Abstract. This paper aims to reconstruct Middle Bronze Age (MBA) land use practices in the north-western Alpine foreland (SW Germany, Hegau). We used a multi-proxy approach including the biogeochemical proxies from colluvial deposits in the surrounding of the well-documented settlement site of Anselfingen and offsite pollen data from two peat bogs. This approach allowed in-depth insights into the MBA subsistence economy and shows that the MBA in the north-western Alpine foreland was a period of establishing settlements with sophisticated land management and land use practices. The reconstruction of phases of colluvial deposition was based on ages from optically luminescence (OSL) and radiocarbon (AMS 14C) dating from multi-layered colluvial deposits and supports the local archaeological record with the first phase of major colluvial deposition occurring during the MBA followed by phases of colluvial deposition during the Iron Age, the Medieval period, and modern times. The onsite deposition of charred archaeobotanical remains and animal bones from archaeological features, as well as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), charcoal spectra, phytoliths, soil microstructure, urease enzymatic activity, microbial biomass carbon (Cmic) and heavy metal contents, were used as proxies for onsite and near-site land use practices. The charcoal spectra indicate MBA forest management which favoured the dominance of Quercus in the woodland vegetation in the surrounding area north of the settlement site. Increased levels of 5ß stanols (up to 40 %) and the occurrence of pig bones (up to 14 %) support the presence of a forest pasture mainly used for pig farming. In the surrounding area south of the settlement, an arable field with a buried MBA plough horizon (2Apb) could be verified by soil micromorphological investigations and high concentrations of grass phytoliths from leaves and stems. Agricultural practices (e.g. ploughing) focussed on five stable cereal crops (Hordeum distichon/vulgare, Triticum dicoccum, Triticum monococcum, Triticum spelta, Triticum aestivum/turgidum), while the presence of stilted pantries as storage facilities and of heat stones indicate post-harvest processing of cereal crops and other agrarian products within the settlement. In the area surrounding the settlement, increased levels of urease activity, compared to microbial biomass carbon (up to 2.1 µg N µg Cmic−1), and input of herbivorous and omnivorous animal faeces indicate livestock husbandry on fallow land. The PAH suites and their spatial distribution support the use of fire for various purposes, e.g. for opening and maintaining the landscape, for domestic burning and for technical applications. The offsite palynological data support the observed change in onsite and near-site vegetation as well as the occurrence of related land use practices. During the Early and Middle Bronze Age fire played a major role in shaping the landscape (peak of micro-charcoal during the MBA) and anthropogenic activities promoted oak dominated forest ecosystems at the expense of natural beech forests. This indicates a broader regional human influence in the north-western Alpine foreland at low and mid altitude inland sites during the Middle Bronze Age.
We review and contrast three frameworks for analyzing human-land interactions in the Holocene: the traditional concept of favored and disfavored landscapes, the new concept of ResourceCultures from researchers at University of Tübingen, and complex adaptive systems, which is a well-established contemporary approach in interdisciplinary research. Following a theoretical integration of fundamental concepts, we analyze three paired case studies involving modern agriculture in Germany and Belize, prehistorical changes in land use in southwest Germany, and aquaculture on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America. We conclude that ResourceCultures and complex adaptive systems provide different but complementary strengths, but that both move beyond the favordisfavor concept for providing a holistic, system-level approach to understanding human-land interactions. The three frameworks for understanding human responses to contemporary cultural and biophysical challenges are relevant to new thinking related to sustainability, resilience, and long-term environmental planning in the Anthropocene.
Abstract. This paper aims to reconstruct Middle Bronze Age (MBA; 1600–1250 BCE) land use practices in the northwestern Alpine foreland (SW Germany, Hegau). We used a multi-proxy approach including the analysis of biogeochemical proxies from colluvial deposits and buried topsoils in the surroundings of the well-documented settlement site of Anselfingen and off-site pollen data from two peat bogs. This approach allowed for in-depth insights into the MBA subsistence economy and shows that the MBA in the northwestern Alpine foreland was a period of establishing settlements with sophisticated land management and land use practices. The reconstruction of phases of colluvial deposition was based on ages from optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and radiocarbon (AMS14C) dating from multi-layered colluvial deposits and supports the local archaeological record with the first phase of major colluvial deposition occurring during the MBA followed by phases of colluvial deposition during the Iron Age, the Medieval period and modern times. The on-site deposition of charred archaeobotanical remains and animal bones from archaeological features, as well as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), charcoal spectra, phytoliths, soil microstructure, urease enzymatic activity, microbial biomass carbon (Cmic) and heavy metal contents from colluvial deposits, were used as proxies for on-site and near-site land use practices. The charcoal spectra indicate MBA forest management which favored the dominance of Quercus in the woodland vegetation in the surrounding area north of the settlement site. Increased levels of 5β stanols (up to 40 %) and the occurrence of pig bones (up to 14 %) support the presence of a forest pasture mainly used for pig farming. In the surrounding area south of the settlement, an arable field with a buried MBA plow horizon (2Apb) could be verified by soil micromorphological investigations and high concentrations of grass phytoliths from leaves and stems. Agricultural practices (e.g., plowing) focussed on five staple crops (Hordeum distichon/vulgare, Triticum dicoccum, Triticum monococcum, Triticum spelta, Triticum aestivum/turgidum), while the presence of stilted pantries as storage facilities and of heat stones indicate post-harvest processing of cereal crops and other agrarian products within the settlement. In the area surrounding the settlement, increased levels of urease activity, compared to microbial biomass carbon (up to 2.1 µg N µg Cmic-1), and input of herbivorous and omnivorous animal faeces indicate livestock husbandry on fallow land. The PAH suites and their spatial distribution support the use of fire for various purposes, e.g., for opening and maintaining the landscape, for domestic burning and for technical applications. The off-site palynological data support the observed change in on-site and near-site vegetation as well as the occurrence of related land use practices. During the Early and Middle Bronze Age, fire played a major role in shaping the landscape (peak of micro-charcoal during the MBA), and anthropogenic activities promoted Quercus-dominated forest ecosystems at the expense of natural beech forests. This indicates a broader regional human influence in the northwestern Alpine foreland at low- and mid-altitude inland sites during the Middle Bronze Age.
<p>We present a multi-proxy approach to reconstruct Middle Bronze Age (MBA, 1600-1250 BCE) land use practices in the north-western Alpine foreland (SW Germany, Hegau). We combined biogeochemical proxies from multi-layered colluvial deposits and archaeobotanical and archaeozoological data within and in the surrounding of the archaeologically well-documented settlement site of Anselfingen. Offsite pollen data from two peat bogs were used to place the onsite and near-site vegetation and land use data to a regional context.</p><p>Phases of colluvial deposition were reconstructed by optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and radiocarbon (AMS <sup>14</sup>C) dating. The first phase of major colluviation could be correlated with MBA land use followed by phases of colluvial deposition during the Iron Age, the Medieval period, and modern times. Charcoal spectra from colluvial deposits and archaeological structures indicate MBA forest management favoring Quercus in the surrounding area north of the settlement. The analysis of faecal biomarker (5&#223;-stanols up to 40 %) and excavated pig bones (up to 14 %) suggest the presence of a forest pasture mainly used for pig farming. In the surrounding area south of the settlement, an arable field with a buried MBA plough horizon (2Apb) could be verified by soil micromorphological features such as very dusty clay coatings and a banded microstructure and by high concentrations of grass phytoliths from leaves and stems. Agricultural practices (e.g. ploughing) focused on five staple cereal crops (Hordeum distichon/vulgare, Triticum dicoccum, Triticum monococcum, Triticum spelta, Triticum aestivum/turgidum) as indicated by the onsite archaeobotanical records. Stilted pantries, reconstructed from MBA post-holes, were interpreted as storage facilities, while excavated heat stones are likely to indicate post-harvest processing of cereal crops and other agrarian products. Higher levels of urease activity compared to microbial biomass carbon (up to 2.1 &#181;g N &#181;g Cmic<sup>-1</sup>), and input of herbivorous animal faeces indicate livestock husbandry on fallow land or manuring practices. The suites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their spatial distribution indicate the use of fire for various purposes, e.g. for landscape opening and maintenance, for domestic burning and for technical applications. The offsite pollen data support the onsite and near-site vegetation change. During the MBA, fire played a major role in shaping the landscape (peak of micro-charcoal during the MBA in the offsite pollen records) and anthropogenic activities promoted oak dominated forest vegetation at the expense of natural beech forests. This approves a broad regional human influence in the north-western Alpine foreland during the MBA.</p><p>Our data allow in-depth insights into the MBA subsistence economy on a local and regional scale, which was not limited to settlements at lakeshore sites. The MBA in the north-western Alpine foreland was a period of establishing settlements with sophisticated land management and land use practices also at low and mid altitude inland sites. We could further show that colluvial deposits are promising archives for the reconstruction of past land use practices.</p>
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