Swiss Plateau): New Interdisciplinary Insights in Neolithic Settlement, Land Use and Vegetation Dynamics 10
Archaeological and palaeoecological investigations at Burgäschisee (Swiss Plateau): new interdisciplinary insights in Neolithic settlement, land use and vegetation dynamics 10 Albert Hafner1,2, Fabian Rey2,3,4, Marco Hostettler1,2, Julian Laabs1,2, Matthias Bolliger5, Christoph Brombacher6, John Francuz1, Erika Gobet2,3, Simone Häberle6, Philippe Rentzel6, Marguerita Schäfer6, Jörg Schibler6, Othmar Wey1,2, Willy Tinner2,3 Introduction 1 – Institute of Archaeological Sciences, University of Bern, Switzerland 2 – Oeschger Centre for Climate The prehistoric lake dwellings of Switzerland, Germany, and Austria have Change Research, University of been known for more than 150 years. Of these, 111 were awarded UN- Bern, Switzerland ESCO World Cultural Heritage status in 2011. Mainly dating from the Neo- 3 – Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Bern, Switzerland lithic (including the Chalcolithic or Copper Age) and the Bronze Age, la- 4 – Geoecology, Department of custrine settlements represent an early phase of sedentarisation in the Environmental Sciences, University northern foothills of the Alps. Despite much significant research on the of Basel, Switzerland 5 – Archaeological Service of the material culture, settlement dynamics, economy, and ecology, the focus Canton of Bern, Underwater has hitherto almost exclusively been on the classic sites situated on the Archaeology and Dendrochronology, Sutz-Lattrigen, larger northern pre-Alpine lakes in the so-called Three Lakes region of Switzerland western Switzerland and on the Lakes of Geneva, Zurich, and Constance. 6 – Institute for Integrative Prehistory The international and interdisciplinary research project ’Beyond lake vil- and Archaeological Science, University of Basel, Switzerland lages: studying Neolithic environmental changes and human impact on small lakes in Switzerland, Germany and Austria’ was launched in 2015 Figure 1: Areas examined as part of the interdisciplinary project entitled ’Beyond lake villages’ in the Alpine region.
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