On the Use of Integrated Process Models to Reconstruct Prehistoric Occupation, with Examples from Sandy Flanders, Belgium (original) (raw)
Related papers
Wiebke Bebermeier, Daniel Knitter and Oliver Nakoinz (Eds.), Bridging the Gap – Integrated Approaches in Landscape Archaeology, eTopoi. Journal for Ancient Studies, Special Volume 4 (2015), Berlin: Exzellenzcluster 264 Topoi, 1–24.
Detailed historical reconstructions require high-quality data. In the traditionally densely settled higher and drier Pleistocene sandy areas (‘drylands’) of the North European Plain (the European aeolian sand belt) and comparable regions elsewhere evidence-based reconstructions are hampered by poor preservation of archaeological remains and archaeologically relevant deposits. This problem can be partially solved by combining, on a microregional level, dryland data with data from nearby wetland pockets (‘wetlands’), in particular stream valleys. This asks for an integrated and systematic inventory of all available data. For this purpose an instrument was developed: the Landscape-Land use Diagram (LLAND). Because data from dry and wet contexts are to some degree supplementary, integrated analysis is essential for obtaining information on the full range of economic and ritual practices. This is demonstrated by research carried out in the valley of the small river Regge (the Netherlands), the results of which are being treated as a stratified landscape-archaeological sample. This paper does not focus on cultural interpretation but on methodology, specifically the potential of data and the benefits of an integrated approach. http://journal.topoi.org/index.php/etopoi/article/view/198/224 http://www.topoi.org/publication/30971/
Beyond the unknown: understanding prehistoric patterns in the urbanised landscape of Flanders
2013
Archaeological distribution patterns are often biased by cultural and environmental processes. These processes influence the preservation of archaeological phenomena in the landscape. Their impact starts when the site and structures are left or abandoned or objects are deposited or disposed of. However, in archaeological landscape research, these processes are seldom incorporated. Therefore, the potential impact of both environmental and cultural processes on the preservation of archaeological phenomena needs to be understood and their influence on the observed archaeological site distribution patterns needs to be measured. Furthermore the history, intensity and methodology of the archaeological research in the region influence the known archaeological distribution pattern and therefore an understanding of the archaeological practice in the region is necessary in the study of the past landscapes of that region. This paper presents a case study on the distribution pattern of Bronze Age barrows in the highly urbanised landscape of north-western Belgium. By integrating natural, cultural and archaeological processes in archaeological landscape research, the completeness and reliability of the archaeological dataset can be estimated. Efforts to estimate completeness and reliability of any dataset should be an integral part of every archaeological landscape research project, especially as biases or hiatuses in datasets can lead to serious misinterpretations or circular reasoning. Furthermore, knowledge of the biography of landscapes is not only important in the study and understanding of past archaeological landscapes, but also in the preservation of these landscapes and our ability to incorporate hidden past landscapes into the actual sustainable management of its cultural–historical heritage.
2014
Detailed historical reconstructions require high-quality data. In the traditionally densely settled higher and drier Pleistocene sandy areas (‘drylands’) of the North European Plain (the European aeolian sand belt) and comparable regions elsewhere evidence-based reconstructions are hampered by poor preservation of archaeological remains, especially organic materials. This problem can be partially solved by combining, on a microregional level, dryland data with data from nearby wetland pockets (‘wetlands’), in particular stream valleys. This asks for a systematic inventory of all available data. For this purpose an instrument was developed: the Landscape-Land use Diagram (LLAND). Data from dry and wet contexts whilst fundamentally different in nature, are also supplementary to each other. The collection and analysis of wetland data proves to be essential for an assessment of the impact of human actions on the landscape (in particular vegetation), and for obtaining information on the full range of economic and ritual practices. However, even high-quality wetland data contain gaps. This is demonstrated by research carried out in the valley of the small river Regge (the Netherlands), the results of which are being treated as a stratified landscape-archaeological sample. This paper does not focus on cultural interpretation but on methodology, specifically the potential of the data and the benefits of an integrated approach.
Updating the maps of prehistoric landscapes by DEMS.
W. Börner, S. Uhlirz & L. Dollhofer (eds.), Proceedings of the 12th Vienna Conference on Heritage and New Technology, 2008
In the Pleistocene sand-areas of The Netherlands still lie the remains of prehistoric farmlands. These fields are characterized by their checkerboard layout of small earthen embankments surrounding small rectangular fields, and called Celtic Fields. They date from late Bronze Age, Iron Age into the early Roman era, and are among the best visible archaeological remains in the Dutch Pleistocene sandy landscape. The nature of these monuments make them prone to erosion. That is why the National Service for Archaeology, Cultural Landscape and Built Heritage, the RACM, ‘Dutch Heritage’, started a pilot project to reassess these archaeological terrains. The aim of this pilot was twofold: on the one hand evaluate the conservational state and actual size of the Celtic Fields and on the other to develop a methodology for research on Celtic Fields. Next to field surveys, aerial photography and the maps of earlier researchers, a new tool proofed invaluable for studying Celtic Fields; the use of the data from the Detailed Digital Elevation Map of the Dutch Ordnance Survey, the AHN. Combining the ‘older’ data with the DEMs made from AHN-data not only reassessed state and size of known Celtic Fields, but also proofed to be a tool for finding new ones, and so updating our knowledge on the Dutch prehistoric landscape.
Quaternary Science Reviews, 2014
Reconstructing and quantifying human impact is an important step to understand how, when and to what extent humans have changed the landscape during the Holocene. In this study we present a reconstruction of vegetation changes throughout the Holocene based on palynological data of six study sites in the Dijle catchment, located in the Belgian loess belt. A reconstruction of human impact in the catchment is extracted from the palynological study based on statistical analyses (cluster analysis and non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS)). The NMDS analysis on the pollen data do not detect large-scale Mesolithic or Neolithic human activities on the Dijle catchment. In these periods, human impact in the catchment was probably limited to local disturbances and small-scale forest clearances. Only from the Bronze Age onwards (ca 3900 cal a BP) human impact was clearly detected in the pollen records and vegetation gradually changed. Human impact further increased from the Iron Age onwards, except for a temporary halt between ca 1900 and 1600 cal a BP, possibly coupled with the Migration Period in Europe. The general vegetation development and increasing human impact are rather similar at the catchment scale, beside some local variations in timing and intensity of the human impact in the different subcatchments. The applied methodology, cluster analysis and NMDS, proves to be a useful tool to provide semi-quantitative insights in the temporal and spatial vegetation changes related to increasing human impact.
Since uncertainty is generally part of the archaeologist’s daily life, the importance of building an historical reconstruction process with a ‘scientific’ method, appears to be an absolute priority. This is even truer if referred to protohistoric and prehistoric contexts, where man’s tracks on the territory are usually slightly invasive and tend to easily disappear. Working on prehistoric landscapes presents several objective difficulties and forces the researcher to face complex questions of a methodological nature. Among them, landscape’s nature itself as the result of different kinds of both conscious and non-conscious choices, either rational or non-rational; for this reason, thinking of presenting schematic and universally valid models is, to say the least, a naïve conviction. Admittedly, however, there are some essential pre-requisites which condition the choices of the occupation of an area and its evolution. Among the suitable methods to highlight these influencing elements, GIS technology certainly occupies an leading role, simplifying the comparison and interaction among different types of sources, but also significantly increasing their informative potential by their greater interconnection. Dealing with prehistoric landscapes in an often spatially and chronologically wide study area makes it necessary an ‘integrated working scale’, based on a bi-univocal interaction between analysis on a quite a reduced scale (regional or sub-regional) and analysis on a more detailed scale (intra-site level), often focusing on particular periods, sub-areas or historical phenomena. Integrating the scale of analysis and a large number of sources, as well as integrating the tools for their investigation seems to be a suitable method for dealing with prehistoric landscapes. This contribution tries to demonstrate this position, describing a potential methodology applied to the case study of the settlement strategies and population dynamics during the entire Bronze Age in Tuscany.
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2013
It is common procedure today to use geographic datasets to supplement archaeological investigation; however, static and modern-day data are often used rather than more accurate paleo-data. This article underscores the importance of employing such dynamic paleo-landscapes, and describes a new approach for developing richly-furnished and detailed spatial surfaces, referred to as " total " landscapes. GIS and computer simulation programs are critical to the generation of such surfaces, along with geo-spatial data of sufficient quality and quantity. The approach is articulated vis-à-vis a case study from the central Netherlands.