The natural environment during the Subatlantic climatic period in the area of the Kalеnik archaeological site

Abstract

The territory of the Kalenik archaeological site, site 11 of the Hemus Motorway, located on the border between the Pre-Balkans and the Danube Plain, was investigated. It is part of the watershed of the rivers Tosha and Miriova. The artifacts found are from 2 periods or eras: from Rome – II–III centuries and from the Early Middle Ages –VII–X centuries. They are located in 2 main layers. Granulometric analysis has proven the origin of the latter, which is river in different facies. We assume that the ancient people of Rome settled on a terrain that provided them with natural protection on one hand (the settlements are at the foot of two heights and we assume an epigenetic nature of the watershed) and on the other – comfort related to the proximity of rivers. The evolution of the terrain is related to the movement of the Tosha riverbed to the east and the formation of an ancient site to the west of today‘s.