Anthropogenic Sediments Research Articles

Construction materials and building techniques – Comparing anthropogenic sediments of three Middle Bronze Age sites from Hungary

This paper compares various ‘earthen’ construction materials and building techniques from three Middle Bronze Age tell (multi-layered settlement) sites in Hungary: Százhalombatta-Földvár, Kakucs-Turján (Vatya material culture) and Borsodivánka-Marhajárás-Nagyhalom (Otomani-Füzesabony Cultural Circle (OFCC)). It employs microscopic analyses – archaeological soil micromorphology and phytolith analysis within thin sections – to examine floor, wall and fire installation materials at a high resolution. The term ‘earthen construction materials’ is used in archaeology extensively to refer to anything from soils to sediments that sometimes lack proper classification or terminology. Through a closer look at the types of materials used at the three analysed sites, we describe more clearly what comprises ‘earthen’ construction materials. Using this data, we then employ a chaîne opératoire approach to think through various stages in the sourcing and preparation of building materials. In analysing this, the paper makes visible the decisions by Bronze Age builders and discusses their possible reasons, which include environmental conditions and socially learned practices. Further, by comparing three contemporary sites within a micro-landscape, our analysis highlights that even small variations in the environment and therefore the available raw materials impact building materials and techniques, and that different groups of people can make different decisions even when facing similar environments.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PLEISTOCENE AQUATIC FAUNA OF MOLLUSKS FOR THE REPRODUCTION OF SEDIMENTATION CONDITIONS IN WESTERN UKRAINE

The territory of Western Ukraine is characterized by the development of a wide range of genetic types of continental formations. The Carpathian Mountain Country (properly the Carpathians, East Carpathian Foreland, and Transcarpathia) and the highly fragmented parts of the Volhynia and Podolia Uplands are characterized by a special diversity. The time range of their formation is vast – from the Early Pleistocene to the present. The complexity of the structure of the Quaternary sequence gives rise to discussions about the origin of some components of anthropogenic accumulations. Despite the fact that most of the challenging issues have already been resolved, we find debatable information in the works of some researchers of the 20th and even the 21st centuries about the aqueous origin of the thick sequences of anthropogenic sediments covering the terraces of the Dniester and Dnieper basins. The researchers use many methods to solve the issue of the deposit genesis. Some of them are based on the study of paleontological (including paleomalacological) remains, which are often found in both aqueous (alluvial, lake, swamp) and aerial (primarily loess) formations. Malacofauna has been used since the second half of the 19th century to determine the age, conditions of formation, and origin of the deposits. To establish the origin of sediments we have used the mollusk fauna in this work, which can be often found in the formations of the studied territory. The interpretation of the fauna is debatable in the sections where several genetic types of formations are exposed, primarily alluvial and eolian–deluvial loess. This type of combination of deposits is found in outcrops on the numerous terraces of the Dniester and the terraces of its East Carpathian Foreland’s and Podolia tributaries. The results of the research obtained by us using paleomalacological studies correlate well with data obtained using other methods. Such methods include actual field observations, as well as lithological, palaeopedological, paleontological (study of fossil mammals, fish, spores, and pollen), archaeological, and other methods. The results presented in this work made it possible to establish the genesis of some components of polygenetic complex strata, as well as testify to the effectiveness of the applied research method. Keywords: anthropogen; malacofauna; alluvium; loess; paleogeography; Podolia; East Carpathian Foreland.

Study of a Low-Cost Method for Estimating Energy Fuel Resources in Anthropogenic Sediments

Abstract In 2021, at the request of PJSC “Dnepropetrovsk Coke Plant”, city Kamianske, we conducted research at the facility where coke-chemical waste is stored on one of the coal waste collectors. The study area was 9.37 ha. The research subject was anthropogenic formations, which were formed due to the storage of coal-floated sediments on the company’s premises. The research aimed to determine the characteristics and analysis of the quantity and quality of coal accumulations, determine the retention of the insulating layer and its composition, and create maps of the quality and capacity of accumulated anthropogenic sediments. The ordering company decided to use both – the latest ground penetration technology and the traditional methods of drilling and laboratory, thanks to which an unusually large number of parameters were obtained and processed during the research process. Similar research was conducted on other industrial facilities, but to a much lesser extent; since we have implemented a combined, comprehensive methodology for the assessment of anthropogenic deposits, because of which the effectiveness of geological research and economic assessment increased, the time of conducting research shortened to 40-45 calendar days, and the cost of such tests decreased five times. At this stage, some things could be improved in the methodology, such as imperfection of the mathematical model and methodology of statistical data processing. These errors will be eliminated during further modelling work under the prepared implementation plan for the tested methodology.

Earliest archeological evidence of fertilization in Central Europe

AbstractThe beginnings of food production—animal husbandry and crop cultivation—and of a sedentary way of life represent one of the most drastic changes in human history. Likewise, this is accompanied by an increasing human impact on nature, which is mainly caused by agricultural practices. Agriculture is related to the clearing of forests, tillage, maintenance of the cultivated land, and finally harvesting, which alters not only the vegetation cover but also soil fertility as there is a potential risk for a loss of nutrients. People already countered this loss of nutrients in the times of early agriculture through different techniques and practices. The article summarizes the earliest evidence of fertilization in the prehistory of Central Europe and presents the most important methods for their investigation. What significance fertilization had for early farming societies can presently not be estimated due to the small amount of data. We therefore advocate the development of a routine for sampling during archaeological excavations and for the analysis of various materials (sediment and plant remains) using various methods. For this, the awareness must be raised that anthropogenic sediments, such as pit fills, are important archives for research into the history of humankind.

Fires of a House—Burning Events in a Middle Bronze Age Vatya House as Evidenced by Soil Micromorphological Analysis of Anthropogenic Sediments

The investigation of fires and burning within the archaeological record has a long history, and the applied methods are diverse. There have been several investigations of prehistoric archaeological sites, but Middle Bronze Age contexts (2000–1450 BC) of the Carpathian Basin have not been widely studied beyond studies of ritual burning or warfare. In this paper, we aimed to add further details to this topic in the household context via thin-section soil micromorphology and related phytolith and charred plant matter analysis. The combination of these techniques has been proven to be advantageous due to their high-resolution quality, but phytolith analysis of soil/sediment via thin sections (i.e., in fixed environment) has not been largely explored yet. In this study, these methods were used to investigate various burning events that affected a Middle Bronze Age Vatya house within the tell site of Százhalombatta-Földvár, Hungary. Three types of fire/burning events were investigated. One was related to hearth activity, another one to a presumed ‘cleaning’ of the house, and the last one to the termination of the building. In the first two cases, everyday life was under the microscope; the latter was more enigmatic, and probable intentional destruction was demonstrated.

Didaktická aplikácia geologických poznatkov o okolí Bratislavy ako príklad výučby litogeografie

In Slovakia, the unflattering situation in the teaching of geology at primary and secondary schools has persisted for a long time. A direct consequence of this situation is the lack of knowledge in the field of inanimate nature among broad sections of the population. For this reason, it is necessary to popularize inanimate nature and thus increase geological and lithogeographical awareness among the inhabitants of our country. One of the ways can be a didactically acceptable processing of geological knowledge, since the sources of geological information are often difficult to understand for the public without a geological education. The main goal of this contribution is to present a simplified geological map of the surroundings of Bratislava including both the Slovak and Austrian parts with a common legend that will be comprehensible even to the lay public. The simplified geological map created by us contains 18 geological units including anthropogenic sediments. It is also possible to show important geological sites. For better visibility, the map was loaded onto a digital model of the relief and then a 3D visualization was created, which can be placed, e.g. to the website. With the help of this visualization, it is possible to e.g. demonstrate the transgression of the sea in past geological times.

The earliest cotton fibers and Pan-regional contacts in the Near East.

Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thousands of years, and its production, application and exchange have deep roots in prehistory. However, fiber remains have only rarely been observed in prehistoric sites because they tend to decay quickly in normal environmental conditions. To overcome preservation problems of macroscopic remains, we employed microbotanical analysis on soils from anthropogenic sediments in activity areas at Tel Tsaf in the Jordan Valley, Israel (ca. 5,200-4,700 cal BC), and recovered fiber microremains. This includes at least two types of bast fibers and the earliest evidence of cotton in the Near East, some of which were dyed in various colors. Some of these fibers likely represent the remnants of ancient clothing, fabric containers, cordage, or other belongings. The cotton remains, probably derived from wild species originating in South Asia, predate the oldest known cotton domestication in the Indus Valley by about two millennia. Tel Tsaf played a pivotal role in trans-regional trade and exchange networks in the southern Levant, and the presence of cotton at the site points to possible connections with the Indus Valley as early as 7,200 years ago.

The urban sediments of Karlsplatz, Vienna (Austria) as a reference section for the Anthropocene series

Anthropogenic strata form the layered urban archive in the underground of large cities. In a transdisciplinary project involving geosciences, isotope physics and urban archaeology, we looked for artificial isotopes and anthropogenic trace metals. The tested archaeological site Karlsplatz is situated in the city of Vienna (Austria). Archaeology and historical data sets provide age constraints around 1922, post-1945 and at 1959. A layer on top of the WW2 rubble that covers foundations of a 1922 building post-dates 1945, and pre-dates the levelling of the artificial park ground in 1959. The fine-grained sediment matrix of these layers is mixed with backfilled soil material. Samples were analysed for trace elements such as lead, copper and zinc, and prepared for chemical separation of actinides analysed by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS). Several artificial radionuclides, including the plutonium and uranium isotopes 239Pu, 240Pu and 236U, were found in the post-1945 layer, and the 240Pu/239Pu isotope ratio clearly points to the presence of atmospheric atomic bomb fallout material of the 1950s. Thus, the bomb-spike can be identified and used as a primary stratigraphic marker even in coarse urban anthropogenic sediments, exemplifying the correlation potential of these radionuclide markers and marking a correlative reference section for the Anthropocene series.

АНТРОПОТЕХНОГЕННІ ЧИННИКИ ВПЛИВУ НА БЕЗПЕКУ ВОДОКОРИСТУВАННЯ В КОНТЕКСТІ УРБАНІСТИЧНИХ ПРОЦЕСІВ: ПРИЧИНИ, НАСЛІДКИ ТА МЕТОДИ ПРОТИДІЇ

Urbanization processes lead to an increase in water use and its contamination. The strengthened anthropogenic impact has caused an unfavorable situation in the hydrosphere in almost all regions of Ukraine. Amidst constant anthropogenic load and intensive change of the living environment due to urbanization processes, measures reducing the level of pollution of wastewater, groundwater, and atmospheric air come to the fore. The article systemizes the factors of anthropogenic impact on water use safety, namely: wastewater of atmospheric and industrial origin, groundwater pollution, acid precipitation, and an increase in technogenic sediments that are formed during the operation of industrial and economic facilities, etc. It is also noted that the major problems of urbanized areas are high air pollution and deterioration of water supply and sanitation infrastructure. They result in a deterioration of the quality of water resources, a growth of atmospheric air pollution, the number of anthropo-genic sediments, and diffuse pollution of the environment. The directions of minimizing the negative impact of anthropogenic sediments, air pollution, surface contaminated runoff from urban areas on the quality of water in water bodies and their ecological state are substantiated. The urbanization of territories causes an increase in the volume of wastewater from all water users, both individual citizens and enterprises of industry, housing and agriculture. Despite the different technologies of wastewater treatment, a great deal enters the environment without treatment due to the growing number and overloading of treatment plants. The directions of minimizing the negative impact of surface contaminated runoff from urban areas on the quality of water in water bodies and their ecological state are systematized. Measures of rational water use are proposed, in particular: reduction of water consumption in urbanized areas as a result of the use of a system of economic tools, resource-saving technologies; strengthening control over the discharge of industrial waste; use of low-waste technologies and water recycling; establishment of standards for wastewater discharge; creation of water protection zones in areas of groundwater supply and intake, etc.

SOME ASPECTS OF POLISH-UKRAINIAN GEOLOGICAL AND GEOMORPHOLOGICAL RESEARCHES OF WESTERN VOLYN-PODILLIA DURING THE POLISH INVASION

The proposed article is based on an analysis of publications on field observations published in the then Polish and Ukrainian periodicals, collections of materials from scientific forums at various levels, works collections of individual Polish and foreign scientific institutes, etc. The purpose of the article was an attempt to analyze and generalize the research results of the study area in the field of Quaternary geology and geomorphology. It should also be noted that publications from the listed sections of physical geography are encountered quite sporadically and in significantly smaller numbers than articles on purely geological disciplines such as mineralogy, petrography, lithology, tectonics, etc. The study of geological and geomorphological objects and processes was carried out on the territory of Western Volyn-Podillia, which at that time was a part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The works mainly concerned the study of the stratigraphy of anthropogenic sediments distributed in the Podillia loess and loess soils, continental glaciations and related glacial and fluvial-glacial deposits, surface and underground karst, etc. It was established that significant in volume and depth of generalization of works on the geological and geomorphological structure the region features at that time was not. The studies that were carried out were not systematic, they were often carried out on the researchers initiative and without adequate funding, with localization mainly in the territory with open at that time deposits of certain minerals types. Analysis of publications can be stated as follows: the study of Quaternary deposits of the region and loess in particular was carried out with extensive use of laboratory studies, paleontological method, chemical, particle size distribution mineralogical and petrographic analyzes, the method of separation of loess minerals in heavy liquids, paleontological and archaeological observations, etc., were progressive at that time. It should be noted that individual reports on the determination of the age of the Quaternary strata were poorly synchronized with each other and a reliable generally accepted scale for the division of these deposits in this period was not agreed. During this period, factually substantiated schemes of geomorphological zoning of both the Podillia region as a whole and its individual components were proposed. Regular relationships of the relief features of the region with the lithogenic base, neotectonic movements, glacial and fluvial-glacial processes are traced. Significant progress is noted in the study of stratigraphy, lithology of local loess strata, problematic issues of their genesis are discussed. Among the few works on the study of the loess cover of Volyn-Podillia, the work of Yu. Polianskyi and Yu. Tokarskyi attracts attention first of all. The works on the study of loess are important due to: a) their almost ubiquitous distribution in the described territories; b) value for stratigraphic subdivision of the Pleistocene; c) controversial genesis; d) widespread use for the production of bricks and tiles. Work on the study of surface and underground forms of the Podillia karst has spread. Systematic mapping of individual underground cavities begins which gave impetus to their use in the future as objects of tourism. The largest number of works is devoted to the problems of studying the relief and modern physical and geographical processes in the interwar period. At the same time, along with purely descriptive publications, works appear where conclusions are based on the use of cartographic materials, which allowed researchers to identify significant patterns in the morphological features of the region. In the period under study, numerous publications by soil scientists also appeared, in which Quaternary sediments are considered as parent rocks on which soils were formed, the dependence of the type of soil on the lithology of the underlying rocks is established.
 In general, the works of Polish and Ukrainian researchers in the characterized period laid a reliable foundation for modern ideas about the geological and geomorphological features of the region.
 Keywords: geomorphological studies, Quaternary deposits, glacial deposits, stratigraphy, morphology, loess deposits.

Shallow and ploughed settlement sites in forested environment: Opportunities to multilevel prospection (an example of a prehistoric site in eastern Lithuania)

AbstractThis article presents the results of geochemical survey performed at one of the shallow and ploughed prehistoric settlement sites in eastern Lithuania. The goal of the survey was to delineate the territory of the prehistoric settlement based on a multilevel survey, and geochemical patterns were analysed relative to the stratigraphy of the site. This research explores how particular aspects of the built environment might be visible in layer‐specific data sets produced by soil coring and a range of different geochemical analyses and how the results from different levels correspond to each other and relate to test excavation results. The study also has value in adding to the discussion of the geochemical properties that could be indicative of prehistoric human activity in Lithuanian sites and how they contribute to understandings of the site's overall size and structural arrangement. The results have demonstrated the lack of consistent correspondence between layer‐specific geochemical data sets and calls into question the validity of single‐level surveys for ploughed sites. Distinct anthropogenic sediments do not always reproduce the expected elevation of the allegedly anthropogenic geochemical markers. A thick cultural layer could represent the traces of post‐deposition in secondary zones rather than primary occupied parts of the settlement. Conversely, the number of geochemical properties indicative of human occupation may survive in their original position in different strata even if the cultural layer is very fragmentary or not preserved.

Identifying anthropogenic features at Seoke (Botswana) using pXRF: Expanding the record of southern African Stone Walled Sites.

Numerous and extensive ‘Stone Walled Sites’ have been identified in southern African Iron Age landscapes. Appearing from around 1200 CE, and showing considerable variability in size and form, these settlements are named after the dry-stone wall structures that characterize them. Stone Walled Sites were occupied by various Bantu-speaking agropastoral communities. In this paper we test the use of pXRF (portable X-ray fluorescence analysis) to generate a ‘supplementary’ archaeological record where evident stratigraphy is lacking, survey conditions may be uneven, and excavations limited, due to the overall site size. We propose herein the application of portable X-ray fluorescence analysis (pXRF) coupled with multivariate exploratory analysis and geostatistical modelling at Seoke, a southern African SWS of historical age (18th century CE). The aim of the paper is twofold: to explore the potential of the application of a low cost, quick, and minimally invasive technique to detect chemical markers in anthropogenic sediments from a Stone Walled Site, and to propose a way to analyse the results in order to improve our understanding of the use of space at non-generalized scales in such sites.

The influence of ancient herders on soil development at Luxmanda, Mbulu Plateau, Tanzania

In eastern Africa, ecologists have found that when mobile pastoralists abandon their temporary encampments, the accumulation of burned animal dung, wood, and other organic waste enriches the concentration of nutrients (e.g., calcium, phosphorous, magnesium) essential to soil health, in comparison to other soils without prior human habitation. These nutrient-enriched soils promote glade development and greater biodiversity. Geoarchaeological research on the time depth of this anthropogenic “nutrient hotspot” phenomenon has demonstrated that soils at several archaeological sites in southern Kenya still remain enriched in these soil macro- and micro- nutrients after several thousand years. However, soil scientists and geoarchaeologists do not yet understand how these anthropogenic soils vary over the extensive geographic conditions of eastern Africa. The discovery of a Pastoral Neolithic site (ca. 3000 BP) at Luxmanda on the Mbulu Plateau, Tanzania, provides an opportunity to examine if similar patterns of nutrient enrichment can be detected in a different geological and climatic zone.In this paper, we use geochemical and sedimentary analyses to determine how archaeological soils at Luxmanda differ from adjacent off-site soils and known archaeological soils in Kenya, as well as from computationally derived soil nutrient models for eastern Africa. Our results indicate that soils derived from anthropogenic sediments and ashy dung are 4 to 16-fold more abundant in soil macro nutrients relative to off-site or modeled values. This pattern fits previous studies’ observations thatelevated macro- and micro-nutrients in soils are strongly correlated with ancient pastoralist habitation sites. We conclude that anthropogenic soils found at Pastoral Neolithic archaeological sites may be a valuable, but unappreciated, soil resource in eastern Africa.

Innovative Approaches for the Sedimentological Characterization of Fine Natural and Anthropogenic Sediments in Karst Systems: The Case of the Apuan Alps (Central Italy)

The Apuan Alps (NW Tuscany) is an important area of Central Italy characterized by large karst systems mainly fed via direct and diffuse water infiltration (autogenic recharge). These waters usually transport a clastic sediment load, originated by natural, surface and subsurface rock erosion/weathering which, in part, is deposited underground. In the Apuan Alps, during extreme rain event, huge amounts of carbonate powder, produced as a waste resulting from the quarrying operations of the famous “Carrara” marble, mix up with meteoric waters forming a slurry that is transported through the karst openings into the caves, where the carbonate powder may be deposited along with natural sediments. Depending upon karst hydrology and water fluxes, the slurry may eventually reach karst springs heavily reducing water quality. Mineralogical composition of the sediments collected along karst waterways and springs shows variable proportions of calcite associated with dolomite and silicates particles whereas the marble powder samples from quarry areas are mainly composed by calcite grains. Cave deposits of natural origin have usually a fine-sand grain size whereas spring sediments have a more variable grain-size distribution. Marble powder mainly has a silt grain size and produces a sort of “granulometric and morphometric pollution” which influences the transport mechanism of solid load through the karst systems along both vadose and phreatic waterways.

Floodplain and Terrace Legacy Sediment as a Widespread Record of Anthropogenic Geomorphic Change

Anthropogenic erosion and sedimentation are critical components of global change that involve life-sustaining natural resources of soil and water. Many geomorphic systems have responded to intense land use disturbance with episodic erosion and sedimentation, often orders of magnitude greater than background geological rates in the Holocene. Accelerated sedimentation is a metric for land use change and provides evidence of geomorphic change in fans, floodplains, terraces, deltas, lakes, karst sinks, estuaries, and coastal marine deposits. This review describes high variability in the timing of alluvial sedimentation and the value of bottomland stratigraphy with emphasis on records and heterogeneity of anthropogenic change. Although floodplain sedimentary evidence might be ill-suited for defining the proposed Anthropocene epoch boundary based on stratigraphic boundary criteria, sedimentology and stratigraphy provide rich evidence for long-term human activities that measures buildups of human environmental alterations long before the proposed mid-twentieth-century onset of the Anthropocene. Anthropogenic sedimentation is globally widespread but is too time-transgressive to serve as a stratigraphic indicator for onset of the proposed Anthropocene epoch. The emphasis here is on an example of longue durée; that is, the long record of anthropogenically accelerated sedimentation and the valuable evidence that it provides of human-induced environmental change. A conceptual tripartite model summarizes the evolution of anthropogeomorphic change. Anthropogenic sediments preserve geoarchaeological evidence and other important contextual information in buried landscapes that include human infrastructure, fields, material culture, contaminants, and paleosols. Geomorphic change can threaten food production, flooding, water quality, and so on. Understanding erosion and sedimentation dynamics is a vital concern for humanity.

Synergistic impacts of sediment generation and hydrotechnical structures related to forestry on stream fish communities

The increase in anthropogenic sediment has become the most significant factor responsible for degrading flowing waters, preventing them from attaining the good ecological state of rivers requested by Water Framework Directive. After agriculture and mining, forest exploitation is a major source of mineral suspension. The accumulation of fine sediments may reduce fish spawning effectiveness, inhibit migration, and interfere with feeding. Streams degraded by the influx of anthropogenic sediments may be recolonised provided that ecological continuity of the dendritic river network is maintained. The present study focused on mountain stream fish communities whose catchments have undergone natural and intensified soil erosion. We tested the hypothesis that forestry practices transforming the stream habitats combined with the discontinuities created by hydrotechnical structures have had negative impacts on the entire catchment and adversely altered fish communities. The research was carried out in two catchments: i) in the national park, and ii) outside the national park, in an area with forest exploitation. It was observed that the negative effects of the dramatic increases in mineral suspension loads were synergistically aggravated by the presence of objects disturbing fluvial system continuity. The consequences of the synergy between these two factors were evident in local brown trout populations. Sites formerly inhabited by brown trout lacked downstream barriers during our study. After eliminating this parameter, our analysis revealed that channel silting also reduced brown trout abundance downstream from the barrier. The weir in the Muczny Stream inhibited ichthyofaunal re-establishment in streams prone to enhanced mineral suspension input. Forest mountain streams must be preserved also as cold water refugia, hence our results are of significance for forest management. Based on our results, the complete removal of the barrier in Muczny Stream is planned for 2020, and a substantial reduction in the inflow of mineral suspension to stream channels is strongly recommended.

The site mapping of Kakucs-Turján by the means of horizontal and vertical proxies: Combining field and basic laboratory methods of geoarchaeology and archaeological prospection

The homogenous cultural identity that emerged during the Middle Bronze Age (2000–1450 cal BC) in the central territory of the Carpathian Basin is identified uniformly as the Vatya culture. The Vatya people created multi-layered tells, open air horizontal, as well as fortified settlements along the western and eastern bank of the Danube river. These archaeological sites are significant elements of both the cultural and natural heritage of the Carpathian Basin. Their significance does not only lie within the possibility to reconstruct the life, society and material culture of Vatya populations, but the buried soils and anthropogenic sediments hold significant information on prehistoric human-environment interactions, and on site formation processes that occurred after the abandonment of the individual settlements. Geophysical prospection methods and field walking helped to locate and identify the tripartite structure of Kakucs-Turján archaeological site within the territory of the Danube–Tisza Interfluve. The settlement was established on the border of different geographical micro-regions and at the conjunction of dissimilar natural geographical environments. The stratigraphy of the site was described by the means of high resolution and focused series of hand auger observations, as well as on the basis of basic soil physical and chemical parameters. The detailed macro-morphological description of the soil core profiles aimed at precisely identifying the soilscape of the site and its vicinity, the stratigraphy of the anthropogenic and natural sediments of the settlement, but also to facilitate our understanding of the site formation process. Data gained by the means of geoarchaeological methods not only form the basis of environmental historical conclusions, but reveals mosaics of the interaction between ancient human populations and their environment.

Virtual micromorphology: The application of micro-CT scanning for the identification of termite mounds in archaeological sediments

X-ray micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) scans were conducted on impregnated sediment blocks from the early Holocene rockshelter site of Lapa do Santo, East-Central Brazil. The analysis was designed to investigate the presence of termite mound fragments in the archaeological sediments and test the value of complementary techniques in micromorphological studies. Soil feeding termites have been common in the tropical soils of Central Brazil since the Paleogene/Neogene and exist in high concentrations in the surroundings of Lapa do Santo. The micro-CT scans revealed a distinctive spongy microstructure inside some of the clay aggregates in the sediments that are not visible in thin section, matching the spongy microstructure inside termite mound fragments. The microstructure consists of a mix of clay and organic material (feces, saliva and other body fluids) produced by termites to cement the mounds' matrix. The cements are undistinguishable from the matrix under the microscope, but clearly visible in the micro-CT scans given the low attenuation coefficient of organo-mineral matter. The termite mound fragments appear dispersed within the ashy matrix (made of intact and reworked combustion features), suggesting their possible use in earth ovens. The combination of combustion features and reworked earth ovens attests to the complex input of anthropogenic sediments in the formation of Lapa do Santo. This study demonstrates that micro-CT can potentially disclose materials not visible in thin section and can be utilized as a complementary technique to micromorphology.

Anthropogenic alluvial sediments in North Carolina Piedmont gullies indicate swift geomorphic response to 18th century land-use practices

ABSTRACTGullies are common erosional features in the Piedmont of North Carolina that have often been studied as indicators of poor land-management practices. However, the timing of gully formation, and thus the specific practices that caused their formation, has been largely overlooked in the literature. Here, we use the timing of gully formation to examine the geomorphic and anthropogenic triggers for erosion in the Piedmont. To do this, we mapped 74 gullies in the landscape and found that most contained alluvium within the gully or in alluvial fans. Soil pits were dug at a subset of the gully sites (16 in alluvium, 1 in colluvium, and 1 upland comparison) and examined for soil development, organic content, and particle size. Seven charcoal fragments were sampled from the soil pits and were radiocarbon dated. Radiocarbon ages cluster in the late 1700s, which suggests that early European settlers had an immediate impact on the landscape through deforestation and agriculture. The swift response of the landscape to deforestation and agriculture indicates that the argillic Piedmont soils are pre-disposed to erosion. Our results highlight the importance of erosion prevention as reforested farmland is cleared during urban expansion.

Humans are the most significant global geomorphological driving force of the 21st century

The transformation of the Earth’s land surface by mineral extraction and construction is on a scale greater than natural erosive terrestrial geological processes. Mineral extraction statistics can be used as a proxy to measure the size of the total anthropogenic global sediment flux related to mineral extraction and construction. It is demonstrated that the annual direct anthropogenic contribution to the global production of sediment in 2015 was conservatively some 316 Gt (150 km3), a figure more than 24 times greater than the sediment supplied annually by the world’s major rivers to the oceans. The major long-term acceleration in anthropogenic sediment flux started just after the Second World War and anthropogenic sediment flux overtook natural fluvial sediment flux in the mid-1950s. Humans are now the major global geomorphological driving force and an important component of Earth System processes in landscape evolution. The changing magnitude of anthropogenic sediments and landforms over time are significant factors in the characterisation of the proposed new epoch of geological time – the Anthropocene.