ALBERT

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 8 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Brian F. Codding, Adrian R. Whitaker, Nathan E. Stevens〈/p〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 8 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Xiaolin Ren, Duowen Mo, Michael Storozum, Ximena Lemoine, Yanyan Yu, Wanfa Gu, Xingshan Lei, Jiaqiang Zhang, Jianqing Lü, Tristram R. Kidder〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉Archaeologists have focused on the social conditions surrounding the development of urbanism around the world, however the environmental impact of these ancient cities remains unclear. In this paper, we present palynological data from the early Bronze Age city of Dongzhao, Henan Province, China. Our data indicate that vegetation change and the development of early urban settlements are closely linked, with the advent of urban development significantly accelerating deforestation and altering the composition of local vegetation communities. The pollen record from Dongzhao provides new evidence to support the claim that urban expansion, coupled with a drying climate and the expansion of agriculture, dramatically reconfigured the landscapes of Bronze Age China.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 5 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Rodrigo Loyola, Lautaro Núñez, Isabel Cartajena〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉It has often been assumed that a link exists between climate change and human dispersion during the initial peopling of the Atacama Desert. However, there is little understanding of how hunter-gatherers acquired and processed environmental information. We examine paleoenvironmental and archaeological data to propose that the early peopling of the highlands of the south-central Atacama was a gradual process modulated by landscape learning. Evidence suggests that initial occupations at the end of the Pleistocene were limited to intermediate altitude levels, where the ecological structure was more easily legible and productive. This allowed human groups to make use of general, transferrable landscape knowledge, based mainly on the hunting of wild camelids and the gathering of plant resources in azonal formations. However, the arid event of the Early Holocene led to successive episodes of abandonment and relocation to new areas, consolidating complementary land-use between the desert lowlands and the high puna. Two complementary strategies for the acquisition and transmission of information can be identified: (1) scouting as part of logistical hunting parties; and (2) information-pooling rooted in broad, flexible social networks. We conclude that in the face of uncertain conditions, hunter-gatherers invested more effort in learning the landscape and sharing environmental knowledge.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 4 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Anamaria Roman, Tudor-Mihai Ursu, Sorina Fărcaş, Coriolan Horaţiu Opreanu, Vlad-Andrei Lăzărescu〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The landscape at the Roman Archaeological Site from Moigrad-Porolissum, Romania, is nowadays mostly forested. But how did it look during the Roman period (106–275 AD)? Also, how can multispectral imagery and laser scanning be combined more effectively to detect the signatures of ancient sub-surface archaeological remains? This study employed WorldView2 satellite and LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) data to explore current remotely sensed vegetation and terrain proxies. These helped identify past anthropogenic signatures embedded within the landscape for reconstructing the ancient engineered environment. The spectral vegetation and terrain patterns revealed 227 marks (36256.22 m) relevant for the historical landscape, of which 182 correspond to ancient sub-surface features. In open landscapes, the two techniques had equivalent results, while LiDAR provided better detection rates in shrubland patches and forests. Their successive application is an advantageous strategy for optimizing costs. The satellite imagery is employed first, followed by the density analysis of the results, while the more expensive laser-based data collection can be focused on the problematic or promising areas. The vegetation and terrain marks revealed the intricate and extensive ancient defensive system that extended on over 24.5 km〈sup〉2〈/sup〉. Their strategic functions, requiring visibility between and around them, suggest large-scale deforestation (probably over 1 km around the structures). Thus, in contrast to the present forest dominance, it appears that in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, at Porolissum there was an anthropogenic open landscape covering over 2158 ha, with urbanization and intense military activity on 198.76 ha.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 4 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Weiwei Sun, Enlou Zhang, Rong Chen, Ji Shen〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉Organic carbon mineralization and storage in the inland water bodies is an important component of global carbon cycling. However, the mechanisms influencing carbon cycling in the inland water bodies remain uncertain. In this study, 〈em〉n〈/em〉-alkane data from a sediment core spanning the last glacial-interglacial cycle from Lake Xingkai in northeast China, were analyzed to determine response of regional carbon cycling to climate change. Prior to MIS 1 the sedimentary 〈em〉n〈/em〉-alkanes were mainly derived from terrigenous higher plants and helophytes in the wetland. By contrast, non-photosynthetic bacteria are probable major alternating source of sedimentary 〈em〉n〈/em〉-alkanes during MIS 1. The 〈em〉n〈/em〉-alkanes in the sediments are mainly influenced by the variations of lake level and deposition of mineral dust. The total organic carbon content (TOC) and TOC-normalized middle- and long-chain 〈em〉n〈/em〉-alkane concentrations increased during glacial times and decreased during interglacial periods, reflecting higher rates of organic matter decomposition under warmer climatic conditions. The temperature dependence of lacustrine organic matter mineralization suggests that the carbon burial potential of lakes in northeast China will decrease in the future as global warming intensifies.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 2 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Andrea Zerboni, Michele Degli Esposti, Ying-Li Wu, Filippo Brandolini, Guido S. Mariani, Federica Villa, Paolo Lotti, Francesca Cappitelli, Marzia Sasso, Agostino Rizzi, G. Diego Gatta, Mauro Cremaschi〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The preservation of rock art in open-air contexts is a global issue controlled by several environmental processes, which are less investigated than the cultural significance of engravings and paintings. For that reason, we discuss the age, preservation, and palaeoenvironmental context of petroglyphs discovered on the flat, almost vertical face of a large boulder fallen along the western slope of Jabal Hammah, a rocky hill that borders the oasis of Salut (northern Sultanate of Oman). Geoarchaeological investigation highlighted that, in the region, the preservation of petroglyphs is due to the interplay of two contrasting weathering processes. On one hand, karst dissolution – even if it is a very slow process in arid and semi-arid lands – gradually levels the surface of boulders. On the other hand, a biomineralized Mn- and Fe-rich rock varnish has developed inside the grooves of the engravings, thus sheltering them from extreme dissolution and promoting the preservation of the pristine shape of the representations. Moreover, organics trapped within the rock varnish have been radiocarbon dated to 2600 ± 60 uncal. years BP. This result allows establishing a limit 〈em〉ante quem〈/em〉 for the production of these specific engravings and to root it to the Bronze or Iron Age exploitation of the area. This result is of particular relevance in a region where well-dated rock art is virtually absent. Today, the biogeochemical processes leading to the formation of the protective crust are almost inactive, and not consistent with the present dry environmental settings. Their occurrence is in accordance with other local palaeoclimatic record, and suggests Bronze and Iron Age climatic conditions wetter than today. A broader implication of our work is that it shows how a multidisciplinary approach to the study of rock art provides the opportunity of understanding the age of rock art and its paleoenvironmental significance. We demonstrate that physical, chemical, and biological weathering processes are in charge of the preservation and/or destruction of rock art; such processes have to be seriously taken into account in projects of rock art field assessment.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 30 June 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Junna Zhang, Xiaohu Zhang, Zhengkai Xia, Hong Xu, Haitao Zhao〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉Geomorphological research at archaeological sites has shown that ancient environmental conditions have significant implications for understanding changes in archaeological site distribution and layout. The Luoyang Basin in Central China was a center for early urbanism including several large cities in antiquity, but the geomorphic environments that supported these ancient cities have remained uninvestigated. From 2006 to 2011, a field project was conducted in the Luoyang Basin in attempt to understand the relationship between environmental changes and the development of urbanism. Forty-nine profiles were sampled on the alluvial terraces of the Luoyang Basin to examine the geomorphological evolutionary history of the Yi River and Luo River. Our study indicates that the T1 Terrace formed around 7000 cal yr BP and provided a stable landform for Yangshao (7000-5000 yr BP) and Longshan (5000-3900 yr BP) settlements. However, massive floods around 4000-3800 yr BP destroyed some of these late Longshan settlements and caused the Luo River to change its course to southern part of the Luoyang Basin. Those floods significantly altered the landforms and laid a solid foundation for the succeeding development of the urban center at Erlitou.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 9 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): S.A. Gorbarenko, G. Yu Malakhova, A.V. Artemova, A.A. Bosin, E.A. Yanchenko, YuP. Vasilenko〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The age model of the western Bering Sea core 85 KL was modified through correlation of new and earlier-measured productivity proxies with the Chinese interstadials described by δ〈sup〉18〈/sup〉O records of Hulu and Sanbao caves and the relative paleointensity events in the studied core with those in the dated records. Resulted sequence of millennial scale Bering Sea Interstadials recorded by abrupt productivity risings was established during the penultimate glacial consistently with the Chinese interstadials and Antarctica isotope maxima. The pattern of the frequency and amplitude of the millennial productivity/climate variability in the Bering Sea during the penultimate glacial resembles that initially depicted in the δ〈sup〉18〈/sup〉O of Chinese cave stalagmites and is quite similar to one of the Dansgaard–Oeschger cycles during last glacial, except for their terminations. Contrary to well-pronounced interstadial A.1 during termination TI, an interstadial B.1 over the TII has lower duration and therefore is weakly observed in Antarctic temperature changes. Our results provide robust evidence that the bipolar seesaw mechanisms of millennial climate changes in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres were similar during the last and penultimate glacials.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: Available online 9 July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Yinan Liao, Peng Lu, Duowen Mo, Hui Wang, Michael J. Storozum, Panpan Chen, Junjie Xu〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The environment exerts a strong influence on the development of ancient agricultural systems, however ancient environmental conditions are often poorly understood in comparison to the development of ancient agricultural systems. In this study, we investigated the temporal patterns of crop distributions from the Neolithic to Bronze Age (9000-2300 yr BP) in the Songshan Mountain area of Henan Province, China in relation to the landforms. Our results show that broomcorn and foxtail were widely distributed across all landforms, regardless of the time period, but more sites are located on hills and mesas and less on the plains. Rice remains dating to the Peiligang period (9000-7000 yr BP) are only found in the plains. While some rice sites are distributed in the hill and mesa areas during the Yangshao period (7000-5000 yr BP), the plains are still the major area where rice sites are found. During the Longshan period (5000-4000 yr BP), soybeans are found at sites located on both mesas and plains. Wheat first appeared during the Erlitou periods (3900-3600 yr BP or 1900–1600 BC) in the region, but the evidence is too limited to determine its landform preference. In the following Shang (3600-3046 yr BP or 1600–1046 BC) and Zhou (3046-2256 yr BP or 1046–256 BC) dynasties, this crop was widely distributed at sites in hills, mesas and plains. Our study reveals that different landforms provide preferred ecological conditions for certain types of agricultural development and played a key role in determining farming styles: dry-farming or rice-farming.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: 30 May 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Quaternary International, Volume 518〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Weston C. McCool, Peter M. Yaworsky〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The territorialization of resources is a continual topic of interest for researchers investigating human social organization and resource competition. While scholars have proposed numerous archaeological markers of territoriality, these indicators are often established using qualitative observation and speculation rather than standardized methods and quantitative tests. In this article, we investigate the link between archaeological data and prehistoric territoriality using Formative period Fremont sites from Nine Mile Canyon (NMC), Utah, and geospatial statistical tests. Numerous researchers have suggested the presence of NMC sites with explicit defensive functions. The existence of large tower structures and remote storage units have led many to hypothesize that these features were part of a Fremont strategy to maintain territorial boundaries and defend resources from human predation. Here, we focus on the tower sites and their relationship to Fremont territoriality. Our results support the hypothesis that the tower sites of NMC functioned as defensive refuges. The presence of refuge sites reveals that the NMC Fremont avoided the confrontations necessary to exclude competitors and maintain territorial boundaries. We propose an explanatory model relating to seasonal mobility and settlement dispersion to explain why the costs of territoriality may have outweighed the benefits.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉