Weathering rates and anthropogenic influences in a sedimentary basin,São Paulo State,Brazil

The weathering rate of rocks and chemical dynamics of the Corumbataı́ River basin, São Paulo State, Brazil, were evaluated using major elements as natural tracers. This basin has serious environmental problems in terms of quality of surface and rainwater, which affect the determination of weathering rate. The Corumbataı́ River, downstream from Rio Claro City, receives several elements/compounds through anthropogenic activities, with only K, SO₄²⁻ and alkalinity yielding positive flux values. The negative flux of some anions/cations can be attributed to atmospheric loading mainly related to anthropogenic inputs, providing K a value of 16.7 ton/km⁻²a⁻¹ for the material removed by weathering in the Corumbataı́ River basin. This is equivalent to 26×10⁶ kg of rock being removed each year by the Corumbataı́ River. The instantaneous flux was found to be a function of discharge, with the majority of dry residue (dissolved load) being transported during the summer (wet) months. The removed material in Corumbataı́ River basin derives mainly from two sub-basins (Cabeças River and Passa Cinco River), where the sandstones weather more easily than siltstones and claystones in the basin.     

The Statherian itabirite-bearing sequence from the Morro Escuro Ridge,Santa Maria de Itabira,Minas Gerais,Brazil

The itabirite-bearing metasedimentary sequence from Morro Escuro Ridge comprises the basal units of the Espinhaço Supergroup and makes up a small tectonic inlier developed during one of the Brasiliano orogenic events (800-500 Ma), amongst horses of the Archean TTG gneisses, including sheared granites of the anorogenic Borrachudos Suite (∼1700 Ma). The metasedimentary rocks are comprised of low-to intermediate-amphibolite facies schists, quartzites, conglomerates and banded iron formation (itabirite) correlatable with the sequences of the Serro Group, which underlies the metasedimentary rocks of the Espinhaço Supergroup in the Serra da Serpentina Ridge. A maximum Statherian deposition age (1668 Ma) was established using SHRIMP U–Pb isotopic constraints on zircon grains from conglomerate and quartzite units overlying the itabirite. The itabirite is predominantly hematitic and its geochemical characteristics are typical of a Lake Superior-type BIF deposited in a platformal, suboxic to anoxic environment distant from Fe-bearing hydrothermal vents. Close to the contact zone with amphibolites of the Early Neoproterozoic Pedro Lessa mafic suite, an increase of the magnetite content and crystallization of metasomatic Mg-hornblende and Ce-allanite can be observed. These mineralogical changes developed preferentially along the igneous contact zone but are probably co-genetic with the formation of alteration haloes in zircon grains during the Neoproterozoic Brasiliano orogeny (506 ± 6 Ma).     

Geoarchaeological and Bioarchaeological Studies at Mira,an Early Upper Paleolithic Site in the Lower Dnepr Valley,Ukraine

New geoarchaeological and bioarcheological research was undertaken at the open‐air site of Mira, which is buried in deposits of the Second Terrace of the Dnepr River, roughly 15 km downstream from the city of Zaporozhye in Ukraine. Previous excavation of the site revealed two occupation layers dating to ∼32,000 cal BP. The lower layer (II/2) yielded bladelets similar to those of the early Gravettian, while the upper layer (I) contained traces of an artificial shelter and hundreds of bones and teeth of horse (Equus latipes). Mira represents the only firmly dated early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) site in the Dnepr Basin, and occupies a unique topographic setting for the EUP near the center of the broad floodplain of the Dnepr River. The site was visited during a period of floodplain stability, characterized by overbank deposition and weak soil formation under cool climate conditions. Mira was used as a long‐term camp, but also was the locus of large‐mammal carcass processing associated with a nearby kill of a group of horses (Layer I).     

“Mind the gap”: Caves,radiocarbon sequences,and the Mesolithic–Neolithic transition in Europe—lessons from the Mala Triglavca rockshelter site

Radiocarbon sequences from some northern Mediterranean cave sites show a temporal gap between Mesolithic and Neolithic occupations. Some authors regard this as a regional phenomenon and have sought to explain it in terms of a general population decline in the late Mesolithic, which facilitated the replacement of indigenous foragers by immigrant farmers. New evidence from the rockshelter site of Mala Triglavca, in Slovenia, leads us to question this view. We describe the deposits in the rockshelter and discuss the results of AMS radiocarbon dating of bone samples recovered in excavations in the 1980s. New archaeological investigations and associated soil/sediment analyses show that in the central part of the rockshelter a well‐defined stratigraphic sequence can be established, despite post‐depositional modification by soil forming processes. There is also evidence of substantial post‐depositional disturbance of the cave sediments by human agency and geomorphological processes, which have created “temporal gaps” and “inversions” in the radiocarbon sequence. The relatively large series of radiocarbon dates obtained enables some of the post‐depositional processes to be identified. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Last Interglacial peopling of Siberia: the Middle Palaeolithic site Ust''-Izhul'', the upper Yenisei area

Multidisciplinary Quaternary investigations in the Minusinsk Basin in the upper Yenisei River region and other southern Siberian continental depressions have produced evidence of prehistoric peopling pre‐dating the last glacial stage (>100 ka BP). Abundant ‘pebble tools’ and bone artefacts exposed from eroded alluvia of the Yenisei River terraces indicate repeated occupation of this territory since the Middle Pleistocene. A new stage of expansion of the early human occupation habitat occurred around the last interglacial (OIS 5e) by a Middle Palaeolithic (Neanderthaloid?) population characterized by a core and flake stone industry and open‐air occupation sites. The key camp/kill‐processing site at Ust‘‐Izhul’, dated to c. 125 ka BP and documenting complex behavioural activities, is so far the most complete in situ pre‐Late Palaeolithic site found in Siberia. This unique record provides new insights into the timing and the palaeoenvironmental conditions of the Pleistocene colonization of north‐central Asia.     

Geochronology and Geomorphology of the Pioneer Archaeological Site,Upper Snake River Plain,Idaho, USA

Pioneer is an open‐air, stratified, multicomponent archaeological site located in the upper Snake River Plain of southeastern Idaho, USA. Block excavations provided an opportunity to contribute to the Late Quaternary geomorphic history of the Big Lost River drainage and provide geochronological context of archaeological components at the site. The stratigraphic sequence is interpreted as reflecting multiple depositional episodes and five soil‐formation periods beginning pre‐7200 cal. yr B.P. and lasting to the historic period. The stratigraphic sequence contains an archaeological component dated to ∼3800 cal. yr B.P. and several other components post‐800 cal. yr B.P. Major site formation processes include fluvial deposition and erosion, pedogenesis (accumulation of secondary carbonates), and bioturbation. Periods of increased deposition at Pioneer and elsewhere along the Big Lost River are inferred to have occurred between ∼8400–6500 cal. yr B.P. and ∼2700–400 cal. yr B.P., potentially related to cooler/wetter episodes of the mid‐to‐late Holocene, including increased precipitation during the Medieval Climatic Anomaly (post‐750 cal. yr B.P.). There is also evidence of a high‐energy erosional event at ∼3800 cal. yr B.P. indicating a large middle Holocene flood. Pioneer provides an example of the archaeological and paleoclimatic value of studying alluvial buried soil stratigraphic sequences in arid environments.     

The Structure and Morphotectonics of the Gesher Benot Ya'aqov Area, Northern Dead Sea Rift, Israel

Geological, geomorphological, and morphotectonic studies at the Gesher Benot Ya'aqov Acheulean site, Northern Jordan Valley, provide: 1) a unique opportunity to establish the ecological background of hominid behavior during the early stages of widespread human occupation; 2) crucial data for understanding the paleo-environment and the various processes that affected the area near the Gesher Benot Ya'aqov site; and 3) a basis for further comprehensive research in the region.Quaternary tectonic activity near the Acheulean archeological site has produced a complex local setting that controls the surrounding landscape. Tectonic activity formed the Benot Ya'aqov embayment, which attracted hominids and a variety of other fauna. Sediments of the Benot Ya'akov formation deposited in the embayment facilitated excellent preservation of the remnants of Acheulean hominid activities and of abundant floral and faunal remains. The formation was subsequently affected by faulting and folding. Local uplift ended the deposition of lacustrine sediments in the embayment of Hula Valley Basin and caused erosion and vertical incision of the Jordan River that resulted in the capture of the Rosh Pinna River and the exposure of the Benot Ya'akov formation. These deposits are found in different structural positions along the north–south oriented morphotectonic embayment. The outcrops contain numerous archeological sites, giving the study area an unusually high potential for future hominid discoveries.     

Mid‐Holocene environmental changes in the Bay of Skaill,Mainland Orkney,Scotland: an integrated geomorphological,sedimentological and stratigraphical study

A detailed multidisciplinary investigation of intertidal freshwater sediments exposed in the north of the Bay of Skaill, Mainland Orkney, Scotland, have revealed a complex sedimentary sequence. This provided evidence for dynamic coastal environmental changes in the area since the mid‐Holocene. Freshwater ponds developed on glacial sediments ca. 6550 ± 80 yr BP (cal. bc 5590–5305). From ca. 6120 ± 70 yr BP (cal. bc 5040–4855), these were infilled by blown sand from the distal edge of a dune ridge located to the west. Thereafter, a series of sand‐blow events alternating with periods of quiescence occurred until ca. 4410 ± 60 yr BP (cal. bc 3325–2900). Between ca. 5240 ± 160 and 4660 ± 80 yr BP (cal. bc 4370–3115), pollen and charcoal records show evidence of anthropogenic activities, associated with the nearby Neolithic settlement of Skara Brae. Agriculture was probably affected by recurrent sand movement and widespread deposition of calcium carbonate in the hinterland of the bay. Machair development between ca. 6100 and 5000 yr BP (cal. bc 5235–3540) corresponds to a mid‐Holocene phase of dune formation recorded elsewhere in northwest Europe. The more recent and progressive formation of the bay has probably been related to increasing external forcing via storminess, long‐term relative sea‐level change and sediment starvation within this exposed environment. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Konispol Cave,southern Albania,and correlations with other Aegean caves occupied in the Late Quaternary

Archeological excavations in a karstic cavern on the south facing slopes of the Pindus range, southern Albania, have disclosed a continuous, 4.5 m thick sequence of human occupation since the Mesolithic. In 1994 geoarcheological field work identified nine (9) principal lithostrata that correspond with successive occupations. Sedimentary sequences indicate that during the Mesolithic spring flow was active and produced a pool in the cave's central chamber. This accounts for settlement along the dry western margin of the cave. After 6000 B.P. episodic flushing of Terra Rossa soil from the cave slopes was dominant. Sediments were variously modified or mobilized by weathering, diagenesis and human agency. These changes are correlated to the chronology and contribute to a limited reconstruction of site formation process. Comparison of sediment stratigraphy with an earlier study of magnetostratigraphy verifies an inferred moist pulse of the Early Holocene/Mesolithic and a turn to warmer/drier conditions during the Middle Holocene/Neolithic. The Konispol sequence is compared to cave chronologies in neighboring Epirus (Kastritsa and Klithi) and to Franchthi in southern Greece. Sedimentation patterns reveal that these caves were initially occupied at the same time (Late Pleniglacial) and that during deglaciation there was a general hiatus in deposition (15,000–10,000 B.P.). Early Holocene moisture phases correspond to an increase in sedimentation during the Neolithic when the caves were intensely utilized. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Supply limited sediment transport in a high-discharge event of the tropical Burdekin River, North Queensland, Australia

Interactions between catchment variables and sediment transport processes in rivers are complex, and sediment transport behaviour during high‐flow events is not well documented. This paper presents an investigation into sediment transport processes in a short‐duration, high‐discharge event in the Burdekin River, a large sand‐ and gravel‐bed river in the monsoon‐ and cyclone‐influenced, semi‐arid tropics of north Queensland. The Burdekin's discharge is highly variable and strongly seasonal, with a recorded maximum of 40 400 m³ s^?1. Sediment was sampled systematically across an 800 m wide, 12 m deep and straight reach using Helley‐Smith bedload and US P‐61 suspended sediment samplers over 16 days of a 29‐day discharge event in February and March 2000 (peak 11 155 m³ s^?1). About 3·7 × 10⁶ tonnes of suspended sediment and 3 × 10⁵ tonnes of bedload are estimated to have been transported past the sample site during the flow event. The sediment load was predominantly supply limited. Wash load included clay, silt and very fine sand. The concentration of suspended bed material (including very coarse sand) varied with bedload transport rate, discharge and height above the bed. Bedload transport rate and changes in channel shape were greatest several days after peak discharge. Comparison between these data and sparse published data from other events on this river shows that the control on sediment load varies between supply limited and hydraulically limited transport, and that antecedent weather is an important control on suspended sediment concentration. Neither the empirical relationships widely used to estimate suspended sediment concentrations and bedload (e.g. Ackers & White, 1973) nor observations of sediment transport characteristics in ephemeral streams (e.g. Reid & Frostick, 1987) are directly applicable to this river.     

Times of sand: Sedimentary history and archaeology at the Sigatoka Dunes,Fiji

The orthodox archaeological sequence at the Sigatoka Dunes site (VL 16/1) in Fiji proposes three phases of occupation spanning Fijian prehistory, each associated with a period of dune stability. It has been taken as the standard model of Fijian prehistory for more than 30 years. Recently, however, it has been argued that there is no stratigraphic support for three discrete levels and that the occupation history was fragmented, complex, and continuous within a volatile dune system. We present new data, from optical and radiocarbon dating, to argue that a three‐phase model, although somewhat more complex in detail, remains the most robust interpretation of site history. The longest stable phase (Level 2) began 2500–2300 cal yr B.P. and is possibly associated with relatively low ENSO frequency. Substantial sand dune accumulation began after ˜1300 cal yr B.P. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Coastal Occupations in Tierra del Fuego,Southernmost South America: A Late Holocene Hunter‐Gatherer Context at Marazzi 2

This paper focuses on the late Holocene occupation of hunter‐gatherers at the Marazzi 2 site located on the northwestern steppe of Tierra del Fuego, Chile. Our aim is to understand stratigraphy, formation processes, and pedogenesis with respect to human occupation over the last 3000 years. Based on archaeological excavations on a fluvial terrace of the Torcido River, we integrate soil micromorphology, mineralogy, geochemistry, magnetic susceptibility, and geomorphology, as well as the micro‐ and macrofrequency distributions of archaeological material. A micro‐taphonomical perspective is also applied to anthropogenic components recorded in sedimentary thin sections. We discuss various events in the interplay between soil development and human occupation through time. Marazzi 2 was witness to aggradation and pedogenesis with an episode of surface stability coincident with a phase of more intense human occupation at about 860 BC. Taphonomic analysis suggests that there are multiple occupation events mixed together, probably by biomechanical processes, resulting in a palimpsest with poor temporal resolution.     

Soil Paleocatenas,Prehistoric Land Use,and Coastal Landscape Dynamics at Druridge Bay,Northeast England

Coastal erosion of sand dune systems along Druridge Bay, northeast England, has progressively exposed parts of the subdune mid‐Holocene landscape, including paleocatenas, indicating former soil hydrosequences with localized wetland habitats, and archaeological evidence of human activities and land use from the Late Mesolithic to the Romano‐British period. Archaeological investigations and pedostratigraphic studies of paleosols provide a unique spatial–chronological framework to interpret soil and land use change over several millennia in the context of a changing coastal environment. Evidence includes dating of archaeological remains, the stratigraphy, morphology and micromorphology of buried soils and sediments, and the palynology and radiocarbon dating of subdune peats. Early Bronze Age burial sites were preferentially located on well‐drained hillocks also used for grazing. Adjacent wetland depressions provided areas of marshy grassland and swamp over deep fen peat soils that started to develop c. 5435 cal. yr B.P. in response to a rising groundwater table stimulated partly by slow sea‐level rise. The backslopes of the paleocatena were occupied by imperfectly to poorly drained soils that supported open oak‐hazel woodland with evidence for progressive clearance and use for agriculture. Windblown sand started to accumulate on the study site sometime between 3930 and 3670 cal. yr B.P., well before the Little Ice Age date for dune formation suggested by previous researchers.     

Major neotectonic features of eastern Marmara region,Turkey: development of the Adapazarı–Karasu corridor and its tectonic significance

Eastern Marmara region consists of three different morphotectonic units: Thrace–Kocaeli Peneplain (TKP) and Çamdağ–Akçakoca Highland (ÇAH) in the north, and Armutlu–Almacık Highland in the south of the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ). The geologic‐morphologic data and seismic profiles from the Sakarya River offshore indicate that the boundary between the TKP in the west and ÇAH in the east is a previously unrecognized major NNE–SSW‐trending strike‐slip fault zone with reverse component. The fault zone is a distinct morphotectonic corridor herein named the Adapazarı–Karasu corridor (AKC) that runs along the Sakarya River Valley and extends to its submarine canyon along the southern margin of the Black Sea in the north. It formed as a transfer fault zone between the TKP and ÇAH during the Late Miocene; the former has been experiencing extensional forces and the latter compressional forces since then. East–West‐trending segments of the NAFZ cuts the NE–SW‐trending AKC and their activity has resulted in the formation of a distinct fault‐bounded morphology, which is characterized by alternating E–W highlands and lowlands in the AKC. Furthermore, this activity has resulted in the downward motion of an ancient delta and submarine canyon of the Sakarya River in the northern block of the NAFZ below sea level so that the waters of the Black Sea invaded them. The NE–SW‐trending faults in the AKC were reactivated with the development of the NAFZ in the Late Pliocene, which then caused block motions and microseismic activities throughout the AKC. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reconstructing Phreatic Palaeogroundwater Levels in a Geoarchaeological Context: A Case Study in Flanders,Belgium

The complex debate on prehistoric settlement decisions is no longer tackled from a purely archaeological perspective but from a more landscape‐oriented manner combined with archaeological evidence. Therefore, reconstruction of several components of the former landscape is needed. Here, we focus on the reconstruction of the groundwater table based on modeling. The depth of the phreatic aquifer influences, for example, soil formation processes and vegetation type. Furthermore, it directly influences settlement by the wetness of a site. Palaeogroundwater modeling of the phreatic aquifer was carried out to produce a series of full‐coverage maps of the mean water table depth between 12.7 ka and the middle of the 20th century (1953) in Flanders, Belgium. The research focuses on the reconstruction of the input data and boundary conditions of the model and the model calibration. The model was calibrated for the 1924–1953 time period using drainage class maps. Archaeological site data and podzol occurrence data act as proxies for local drainage conditions over periods in the past. They also served as a control on the simulated phreatic palaeogroundwater levels. Model quality testing on an independent validation data set showed that the model predicts phreatic water table levels at the time of soil mapping well (mean error of 1.8 cm; root mean square error of 65.6 cm). Simulated hydrological conditions were in agreement with the occurrence of archaeological sites of Mesolithic to Roman age at 96% of the validation locations, and also with the occurrence of well‐drained podzols at 97% of the validation locations.     

The Orosirian-Statherian banded iron formation-bearing sequences of the southern border of the Espinhaço Range,Southeast Brazil

The Serra da Serpentina and the Serra de São José groups are two distinct banded iron formation-bearing metasedimentary sequences along the eastern border of the southern Espinhaço Range that were deposited on the boundary between the Orosirian and Statherian periods.The Serra da Serpentina Group (SSG) has an Orosirian maximum depositional age (youngest detrital zircon grain age = 1990 ± 16 Ma) and consists of fine clastic metasediments at the base and chemical sediments, including banded iron formations (BIFs), on the top, corresponding to the Meloso and Serra do Sapo formations, respectively, and correlating with the pre-Espinhaço Costa Sena Group. The SSG represents sedimentary deposition on an epicontinental-epeiric, slow downwarping sag basin with little tectonic activity.The younger Serra de São José Group (SJG) is separated from the older SSG by an erosional unconformity and was deposited in a tectonically active continental rift-basin in the early stages of the opening of the Espinhaço Trough. The Serra do São José sediments stretch along the north-south axis of the rift and comprise a complete cycle of transgressive sedimentary deposits, which were subdivided, from base to top, into the Lapão, Itapanhoacanga, Jacém and Canjica formations. The Itapanhoacanga Formation has a maximum depositional age of 1666 ± 32 Ma (Statherian), which coincides with the maximum depositional age (i.e., 1683 ± 11 Ma) of the São João da Chapada Formation, one of the Espinhaço Supergroup's basal units. The Serra de São José Rift and the Espinhaço Rift likely represent the same system, with basal units that are facies variations of the same sequence.The supracrustal rocks have undergone two stages of deformation during the west-verging Brasiliano orogeny that affected the eastern margin of the São Francisco Craton and generated a regional-scale, foreland N–S trending fold-thrust belt, which partially involved the crystalline basement. Thrust faults have segmented the terrain into a large number of tectonic blocks, where the stratigraphic sequence was nevertheless well preserved.     

Holocene palaeoflood events recorded by slackwater deposits along the lower Jinghe River valley,middle Yellow River basin,China

Palaeoflood slackwater deposits (SWDs), are the natural record of overbank flooding and are often found within aeolian loess‐soil profiles along the river valleys of the middle Yellow River basin. These pedo‐stratigraphic sequences are studied using a multi‐disciplinarily approach to reconstruct Holocene hydro‐climatic variations. Our field investigations along the lower Jinghe River valley have identified palaeoflood SWDs at several sites along the riverbanks based on sedimentological criteria. Analytical results, including magnetic susceptibility, particle‐size distribution and concentrations of chemical elements, indicate that these well‐sorted palaeoflood SWD beds were deposited from the suspended sediment load in floodwaters. We identify two episodes of extraordinary palaeoflood events along the Jinghe River valley. These hydro‐climatic events were dated to 4200–4000 and 3200–2800 a BP, by using the optically stimulated luminescence method in combination with archaeological dating of retrieved anthropogenic remains, and with pedo‐stratigraphic correlations with the previously studied Holocene pedo‐stratigraphy in the Jinghe River drainage basin. The flooding events are therefore considered to be a regional expression of known climatic events in the northern hemisphere and demonstrate Holocene climate was far from stable. This study provides important data in understanding the interactions between regional hydro‐climatic systems and global change in semi‐arid and sub‐humid regions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Geochronology and geochemistry of high‐pressure granulites of the Arthur River Complex,Fiordland, New Zealand: Cretaceous magmatism and metamorphism on the palaeo‐Pacific Margin

The Arthur River Complex is a suite of gabbroic to dioritic orthogneisses in northern Fiordland, New Zealand. The Arthur River Complex separates rocks of the Median Tectonic Zone, a Mesozoic island arc complex, from Palaeozoic rocks of the palaeo‐Pacific Gondwana margin, and is itself intruded by the Western Fiordland Orthogneiss. New SHRIMP U/Pb single zircon data are presented for magmatic, metamorphic and deformation events in the Arthur River Complex and adjacent rocks from northern Fiordland. The Arthur River Complex orthogneisses and dykes are dominated by magmatic zircon dated at 136–129 Ma. A dioritic orthogneiss that occurs along the eastern margin of the Complex is dated at 154.4 ± 3.6 Ma and predates adjacent plutons of the Median Tectonic Zone. Rims on zircon cores from this sample record a thermal event at c. 120 Ma, attributed to the emplacement of the Western Fiordland Orthogneiss. Migmatitic Palaeozoic orthogneiss from the Arthur River Complex (346 ± 6 Ma) is interpreted as deformed wall rock. Very fine rims (5–20 µm) also indicate a metamorphic age of c. 120–110 Ma. A post‐tectonic pegmatite (81.8 ± 1.8 Ma) may be related to phases of crustal extension associated with the opening of the Tasman Sea. The Arthur River Complex is interpreted as a batholith, emplaced at mid‐crustal levels and then buried to deep crustal levels due to convergence of the Median Tectonic Zone arc and the continental margin.     

High‐resolution stratigraphy of Scandinavian coastal archaeological settlements: the case of Håkonshella,W Norway

The stratigraphy of Scandinavian open‐air archaeological settlements is usually characterized as homogeneous, highly enriched in decomposing organic matter and poor in biogenic carbonates such as shells or bones. As a result, stratigraphies are often difficult to read in the field and settlement sequences may pass unnoticed by archaeologists. Here we show how the integration of bulk analyses, soil micromorphology, X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) core scanning and multivariate statistics can help in overcoming such limitations. We use the case study of Håkonshella 8, a Mesolithic hunter‐fisher‐gatherer settlement located in Bergen (W Norway). Fluctuations in the organic matter content, geochemical proxies (mainly P, Ga, Ti and the Si/Al ratio) and redoximorphic features highlight four cycles of site occupation and abandonment in an otherwise massive anthropogenic deposit. Following these settlement sequences, the site was covered by colluvium from nearby slopes over which a waterlogged soil formed. The approach used in Håkonshella has the potential to improve our capacity to interpret organically enriched anthropic deposits formed in coastal Scandinavia and in similar climatic regions.     

河南渑池仰韶人遗址区黄土冲沟阶地的释光测年研究

地貌变迁与古人类活动的关系一直是地理学研究的一个重要科学问题。仰韶文化是黄河流域最为重要的新石器人类 文明之一，文章以河南渑池仰韶遗址区内西沟冲沟为研究对象，尝试建立仰韶人类活动与遗址区内冲沟地貌形成的先后关 系。渑池仰韶遗址区地处黄土高原东南缘黄土堆积区，文章利用释光测年方法测定了西沟冲沟阶地上覆堆积黄土的年代， 粗略重建了阶地形成的时间为大约距今3万年和12万年前，分别对应深海氧同位素（MIS） 3阶段和5阶段。而该时期渑池 仰韶区域尚无古人类活动记录，所以释光测年结果证明仰韶遗址区内的冲沟完全是自然成因的，与遗址区仰韶人的地表活 动无关。