Jan Peeters | University of Michigan (original) (raw)

Papers by Jan Peeters

Nature Geoscience, 2024

Although the Nile is one of the largest rivers in the world and played a central role in ancient ... more Although the Nile is one of the largest rivers in the world and played a central role in ancient Egyptian life, little is known about its response to climatic change during the Holocene. Here we present a framework for the evolution of the Egyptian Nile, demonstrating how climatic and environmental changes have shaped the landscape of the Egyptian Nile Valley over the past 11,500 years, including the civilization of ancient Egypt (~5,000 to 2,000 years ago). Using data from over 80 sediment cores drilled in a transect spanning the Nile Valley near Luxor, pinned in time by 48 optically stimulated luminescence ages, we reconstruct the dynamics of the Nile River during the Holocene in the vicinity of UNESCO World Heritage sites such as Karnak and Luxor temples. According to our reconstruction, valley incision occurred from the start of the record until approximately 4,000 years ago and then rapidly shifted to massive floodplain aggradation. We argue that this relatively abrupt change in the riverine landscape near Luxor from the Middle to Late Holocene was linked to a shift towards a drier regional
hydroclimate around this time. Such a dramatic change in river sediment dynamics could have had local agro-economic consequences.

Geoarchaeology, 2022

The ancient Egyptian city of al‐Ashmūnayn (Minyā Governorate, Egypt) has been an important region... more The ancient Egyptian city of al‐Ashmūnayn (Minyā Governorate, Egypt) has been an important regional centre since at least the Old Kingdom (c. 2686–2160 BC). It is assumed to have been founded on the banks of the Nile, although no scientific evidence was hitherto available to support this claim. In this multidisciplinary study, the results of a geoarchaeological survey were combined with the study of pottery fragments. Boreholes placed at al‐Ashmūnayn produced thick layers of late Old Kingdom pottery in association with the local occurrence of river channel deposits, allowing us to conclude that it is very likely that al‐Ashmūnayn originated on the banks of the Nile River. The regional borehole survey demonstrates that major geomorphological reconfigurations of the fluvial landscape occurred throughout the late Holocene, notably by the process of river avulsion. An interconnectedness of changes in the natural Nile Valley landscape and cultural dynamics of the ancient Egyptian riverine society seems possible, based on the coincidence of river reconfigurations with shifts in the preferential locations for high‐status burials in the region.

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2019

New Kingdom royal cult temples in Thebes (Luxor, Egypt) are all located on the lower desert edge.... more New Kingdom royal cult temples in Thebes (Luxor, Egypt) are all located on the lower desert edge. Kom el-Hettân (Amenhotep III: reign 1391-1353 BCE, 18th Dynasty) is an exception, as it is located in the present Nile floodplain. Its anomalous position has puzzled Egyptologists, as has the termination of its use, which traditionally has been attributed to natural hazards such as flooding or earthquakes. Geoarchaeological analyses of the subsurface shows that Amenhotep III's temple was initially founded on a wadi fan that stood several metres above the contemporary surrounding floodplain landscape. The temple was fronted by a minor branch of the Nile, which connected the temple to the wider region, but the temple itself was relatively safe from the annual flood of the Nile. This geoarchaeological study comprised a coring programme to determine the c. 4000-yr landscape history of the local area. Chronological control was provided by the analysis of ceramic fragments recovered from within the sediments. This study shows that the New Kingdom period was, at least locally, characterised by extremely high sedimentation rates that caused a rapid rise of the floodplain and gradual submergence of the pre-existing high temple grounds. This is, however, not a plausible reason for the destruction of the temple, as frequent inundation did not begin until the temple was already out of use and largely dismantled.

Earth-Science Reviews, 2019

Understanding of complex sedimentary records formed by transgressive systems is critical for hydr... more Understanding of complex sedimentary records formed by transgressive systems is critical for hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation, and carbon capture and storage. This paper discusses the facies proportions and preservation of the Last Interglacial and Holocene transgressive systems tracts in the Netherlands and their applicability as a North Sea Basin analogue for the Early Jurassic Åre Formation in the Norwegian offshore. New and existing data from both (sub-)modern transgressive Rhine records were thoroughly reviewed from a sequence stratigraphic perspective, before volumetrics were calculated and longitudinal trends quantified at reservoir scale. Large differences between the Last Interglacial and Holocene transgressive systems were found: the volume of fluvial deposits is almost six times larger and the volume of organics nearly twenty times larger in the Holocene record than in the Last Interglacial record. In contrast, the volume of estuarine deposits in the Holocene record is only half of that of the Last Interglacial record. Remarkably, both records show similar averaged sediment-trapping rates of 8–9 km 3 /ka. Initial valley configuration and relative sea-level rise-rates during both transgressions were key controls on the volume and spatial arrangement of the transgressive deposits. Relative sea-level fall and river avulsion determined what amount of sediment was left preserved after completion of one interglacial-glacial cycle. Comparison of the Late Quaternary Rhine records with the Late Triassic to Early Jurassic Åre Formation in the Heidrun Field off mid-Norway, showed the potential of the (sub-)modern Rhine records as analogues for ancient stratigraphic records. Especially the transgressive Rhine sequence from the Last Interglacial provided remarkable similarities in facies proportions, preservability, autogenic processes and controlling forcings, ranging from metre-scale vertical-successions to kilometre-scale field-wide events for parts of the Åre Formation. The side-by-side availability of the truncated Last Interglacial and (still) fully preserved Holocene transgressive system proved to be an excellent natural laboratory to study the stratigraphic architecture and assess depositional trends and preservability over longer time scales (> 100 ka). It nevertheless demonstrates that no 'one-size-fits-all' analogue exists, but that various other analogues are needed to solve the complex puzzle which the Åre Formation resembles.

By Angus Graham, Kristian Strutt, Jan Peeters, Willem Toonen, Benjamin Pennington, Virginia Emery... more By Angus Graham, Kristian Strutt, Jan Peeters, Willem Toonen, Benjamin Pennington, Virginia Emery, Dominic Barker & Carolin Johansson.

Report on the 2016 spring season of the Theban Harbours and Waterscapes Survey (THaWS). The article discusses the geoarchaeological and geophysical survey along a 3.2 km-long transect starting close to the front of the Temple of Millions of Years of Ay and Horemheb and stretching to the village of Geziret el-Bairat on the West Bank of the Nile.

This paper describes the sedimentary architecture, chronostratigraphy and palaeogeography of the ... more This paper describes the sedimentary architecture, chronostratigraphy and palaeogeography of the late Middle and Late Pleistocene (Marine Isotope Stage / MIS 6-2) incised Rhine-valley fill in the central Netherlands based on six geological transects, luminescence dating, biostratigraphical data and a 3D geological model. The incised-valley fill consists of a ca. 50 m thick and 10-20 km wide sand-dominated succession and includes a well-developed sequence dating from the Eemian interglacial (Last Interglacial).
The lower part of the valley fill contains coarse-grained fluvio-glacial and fluvial Rhine sediments that were deposited under Late Saalian (MIS 6) cold-climatic periglacial conditions and during the transition into the warm Eemian interglacial (MIS 5e-d). This unit is overlain by fine-grained fresh-water flood-basin deposits, which are transgressed by a fine-grained estuarine unit that formed during marine high-stand. This ca. 10 m thick sequence reflects gradual drowning of the Eemian interglacial fluvial Rhine system and transformation into an estuary due to relative sea-level rise. The chronological data suggests a delay in timing of regional Eemian interglacial transgression and sea-level high-stand of several thousand years, when compared to eustatic sea-level. As a result of this glacio-isostatic controlled delay, formation of the interglacial lower delta took only place for a relative short period of time and delta progradation was limited. During the cooler Weichselian Early Glacial period (MIS 5d-a) deposition of deltaic sediments continued and extensive westward progradation of the Rhine delta occurred.
Major parts of the Eemian and Weichselian Early Glacial deposits were eroded and buried as a result of sea-level lowering and climate cooling during the early Middle Weichselian (MIS 4-3). Near complete sedimentary preservation occurred along the margins of the incised valley allowing the detailed reconstruction presented here.

Multidisciplinary analysis including paleomagnetic, sedimentologic, sea-level change, luminescenc... more Multidisciplinary analysis including paleomagnetic, sedimentologic, sea-level change, luminescence dating and palynologic research was performed on a 25 m long orientated core taken at Rutten, close to Eemian key localities in the Netherlands. The main goal of our research was to test a possible delayed onset of temperate conditions in this region compared to Southern Europe, occurring within the Last Interglacial. The sediments revealed the presence of the paleomagnetic Blake Event in ca. 10 m of lower-deltaic floodbasin sediments that contain a pollen record covering the Eemian. The position of the Blake Event in relation to the pollen stratigraphy concurs with the earlier studied Neumark Nord 2 site. Paleomagnetic correlation to core MD95-2042 off SW Iberia indicates ca. 5 kyr diachroneity between the pollen-based onset of temperate interglacial conditions between northern and southern Europe. The onset of the Eemian in north-western and central Europe (ca. 121.0 ka) post-dates the Marine Isotope Stage 6/5e transition by ca. 10 kyr. In addition, the Rutten data provide evidence for a relatively long duration of the Blake Event of at least 8 kyr. The late onset of the temperate conditions that define the base of the Eemian, imply that NW Europe with the Eemian type area is not the most suited region to define the beginning of the Last Interglacial and Late Pleistocene for global chronostratigraphic use.

This paper presents the current state of knowledge on the evolution and depositional history of t... more This paper presents the current state of knowledge on the evolution and depositional history of the River
Rhine in the southern part of the North Sea basin during the upper Middle and Late Pleistocene, and its
response to climate change, sea-level oscillation and glacio-isostasy. The study focuses on the development
of the Eemian interglacial lower-delta in the central Netherlands and its relation to records of
climate and sea-level rise, and uses the Saalian and Weichselian pre- and postdating periods to place its
development in context.
The Rhine fluvial system fills the gradually subsiding North Sea basin, but its development has strongly
been affected by the Saalian glaciation and its remaining topography. Ice-pushed ridges originating off
the limit of maximum glaciation basically divided the central Netherlands into two sedimentary depocentres:
a central depocentre within the former ice-limit, and a southern depocentre south of it.
The sedimentary record of the central depocentre, including an incised-valley fill, shows a 20e40 m
thick stacked sequence consisting of three units. The incised-valley fill consists of a Late Saalian to early
Eemian age lower fluvial unit and aWeichselian age upper fluvial unit, both composed of coarse-grained
channel deposits. Sandwiched in-between is a 5e15 m thick record composed of fine-grained fluvial and
estuarine (tidal) floodbasin and shallow-marine deposits. It is of Eemian interglacial and Early Weichselian
age, and comprises transgressive and highstand deposits that show the drowning of a fluvial
system. Inland parts transformed from fluvial to deltaic and estuarine environments, and the most
downstream parts transformed to a shallow-marine embayment. Preservation of these units occurred,
despite considerable sea-level fall and climate-controlled erosion taking place in the last-glacial. Preservation
potential was increased by the fact that the Rhine system avulsed away to the southern
depocentre, halfway the Weichselian Pleniglacial. Consequently, the infill of the southern depocentre is
of an entire different nature, and last-interglacial transgressive or highstand units are hardly preserved.
Because of glaciation and resulting depocentre configuration, the Netherlands in NW Europe thus
offers a very good opportunity to study the transgressive interglacial lower-deltaic records and fallingstage
preservation thereof e both key elements for understanding sedimentary development over full
100-ky glacial-interglacial cycles of climate and base-level change.

have been identified for the glaciation period: first a Glacier Maximum (GM) followed for a Minor... more have been identified for the glaciation period: first a Glacier Maximum (GM) followed for a Minor Retreat (MR) and, finally, a Major Stabilization (MS); whereas the geomorphologic indicator of MS stage correspond with the principal moraine, the other two stages are based on other minor moraines and erratic boulders. Seven stages have been identified for the deglaciation period: four Major Deglaciation Retreats (MDR1, MDR2, MDR3 and MDR4) separated by three stages of Short Stabilization (SS1, SS2 and SS3); the MDR4 stage represents the final disappearance of the ice masses. These stages are based on recessional moraines, their corresponding secondary crests and erratic boulders. The dates based on 10 Be have provided a minimum ages of 26.2 AE0.8 to 24.6 AE0.7 ka BP for the GM stage, and 18.8 AE2.1 to17.1 AE0.9 ka BP for the MS stage. Based on available data from other researchers, the Major Deglaciation Retreat 3 (MDR3) could be dated on 16.2 AE1.5 to 15.7 AE0.7 ka BP. These chronologies do not include erosive rates corrections, which estimations are in progress and therefore final dates could be subject to slight modifications.

The River Rhine occupied the Niers Valley (Germany) from the Saalian Glaciation (MIS 6) until the... more The River Rhine occupied the Niers Valley (Germany) from the Saalian Glaciation (MIS 6) until the Early Holocene (Kasse et al., Journal of Quaternary Science 2005). The fluvial landscape of the time of abandonment has been exceptionally well preserved, leaving a series of cut-off meanders and residual channels. This unique preservation provides the possibility to investigate Late Weichselian fluvial dynamics of the River Rhine. We combined several dating techniques to accurately determine the age of the deposits. We developed a sampling strategy based on detailed field survey and cross sectioning. 1) The geomorphological relationships of the cut-off meanders gave a relative age for the successive stages of meandering. 2) The occurrence of Laacher See Pumice in the point bar deposits gave a maximum age for these deposits. 3) Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL)-dating on sandy point bar and channel-fill deposits yielded absolute ages for active meandering and channel abandonment. 4) AMS-14C dates on terrestrial macrofossils from the basal fills of the residual channels yielded minimum ages for abandonment. 5) Biostratigraphy of the organic channel fills using palynology gave a relative chronology, which could be linked to the well-dated regional biostratigraphy of the nearby Netherlands and is cross-checked by additional AMS-14C dates. By combining these dating techniques we obtained a firm chronological framework that allows linkage to climate records and above the cross-validation of the different dating techniques. All techniques gave consistent ages that confirm the Lateglacial age and Early Holocene abandonment of the Niers Valley by the River Rhine. Palynology and 14C-dating on the channels fills supported the relative chronology indicated by the cross-cut relationships. The presence of the Laacher See Pumice in the point bar deposits, which has an unambiguous age of 12.9 ka cal. BP concurs with the organic channel fill ages. Because OSL signals in some grains of the fluvial deposits were not completely reset at the time of deposition, advanced statistical methods were used to determine the burial dose from the equivalent dose distribution. We conclude that by combining several dating techniques we increase insight in the dynamics of the fluvial system during its last stages of activity and during abandonment.

Bodemdaling in veengebieden is al lange tijd een groot en bekend probleem. Het grootste deel van ... more Bodemdaling in veengebieden is al lange tijd een groot
en bekend probleem. Het grootste deel van de bodemdaling
wordt veroorzaakt door oxidatie van organische
stof. Om duurzaam ruimtelijk beleid te kunnen ontwikkelen
om bodemdaling tegen te gaan is het belangrijk
om over actuele gegevens te beschikken van de huidige
bodemgesteldheid. De provincie Utrecht heeft hiervoor
als eerste provincie in Nederland een nieuwe bodemkaart
voor haar veengebieden laten maken. Uit een
vergelijking tussen de oude en de nieuwe bodemkaart
blijkt dat in de afgelopen tientallen jaren het areaal veengronden
en moerige gronden is afgenomen. Naast de
bodemkaart zijn er ook twee afgeleide kaarten gemaakt
waarop de ligging van de kwetsbare gebieden voor
bodemdaling in de provincie Utrecht is weergegeven.

PhD thesis by Jan Peeters

PhD thesis, 2018

Sedimentaire architectuur, chronostratigrafie, preservatie en reservoir analogie (met een samenva... more Sedimentaire architectuur, chronostratigrafie, preservatie en reservoir analogie (met een samenvatting in het Nederlands) PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Universiteit Utrecht op gezag van de rector magnificus, prof.dr. H.R.B.M. Kummeling, ingevolge het besluit van het college voor promoties in het openbaar te verdedigen op maandag 17 december 2018 des middags te 2.30 uur door Jan Peeters geboren op 14 oktober 1981 te Tilburg

Technical reports by Jan Peeters

Bodemdaling in veengebieden in Nederland is een bekend probleem. Het grootste deel (circa 60%) va... more Bodemdaling in veengebieden in Nederland is een bekend probleem. Het grootste deel (circa 60%) van de bodemdaling wordt veroorzaakt door oxidatie van organische stof. De diepte tot waarop oxidatie optreedt, wordt in belangrijke mate bepaald door de grondwaterstand. Om beleid te kunnen ontwikkelen m.b.t. duurzame ruimtelijke inrichting met bijbehorend bodemgebruik, is belangrijk om over actuele gegevens van de bodemgesteldheid te beschikken. Voor dit doel zijn de actuele gegevens die dateren uit de periode 1965-1987 te oud. Daarom heeft de provincie Utrecht aan de Universiteit Utrecht en Tauw bv opdracht gegeven een nieuwe bodemkaart van de veengebieden in de provincie Utrecht te maken. Deze nieuwe bodemkaart is gemaakt op schaal 1:25.000. Tevens zijn er twee afgeleide kaarten op schaal 1:50.000 vervaardigd die inzicht geven in de kwetsbaarheid van de bodem voor oxidatie van organische stof en de kwetsbaarheid voor oxidatie van organische stof bij bodembewerking.

Theban Harbours and Waterscapes Survey by Jan Peeters

J. Peeters , A. Graham, W.H.J. Toonen, B.T. Pennington, J.A. Durcan, T.G. Winkels, D.S. Barker, A. Masson-Berghoff, K. Adamson , V.L. Emery, K.D. Strutt, M. Millet, L.H. Sollars & H.H. Ghazala, 'Shift away from Nile incision at Luxor ~4,000 years ago impacted an. Eg. landscapes', Nature Geoscience, 2024

Although the Nile is one of the largest rivers in the world and played a central role in ancient ... more Although the Nile is one of the largest rivers in the world and played a central role in ancient Egyptian life, little is known about its response to climatic change during the Holocene. Here we present a framework for the evolution of the Egyptian Nile, demonstrating how climatic and environmental changes have shaped the landscape of the Egyptian Nile Valley over the past 11,500 years, including the civilization of ancient Egypt (~5,000 to 2,000 years ago). Using data from over 80 sediment cores drilled in a transect spanning the Nile Valley near Luxor, pinned in time by 48 optically stimulated luminescence ages, we reconstruct the dynamics of the Nile River during the Holocene in the vicinity of UNESCO World Heritage sites such as Karnak and Luxor temples. According to our reconstruction, valley incision occurred from the start of the record until approximately 4,000 years ago and then rapidly shifted to massive foodplain aggradation. We argue that this relatively abrupt change in the riverine landscape near Luxor from the Middle to Late Holocene was linked to a shift towards a drier regional hydroclimate around this time. Such a dramatic change in river sediment dynamics could have had local agro-economic consequences.

Nature Geoscience, 2024

Geoarchaeology, 2022

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2019

Earth-Science Reviews, 2019

PhD thesis, 2018

Although the Nile is one of the largest rivers in the world and played a central role in ancient ... more Although the Nile is one of the largest rivers in the world and played a central role in ancient Egyptian life, little is known about its response to climatic change during the Holocene. Here we present a framework for the evolution of the Egyptian Nile, demonstrating how climatic and environmental changes have shaped the landscape of the Egyptian Nile Valley over the past 11,500 years, including the civilization of ancient Egypt (~5,000 to 2,000 years ago). Using data from over 80 sediment cores drilled in a transect spanning the Nile Valley near Luxor, pinned in time by 48 optically stimulated luminescence ages, we reconstruct the dynamics of the Nile River during the Holocene in the vicinity of UNESCO World Heritage sites such as Karnak and Luxor temples. According to our reconstruction, valley incision occurred from the start of the record until approximately 4,000 years ago and then rapidly shifted to massive foodplain aggradation. We argue that this relatively abrupt change in the riverine landscape near Luxor from the Middle to Late Holocene was linked to a shift towards a drier regional hydroclimate around this time. Such a dramatic change in river sediment dynamics could have had local agro-economic consequences.