Upper Egypt: vegetation at the beginning of the third millennium BC inferred from charcoal analysis at Adaïma and Elkab

Early- and middle-Holocene wood exploitation in the Fayum basin, Egypt

“…Notably, chenopodiaceous charcoal is uncommon at later Predynastic sites in the Nile Valley, while tamarisk, acacia (including A. nilotica), and other hydrophilic taxa are numerous, suggesting that although desert wood sources were not a primary fuel source, they were consistently utilized on a low level as fuel in the Nile Valley by 5500 BP (Newton, 2005;Newton and Midant-Reynes, 2007: 103). In the later, and certainly drier, Roman period, both tamarisk and acacia (including A. nilotica among other species) are common in the charcoal assemblage of Karanis in the northeastern Fayum, while only three fragments of chenopodiaceous wood have been found among >6500 examined fragments, none of the Haloxylon type (Marston, unpublished data).…”

Reconstructing the holocene depositional environments in the western part of Ancient Karnak temples complex (Egypt): a geoarchaeological approach

“…The paleoclimatic context of Upper Egypt is still unclear and the consequences of past environmental changes must be linked with the different Holocene phases of humidity/dryness that occurred in this rich archaeological area. Works recently developed (Newton, 2005) must be pursued in order to reveal the palaeo landscapes of this area. During the early-to-mid Holocene, aeolian dynamics combined with intermittent hydrological activity (wadi streams) were dominant in the area surrounding Ancient Karnak: within the Nile valley, large detrital fans were formed comprising coarse material from local sources (carbonated rocks), probably the wadi El Medamud (Fig.…”

Modeling wood acquisition strategies from archaeological charcoal remains

“…This research usually compares the proportions of woody taxa in archaeological charcoal assemblages to modern local woodland composition and then aims to interpret differences as the result of climatic or geomorphological change (e.g., Chabal, 1992;Delhon, 2006;Newton, 2005) or humaninduced landscape modification, including selective harvesting and widespread deforestation (e.g., Miller, 1985;Pearsall, 1983;Willcox, 1974Willcox, , 2002. Models that attempt to explain archaeological charcoal assemblages typically rely on the ''principle of least effort,'' which predicts that charcoal frequency tracks the presence of woody taxa with a direct correspondence (Shackleton and Prins, 1992).…”