Pleistocene glaciation in the mountains of Greece

Abstract

This chapter reviews some of the recent literature on glaciation in Greece and presents new data on the age of the glacial deposits on the southern flanks of Mount Tymphi in Northwest Greece. The chapter presents radiometric (uranium-series) ages obtained for glacial sediments in Greece and discusses the wider implications of this new chronostratigraphic framework. Recent work has shown that the mountains of Greece contain evidence for multiple phases of ice build up and decay during the Middle and Late Pleistocene. However, there is still a need for detailed field mapping in many areas to establish the precise spatial extent and style of glacial activity in the Greek mountains. The morphological and sedimentological evidence for glaciation is less extensive and less preserved in Central and Southern Greece. At present, the only glaciated terrain in Greece where detailed field-based mapping and lithostratigraphic assessment have been carried out is on Mount Olympus and the surrounding piedmont zone. However, the absence of a reliable and internally consistent chronology for this work limits its value as a source of palaeoclimatic information and prevents detailed comparison with data from Mount Tymphi and with the long pollen sequences in Greece and other records of proxy climate.