Sea-level Change in Mesolithic Southern Scandinavia

Peter Moe Astrup

Description

The seabed in southern Scandinavia contains numerous traces of a submerged landscape that is thought to be the remnant of a once important habitat for Mesolithic hunter-gatherers. Large parts of this landscape were gradually flooded by rising seas between 9500 and 4000 BC and perceptions of the Maglemose culture (9500-6400 BC) have, consequently, been based almost exclusively on former inland settlements. As a result, Early and Late Mesolithic societies have been understood as almost diametrically opposed with regards to their reliance upon marine resources and their degree of sedentism. The main objective of the book is to investigate two questions that are directly related to our current understanding of the populations of the now submerged areas: 1) Do we have a representative picture of the spread of Early Mesolithic sites in southern Scandinavia, or does the weighting towards inland sites reflect the fact that coastal sites have not been identified below present-day sea-level? 2) How did sea-level changes impact Mesolithic populations at different temporal and spatial scales, and how were these experienced from 8000-4000 BC? The book presents an extensive and up-to-date review of various types of evidence from the Boreal period such as faunal remains, fishing instruments, d13C values in bones, settlement positions and available marine resources. These are used to discuss the extent to which marine resources were utilised in the Maglemose culture. Another central component of this book is a series of new coastline models made to determine the Mesolithic sea-level changes / coastline positions. The eight new coastline models are created to facilitate new evaluations of possible relationships between sea-level changes and cultural changes. On the basis of the new coastline models the book also presents the preliminary results of 47 diver investigations conducted with the aim of identifying potential coastal settlements from the Maglemose culture.

Sujets

• Prehistory
• Archaeology
• Prehistoric Europe
• Northern Europe
• Scandinavia
• Scandinavie
• Région

Informations

• Publié par: Aarhus University Press
• Date de parution: 17 décembre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9788793423367
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 50 Mo

Extrait

Peter Moe Astrup

SEALEVEL CHANGE in Mesolithic southern Scandinavia

SEALEVEL CHANGE in Mesolithic southern Scandinavia

Long and shortterm effects on society and the environment

Peter Moe Astrup

Moesgaard Museum Jutland Archaeological Society

Sealevel Change in Mesolithic southern Scandinavia Long and shortterm effects on society and the environment

© The author and Jutland Archaeological Society, 2018

ISBN 978 8793423 36 7

Jutland Archaeological Society Publications Vol. 106

Layout: Louise Hilmar Cover: Louise Hilmar & Casper Skaaning Andersen English revision: Anne Bloch & David Earle Robinson, HSLS, Ebeltoft Drawings: Lars Foged Thomsen Digitisation of plans and sections: Peter Moe Astrup Ebogsproduktion: Narayana Press, Gylling Type: Palatino & Helvetica

Published by: Jutland Archaeological Society in cooperation with Moesgaard Museum

Distributed by Aarhus University Press

Published with support of: Dronning Margrethe II’s Arkæologiske Fond Aage og Johanne LouisHansens Fond

Contents

Chapter 1 11 ........................................................................................................................................................................................ Introduction 11 ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Project focus11 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Research objectives .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 15 Outline and chapter summary ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 15 Temporal and spatial framework ................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17

Chapter 2 19 ........................................................................................................................................................................................ The Mesolithic in southern Scandinavia 19 .............................................................................................................................................................. Introduction19 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... The environmental setting19 ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... The Mesolithic record of southern Scandinavia20 .........................................................................................................................................................................

Chapter 3 29 ........................................................................................................................................................................................ Theoretical framework 29 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. Introduction ...................... ........................ 29 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Theoretical positions in Mesolithic research ................................................................................................................................................................................... 29 Central theoretical concepts30 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Main theoretical framework ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 34

Chapter 4 37 ........................................................................................................................................................................................ Determining coastline displacement in southern Scandinavia 80004000 BC 37 ...................... Introduction .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 37 Processes involved in shoreline displacement38 .............................................................................................................................................................................. Sealevel studies in southern Scandinavia ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 40 Do we need new sealevel reconstructions?42 ..................................................................................................................................................................................... Development of new coastline models ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 46 The potential of SLIPs for determining past sea levels49 ...................................................................................................................................................... Measurements of GlacioIsostatic Adjustment (GIA) .......................... ................................................................ 54 ................................................................ Presentation and validation of the new coastline models .............................................................................................................................................. 66 Summary77 ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Chapter 5 79 ........................................................................................................................................................................................ A critical assessment of the perceived importance of marine resources in the Early Mesolithic of southern Scandinavia 79 ................................................................................................................................ Introduction79 .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. The perception of Mesolithic cultures80 ..................................................................................................................................................................................................... Sedentism and the role of marine resources80 .................................................................................................................................................................................. Coastal adaptations in southern Scandinavia81 ................................................................................................................................................................................ Available marine resources84 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Sealevel change and sedentism ............................................................................ 86 .......................................................................................................................................... Definition of coastallyadapted huntergatherers87 ..................................................................................................................................................................... Site positions88 ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Isotopic evidence and spatial variations in diet90 .......................................................................................................................................................................... Exploitation of marine animal resources ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 95 Inland fishing .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 99 Stationary fishing equipment .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 102 Exploitation of marine shellfish .................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 106 Summary108 .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Chapter 6 111 ...................................................................................................................................................................................... A search for coastallysituated sites in Vendsyssel and the Bay of Aarhus 111 ............................... Introduction111 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Elevated Maglemose sites in Denmark? ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 112 Maglemose sites in Vendsyssel .......... ............................................................................................................................................. 117 ................................................................ Coastal settlement positions in Vendsyssel120 ................................................................................................................................................................................... Site position: catchment and function ................................................................................................................................................................................................... 122 Early Mesolithic versus Late Mesolithic site positions ................................................................................................................................................... 124 Coastal sites in the Bay of Aarhus ................................................................................................................................ ............ 125 .................................................. ................ Followup excavation at position 20144 ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 129 Discussion and research potential131 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ Lessons learned from the Bay of Aarhus in a broader perspective132 ................................................................................................................. Summary ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 134

Chapter 7 ........................................................................................................................................................................ 135 ............. The inundation of southern Scandinavia: Human responses to, and perceptions of, sealevel rise 135 ...................................................................................................................................................................................... Introduction135 ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Site abandonment and causality136 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. Floodrisk mapping136 ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Sealevel impact on primary animal prey ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 140 Longterm changes in carrying capacity ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 143 Territorial impact ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 147 Adaptations to sealevel change ................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 149 Abrupt sealevel change and its potential impact .... .............................................................................................. 153 ................................................................ Physical and social exposure to sealevel change .................................................................................................................................................................. 159 Experiencing sealevel change160 ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ Summary .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 162

Chapter 8 163 ..................................................................................................................................................................................... Discussion 163 ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Introduction163 ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Modelling issues .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 163 Marine adaptation166 .......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Impacts and responses175 ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. Concluding remarks ............................ 177 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Appendix 1 182 .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... Appendix 2 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ .......... 186 .......... ................ Appendix 3 188 ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

References ..................................................................................................................................................................... .......... 193 ................................................................................................

Formalities

This book is an edited version of a PhD thesis with the title: ‘Sealevel Changes in Mesolithic Southern Scandinavia: Long and Shortterm Effects on Society and Envi ronment’ (Arts PhD program for History, Archaeology and Classical Studies, Aarhus University). The PhD scholarship ran from 1st February 2011 to 1st February 2015 and was financed by the Faculty of Arts, Aarhus University, with additional support kindly provided by Queen Margrethe II’s travelling scholarship and Elisabeth Munksgaard’s scholarship. Production of this book has been undertaken while the author was employed at Moesgaard Museum, with editing work and publica tion being financed via the projectDeførstekystjægere(The earliest coastal hunter gatherers), which was funded by the Danish foundationsDronningMargretheII’s ArkæologiskeFondandAageogJohanneLouisHansensFond. It was also research grants from these foundations that made it possible in 2017 to undertake the archaeological investigations in the Bay of Aarhus described in Chapter 6.

Acknowledgements

I owe many people a great debt of thanks in connection with the production of this book. First and foremost my family, who have given me great support during the entire process. I would also like to thank my supervisors, JensBjørn Riis Andreasen and Felix Riede (Department of Archaeology and Cultural Studies Aarhus Univer sity), for constructive support, feedback and discussions. Jesper Olsen, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University, is thanked for help with the location and calibration of radiocarbondated samples. Thanks are also due Lars Thomsen and Louise Hilmar (Moesgaard Museum), who was responsible for the graphics, and David Earle Robinson and Anne Bloch, Heritage Science and Language Services, Ebeltoft, who revised the English text. Finally, I would like to thank Mads Holst and Lars Krants Larsen (Moesgaard Museum), who are largely responsible for finding the necessary funding for publication of this book, and the researchers who have allowed me to access and use their unpublished data.

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