Editor EXPrEss rEPORTS' Editor KArl-Ernst BEHrE, lower Saxonian institute of Historical Coastal research, Wilhelmshaven, DEUQUA inGMAr UnKEl, institut ökosystemforschung, Germany Deutsche Quartärvereinigung e.V. Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel, Germany Stilleweg 2 PHiliP GibbarD, Department of Geography, D-30655 Hannover, Germany thEsis ABSTRACTS' Editor University of Cambridge, Great Britain Tel: +49 (0) 511 / 643 36 13 BErnHArD SAlCHEr, AG Geologie, Quartär- Volli E. KAlM, institute of Ecology and Earth E-Mail: info (at) deuqua.de geologie, Universität Salzburg, Austria Sciences, University of Tartu, Estonia www.deuqua.org CESArE Ravazzi, institute for the Dynamics of AssociAtE Editors Editor-in-chiEf Environmental Processes, national research MArGoT BöSE PiErrE AnToinE, laboratoire de Géographie Council of italy, italy Physique, Université Paris i Panthéon- Freie Universität Berlin JAMES roSE, Department of Geography, royal Sorbonne, France Malteserstr. 74–100 Holloway University of london, Great Britain D-12249 Berlin, Germany JÜrGEn EHlErS, Witzeeze, Germany Tel.: +49 (0) 30 / 838-70 37 3 CHristiAn SCHlÜCHTEr, institute of Geologi- E-Mail: m.boese (at) fu-berlin.de MArkus FUCHS, Department of Geography, cal Sciences, University of Bern, Switzerland Justus-liebig-University Giessen, Germany AssistAnt Editor DirK van HUSEn, Gmunden, Austria rAlF-DiETriCH KAHlKE, Senckenberg re- JEF VAnDEnBErGHE, Faculty of Earth and DAniElA Sauer search institute, research Station of Quater- life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, The Georg-August-Universität Göttingen nary Palaeontology Weimar, Germany Goldschmidtstr. 5 netherlands D-37077 Göttingen, Germany THomas liTT, Steinmann-institute of Geology, AnDreas VöTT, institute of Geography, Johan- Tel.: +49 (0) 551 / 39-8011 Mineralogy and Paleontology, University of nes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Germany Fax: +49 (0) 551 / 39-8006 Bonn, Germany E-Mail: daniela.sauer(at)geo.uni-goettingen.de lESzEK MArks, institute of Geology, University FORMEr EDITORS-in-chiEf of Warsaw, Poland Production Editor Paul Woldstedt (1951–1966) SASCHA FriCKE HEnK J. 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Halle, Tauschstelle, Herr nico Andres Tel.: +49 (0)30-20 23 83 19 0 Creative Commons frEQuEncy August-Bebel-Straße 13 E-Mail: info (at) geozon.net Attribution license 3.0 2 numbers per year 06108 Halle (Saale), Germany www.geozon.net http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Quaternary Science Journal GEOZON SCIENCE MEDIA Volume 66 / Number 1 / 2017 / 3-13 / DOI 10.3285/eg.66.1.01 ISSN 0424-7116 E&G www.quaternary-science.net Life in Doggerland – palynological investigations of the environment of prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies in the North Sea Basin Sascha Krüger1, Walter Dörfler1, Ole Bennike2, Steffen Wolters3 How to cite: Krüger, S., Dörfler, W., Bennike O. & Wolters, S. (2017): Life in Doggerland – palynological investigations of the environ- ment of prehistoric hunter-gatherer societies in the North Sea Basin. – E&G Quaternary Science Journal, 66 (1): 3–13. DOI: 10.3285/eg.66.1.01 Abstract: Analyses of two vibrocores from the sea floor of the submerged Doggerland within the centre of the North Sea provide a record of late Pleistocene and early Holocene vegetation history. Based on two high-resolution pollen diagrams of basal peat, the vegetation development and past environmental conditions were studied. The diagrams show that the vegetation history of Doggerland corresponds to that of the north European Plain during the late glacial and early Holocene. The concentration of micro-charcoal was determined, but no traces of human activity were found. Leben in Doggerland – palynologische Untersuchungen zur Umwelt urgeschichtlicher Jäger- und Sammlerkulturen im heu- tigen Nordseebecken Kurzfassung: Die Analyse zweier Bohrkerne von Grund der Nordsee und dem in Analogie mit Doggerland bezeichneten ehemaligen Nord- seefestland boten die Möglichkeit eines besseren Verständnisses pleistozäner und frühholozäner Vegetationsgeschichte. Basier- end auf hochauflösenden Pollendiagrammen an Basalen Torfen wurden Vegetationsentwicklungen und Umweltbedingungen untersucht. Die Diagramme zeigen, dass sich die Mitteleuropäische Grundsukzession in weiten Teilen nachverfolgen lässt. Eine Bestimmung der Holzkohlekonzentrationen wurde vorgenommen, jedoch konnten keine sicheren Nachweise für menschliche Aktivität erbracht werden. Keywords: Doggerland, North Sea Basin, pollen analysis, basal peat, Pleistocene-Holocene Transition, hunter-gatherers Address of the cor - Sascha Krüger, Centre for Baltic and Scandinavian Archaeology, Stiftung Schleswig-Holsteinische Landesmuseen, Schloss Got- responding author: torf, D-24837 Schleswig. E-mail: [email protected] 1. Introduction particular consideration of non-pollen-palynomorphs and the counting of micro-charcoal of two sediment cores from The former land area in the North Sea region, named Dog- the bottom of the North Sea (fig. 1) to throw light on the gerland by Coles (1998) has for long been considered a development of this region, where classical archaeological potential settlement area of Palaeolithic and Mesolithic methods are of limited value. hunter-gatherer societies. Regardless of their low number, One of the questions we wanted to investigate is what finds of retouched flint artefacts and harpoons are indisput- were the living conditions in Doggerland at the Pleisto- able evidence of former human presence. Countless mam- cene–Holocene transition and what was the impact of sub- mal bones are witness of a rich and changing environment mergence on potential settlement areas? (Bjerck 1995: 132; Coles 1998: 47; Glimmerveen et al. 2006: The combination of rising temperatures and conse- 242; Peeters & Momber 2014: 55; Schwabedissen 1951: 76). quently melting ice sheets during the late glacial and early A systematic archaeological exploration of Dogger- Holocene resulted in a rise of the sea level. The simulta- land is obviously impossible because the area is now sub- neously rising groundwater level close to coastal areas merged. However, the history of the region can be studied caused fen formation in wide areas in the hinterland of the by palaeoecological methods. Here we used palynology, a coast, and the so called basal peats developed (Behre 2008: 21; Behre et al. 1979: 94; Firbas 1952: 146; Jansen et al. 1979: 182; Lange & Menke 1967: 30; Overbeck 1975: 46). The permanent rising sea level led inevitably to submer- 1 Christian-Albrechts University Kiel 2 Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) gence of coastal fens that hence were often eroded by the 3 Lower Saxony Institute for historical coastal research (NIhK) sea. Big lumps of peat − the so called moorlogs − that once