Diachronic Settlement Analyses in the Eastern Swabian Alb, South Germany, from the Neolithic until the Latène Period (original) (raw)
Related papers
2008
To give a general outline of the settlement dynamics in the study area, the following can be said: After a relatively dense settlement in the Old Neolithic the number of sites diminishes heavily in the Middle Neolithic, whereas in the Young Neolithic the number rises again remarkably. During the Late and Final Neolithic as well as in the Early Bronze Age the study area was only sporadically visited. In the Middle Bronze Age the settlement density rises considerably and during the Urnfield period an interior colonization takes place. But it is not until the Hallstatt and La Tène period that the upper part of the eastern Swabian Alb is strongly settled. This is surely caused by the deposits of iron ore that can be found there.
The Neolithic Settlement Landscape of the Southeastern Swabian Alb (Germany)
2005
This paper presents goals, methods, and preliminary results of a collaborative project investigating Neolithic settlement and land use of the southeastern Swabian Alb limestone plateau region in southwestern Germany. The project combines systematic surveys of plowed fi elds and analysis of large private collections to investigate site distributions on the plateau, which is largely poor in surface water but a source of regionally important chert raw material. GIS based comparisons of site locations in terms of soil type and their agricultural potential, distance to water, and distance to chert sources show that numerous sites from the Bandkeramik to the younger Neolithic are associated with either chert sources or high-quality settlement locations. A number of extensive private collections provide a rich foundation to investigate functional and chronological differences among site locations. Preliminary results of lithics and ceramics analyses of nine sites indicate chronological variability as well as dissimilar characteristics in blade core technology and abundance and types of retouched tools between chert-extraction sites and settlements.
E&G Quaternary Science Journal, 2019
The present study combines archaeological data with archaeopedological data from colluvial deposits to infer Neolithic settlement dynamics between the Baar region, the Black Forest and the Swabian Jura. A review of the state of archaeological research and an analysis of the processes leading to the discovery of the Neolithic sites and thereby the formation of the current archaeological site distribution in these landscapes is presented. The intensity of land use in the study area is compared with other landscapes in southern Germany using site frequencies. Phases of colluvial deposition are dated using AMS 14 C ages of charcoals and luminescence ages of sediments and interpreted as local proxies for a human presence. Archaeological source criticism indicates that the distribution of the Neolithic sites is probably distorted by factors such as superimposition due to erosion and weathering effects limiting the preservation conditions for Neolithic pottery. A reconstruction of Neolithic settlement dynamics is achieved by complementing the archaeological data with phases of colluviation. Evidence for a continuous land use in the Baar region throughout the Neolithic is provided and sporadic phases of land use on the Swabian Jura and in the Black Forest are identified. In the late and final Neolithic, an intensification of colluvial formation can be noticed in the low mountain ranges.
Quaternary International, 2017
The Harz Mountains are Germany's northernmost low mountain range. The southern foreland is characterised by a fragmentary distribution of loess and loess-like deposits. During prehistoric times this region was sparsely populated, in contrast to the adjoining southern floodplain of the Helme River, which has been a favoured settlement area since the Neolithic period. This study focusses on the onset of human impact on the landscape and aims to reconstruct the landscape development of this peripheral prehistoric settlement area under a long term perspective (Lateglacial to Late Holocene). The study is based on the sedimentological analysis of six sediment profiles from the floodplain of two small valleys. The chronology of the sedimentological records is provided by 24 new AMS radiocarbon ages that range from 21.7 ka BP to 0.1 ka BP. Three major changes in the depositional environment are observed in the sediment records representing the landscape evolution: a) During the Lateglacial, periglacial conditions prevailed and deposition and reworking of loess occurred on the slopes, while in the floodplains periglacial cover beds and alternating partly gravelly layers of silts and clays were deposited. b) From Preboreal to Atlantic periods a marked rise in the groundwater table led to authigenic precipitation of carbonates in the floodplains under ameliorated climatic conditions. During this phase the valleys were progressively filled by intercalated organogenic and calcareous sediments. c) Human influence on the landscape is reflected in colluvial and alluvial deposits indicating the occurrence of human-induced soil erosion and is dated prior to the beginning of the Bronze Age (here corresponding to Subboreal period). During the period of the Little Ice Age gully incision occurred, probably as a result of an intensified land use in upslope areas and of high-magnitude precipitation events during this period.
The vast majority of information about the Middle Paleolithic of the Swabian Jura in southwestern Germany comes from the well-known cave sites of the Ach and Lone Valleys. The Neanderthal occupations of Swabia show a wide range of assemblage types. Lithic technologies varied over time and space and include assemblages defined as belonging to the Swabian Mousterian, the Keilmessergruppe and the Blattspitzengruppe. Organic artifacts include bone retouchers and a small number of bone points. Human bones are rare, and there is no indication that the sites were used as cemeteries. Anthropogenic features in the form of combustion features with numerous fragments of burnt bone are documented at several of the sites. Game species vary from site to site, but in general horses and reindeer are the most common hunted game. Seasonality data usually point to the use of the caves in the colder times of the year. Spatial analyses are hampered by the small size and the small number of the excavations conducted with modern techniques. The overall archaeological pattern suggests a settlement system with relatively few people living in the landscape and using a "low impact" subsistence pattern that allowed Neanderthals to coexist with cave bears without driving their populations to extinction. Mobility was high and social units were generally small and presumably contained small groups of kin. The low density of finds at most Swabian sites points to their sporadic but repeated use by Neanderthals and an average occupation intensity and population density an order of magnitude lower than that of the subsequent Aurignacian period.
The Neolithic settlement and land use history in northwestern Germany is subject to detailed archaeological and palynological investigations that are carried out within the framework of the DFG priority program “Early Monumentality and Social Differentiation –the Emergence of Neolithic Monuments and Early Complex Societies in Northern Central Europe”. Up to now, only little is known about the settlement structure and the environmental conditions and changes in northwestern Germany during the 4th and 3rd millennium BC, although various megalithic monuments, grave mounds as well as surface finds indicate that the area was settled by the West Group of the Funnel Beaker and the subsequent Single Grave Cultures. Therefore, five local research areas were selected that bear high potential for interdisciplinary investigations into the structural context between graves and settlements, the temporal and spatial patterns of the Neolithic occupation period, and on the human impact on the landscape. The research areas are located in the Elbe/Weser Triangle (Flögeln / Sievern, Wanna and Lavenstedt), in the Emsland (Hümmling) and the Wildeshauser Geest on sandy geest islands, all in the federal state of Lower Saxony. At least one pollen profile from each local research area was recovered from bogs and fens to work on the landscape reconstruction of Northwestern Germany. First results imply differences in the chronological development and intensity of the human impact on the vegetation possibly depending on regional differences or on the profile’s vicinity to different find categories like settlements or graves. The archaeological investigations will focus on three of the local research areas where promising sites were identified. At Holzhausen in the Wildeshauser Geest, geomagnetic surveys generated a structure that might be evoked by remains of a causewayed enclosure. In addition, two promising TRB settlements were discovered at Sievern and Lavenstedt. The close connection of the settlement at Lavenstedt to various Neolithic tombs provides the opportunity for working on questions concerning TRB settlement structures. At Sievern, the site was yet dated to the oldest Neolithic settlement in Northwestern Germany which is supported by results from pollen analysis and radiocarbon dating of the profile from the neighbouring bog “Dorumer Moor”. Therefore, we expect gain of knowledge about the Neolithic transition in the area.
Journal of …, 2012
A multi-disciplinary palaeoecological approach on a sequence of dated archaeosediments was accomplished. The sediments derive from a multilayered prehistoric settlement mound in central Germany, representing the remnants of a prehistoric village. Based on the analysis of biological remains and geochemical/physical analysis of the settlement layers its environment was reconstructed. There is a trend to increasing anthropogenic activities and impact on the environment represented through a rise of indicators for productive surplus from the Early Neolithic (5300e4900 BC) until the Roman Times (400 AD). During the Early Neolithic, shifting flat settlements were situated in a locally opened landscape. The immediate surrounding of the floodplain was used by the settlers for their economic requirements (e.g. wood from the riparian forest). After a hiatus of ca. 1900 years, a multilayered settlement mount rose from Late Neolithic Times (3000 BC) to Roman Times. Since the Middle Bronze Age (approximately 1500 BC) the riparian forest was obviously replaced by agricultural fields and meadows and henceforward the hinterland used by the settlers probably grew in size. The continuing demand of wood was maintained by the acquisition of more distant sources. The onset of house constructions substituting wood by loam (wattle and daub) might be a possible societal response to this shortfall. This is reflected in the growing thickness and composition of the settlement layers, as well as in the archaeological record (e.g. tumbled wattle and daub house walls). The rising of the groundwater table and the start of severe floods of the adjacent river Helme during pre-Roman Iron Age (approx. 800e100 BC) might reflect a geomorphological response to the increased land use intensity at a regional scale.
Landscape changes, cave site formation and human occupation during the Late Pleistocene: a geoarchaeological study from the Ach and Lone valleys (Swabian Jura, SW Germany, 2019
In the Swabian Jura (Southwest Germany) the Ach and Lone valleys host a number of cave sites, which have been repeatedly occupied by groups of hominins since at least the last interglacial. From the excavation of these Prehistoric cave deposits generations of archaeologists have discovered deep sequences and spectacular finds that help to illuminate the evolution of our species and the extinction of Neanderthals. The current understanding of the relationship between caves, cave deposits, human occupation and landscape evolution in the Ach and Lone valleys relies on data coming almost exclusively from cave sites and rockshelters. Conversely, the few geological studies that focused on the geomorphological evolution of the Ach and Lone valleys were mostly designed to answer questions unrelated to the study of the human occupation of this region. This dissertation intends to bridge the gap existing (not only in the Ach and Lone valleys) between the micromorphological analysis of cave deposits and the study of the paleolandscape. To this end, we investigated the deposits accumulated inside the cave site of Hohlenstein-Stadel (in the Lone Valley) with micromorphological analysis and FTIR methods. Additionally we studied the sediment archives preserved in the Ach and Lone valleys by means of auggering, deeper coring, geophysics, micromorphology, FTIR and 14C dating. By integrating our results with previous studies we have been able to evaluate the impact of landscape and environmental changes on the sedimentary and diagenetical processes that occurred inside the cave sites of this region. Our findings carry significant implications for models used to explain the arrival of early modern humans in the Swabian Jura and the human depopulation that this region seem to have experienced around the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Previous studies have argued that the early Aurignacian deposits at the sites of Hohle Fels and Geißenklösterle are characterized by deposition of fresh loess, less intensive phosphatization, and the formation of ice lenses. These data support the hypothesis that modern humans entered the Ach Valley in the course of a period characterized by cold climate. Our micromorphological analysis showed that inside Hohlenstein-Stadel (in the Lone Valley) the transition from the Middle Paleolithic to early Aurignacian deposits displays decreasing phosphatization. However, at Hohlenstein-Stadel we did not observe features diagnostic for ground freezing (such as ice lenses). Therefore inside this cave there is no direct evidence supporting the occurrence of a colder climatic period at the time of the arrival of modern humans. The data we collected from Ach and Lone valleys suggest that this region has been variably shaped by phases of soil formation, soil denudation, loess accumulation and river valley incision. Our study revealed that these changes in the landscape might have shaped significantly the archaeological record originally accumulated inside the cave sites of this region. Accordingly to a widely accepted model, Southwest Germany was abandoned by Gravettian groups around 26.000 14C BP. After a major chronostratigraphic gap Magdalenians recolonized the region starting 13.500 14C BP. Such chronostratigraphic gap (12.500 14C years) have been regarded as indicative of the depopulation that the region experienced during the LGM. Our data, however, show that the beginning of this long-lasting phase of apparent depopulation coincides with the occurrence of erosional phases at some cave sites of Ach and Lone valleys. Although the relation between cave erosion and Gravettian emigration needs to be further verified, we hypothesize that humans might have been present in this region also during the period 26.000-13.500 14C BP and erosional processes might have cancelled the archaeological evidence for such occupations.
Siedlung, Grabenwerk, Großsteingrab, 2012
The Neolithic settlement and land use history in northwestern Germany is subject to detailed archaeological and palynological investigations that are carried out within the framework of the DFG priority program “Early Monumentality and Social Differentiation –the Emergence of Neolithic Monuments and Early Complex Societies in Northern Central Europe”. Up to now, only little is known about the settlement structure and the environmental conditions and changes in northwestern Germany during the 4th and 3rd millennium BC, although various megalithic monuments, grave mounds as well as surface finds indicate that the area was settled by the West Group of the Funnel Beaker and the subsequent Single Grave Cultures. Therefore, five local research areas were selected that bear high poenclosures, in order to shed light on the cultural context of Neolithic societies in Northern Europe since 4100 BC (compiled by Müller 2009; 2011). In Northwestern Germany, the distribution area of the west group of the Funnel Beaker Culture (TRB) and the Single Grave Culture (EGK) is to be investigated. Several traces were left by both cultures in the areas between the Elbe and Ems rivers. The most prominent features are the numerous megalithic tombs that – at least partly – still shape today’s landscape (Fig. 1). They have often been objects of scientific research as their architecture and distribution reveal regional differences in settlement intensities and land use. In addition, a few flat graves, hoards, and settlements with building features are known (complied by Assendorp 1999; Kossian 2005; Laux 1995; Strahl 1990), while no causewayed enclosures have yet been identified from the mentioned area (compiled by Richter 2002, 3 pp.). Therefore, this setting is ideally suited for investigations into the Neolithic colonisation history of the 4 th and the early 3 rd millennia BC. The research project of the Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research (NIhK) commences here. Within the project it is necessary to explore whether the rare TRB settlement features can be considered to be characteristic for this epoch and which settlement pattern might be presumed. Hence, the localisation and the extensive examination of wellpreserved TRB and EKG settlements are of great significance (Nösler et al. 2011). The relationships between graves and coexistent settlements and the existence of hierarchical structures among single settlements and graves, respectively, are important topics that will be addressed within the examinations. It is also of great importance to know which natural preconditions the Neolithic settlers had to deal with and which climatic and ecological changes they had to face. Palynological investigations will give insights into these developments. A number of further questions are to be investigated. For example, when was the TRB established on the Northwestern German Plain? From which cultures (Ertebølle, Swifterband, Rössen / Bischheim) did the TRB evolve? Which culture(s) influenced the TRB, and what reasons were crucial for this development? The transition from the TRB to the EGK, including when and why it took place, will also be analysed. The state of the art prior to the project’s commencement and its first results shall be presented in the following.