Northern Carpathian Research Articles

Karyotype of Sabanejewiabulgarica (Drensky, 1928) (Teleostei, Cobitidae) from the Danube Delta, Romania.

The karyotype of the freshwater fish Sabanejewiabulgarica (Drensky, 1928), from the Danube Delta, was studied by conventional Giemsa staining and the C-banding technique. The diploid chromosome number was 2n = 50. The karyotype contained 2 pairs of metacentric (the first one was much larger than the second one), 6 pairs of submetacentric and 17 pairs of subtelocentric to acrocentric chromosomes. Pericentromeric blocks of heterochromatin were revealed in most of the chromosome pairs. The karyotype phenotype of S.bulgarica was the same as found for S.balcanica from Northern Carpathian Mountains.

Obsidian in the Early Neolithic of the Upper Vistula basin: origin, processing, distribution and use – a case study from Tominy (southern Poland)

Abstract The inflow of the Carpathian obsidian into the areas on the northern side of the Carpathians and the Sudetes is confirmed as early as in the Palaeolithic. However, its greatest intensity occurred in the Early Neolithic, i. e. in the late 6th and in the first half of 5th millennia BC. During that period, the phenomenon was closely related with the development of the Danubian cultural groups in the upper Vistula river basin, including especially Linear Pottery culture (LBK) and Malice Culture. The constant presence of this raw material products in mentioned areas is documented from the classical (musical-note) phase of LBK, constituting one of the most expressive pieces of evidence of permanent and intense intercultural contacts with communities of the northern Carpathian Basin. This phenomenon has been repeatedly emphasized in the literature. One of the most numerous LBK obsidian inventories in the upper Vistula river basin was obtained at site 6 in Tominy, located in southern Poland, in the non-loess zone of the Sandomierz Upland northern foreground. The above-mentioned collection, its non-destructive elemental analysis, using Prompt Gamma Activation Analysis (PGAA) and also traceological analysis, is the subject of this article. The results supplement the published data to a significant extent, simultaneously providing partial verification and updating of the current state of knowledge on the basic issues related to the Early Neolithic obsidian inflow into areas located North of the Carpathians, including primarily the origin of the raw material, the scale of its processing and distribution ways, as well as the range of its use by the LBK communities.

Selected Grain-Size and Geochemical Analyses of the Loess-Paleosol Sequence of Pécel (Northern Hungary): An Attempt to Determine Sediment Accumulation Conditions and the Source Area Location

The loess-paleosol profile near the settlement of Pécel has a notable size among the loess-paleosol sequences of the Northern Carpathian territories. Therefore, comprehensive sedimentological examinations were performed to understand the profile and the information preserved in it. The past periodicity and intensity of winds were showed by particle composition studies (GSI, U-ratio). At least two source areas can be presumed based on geochemical indices (CIA, CIW, Rb/Sr, Zr/Rb). Based on the characteristics of the chemical composition of sulphide minerals (P, S, Pb, Ni, As sulphides), the lower 10 m of the profile was supposed to be transported from the NW direction (Buda Thermal Karst, Börzsöny, Cserhát). Sufficient information is not yet available in order to determine the source area of the upper 10 m. By using the mentioned indexes, major developing and weathering horizons also could be identified.

Foraminiferal and calcareous nannoplankton biostratigraphy of the upper Badenian–lower Sarmatian strata in the SE Polish Carpathian Foredeep

The Badenian/Sarmatian boundary in the Central Paratethys has been traditionally identified by the faunal turnover recording an important environmental change possibly controlled by the change from marine to brackish conditions. The strata below the Badenian/Sarmatian boundary in the northern Carpathian Foredeep are included into the Pecten beds, and those above it into the Syndesmya beds. Foraminiferal study of the Babczyn 2 borehole which is one of the crucial sections in the northern Carpathian Foredeep, well-known for the depositional age of rhyolite tuff within the Pecten beds dated by Śliwiński et al. (2012) at 13.06 ±0.11 Ma, indicated that in fact the boundary occurs within the Syndesmya beds. This conclusion is based upon the rapid change from a stenohaline foraminiferal fauna to a euryhaline one, and the appearance of the species Anomalinoides dividens , the taxon regarded as the marker for the Sarmatian. In the Babczyn 2 and Cieszanów 1 (located ~2.5 km basinward of Babczyn 2) boreholes, Anomalinoides dividens appears 3.1–3.8 m above the replacement of stenohaline by euryhaline foraminifers. The calcareous nannoplankton study shows that the upper Badenian and the lower Sarmatian strata in the studied sections represent the NN6, undivided NN6-NN7, and NN7 zones.

Isotopic evidence of millet consumption in the Middle Bronze Age of East-Central Europe

Broomcorn millet is one of the most important plants species in pre-history. It was first domesticated in China and subsequently spread across Eurasia becoming a significant staple crop. For a long time, the arrival of millet into Europe was assumed to have taken place in the Neolithic. However, this has recently been challenged, with new direct radiocarbon measurements on reportedly Neolithic charred millet grains in fact dating to the Middle Bronze Age.To aid in understanding the timing of millet's spread across East-Central Europe in the Bronze Age we present the results of over 120 new paired radiocarbon dates and stable isotope (δ13C and δ15N) measurements on human bone collagen from individuals across 33 archaeological sites in Poland and western Ukraine. In doing so we directly assess millet's role in the Bronze Age diets.Our results show a clear increase in bone collagen δ13C values from the middle 15th century BC onwards. This increase is rapid across the whole study area, occurring almost simultaneously with respect to the precision of our radiocarbon dates. Pilot stable isotope data for contemporary animals suggests that they were not foddered with millet and hence it was probably eaten directly by humans. Interestingly, individuals consuming millet appear to be exclusive to geographically upland regions compared to lowland ones. However, not all individuals from upland zone have δ13C values consistent with millet consumption. Based on the stable isotope evidence for upland millet consumption and the well documented evidence for connections between these people and those in the northern Carpathian Basin at this time, we posit that it is through this route, across the Carpathians, that millet was introduced into the region. An increase of its economic importance in Lesser Poland was plausibly caused by a significant growth in human populations.

Simulated regional dust cycle in the Carpathian Basin and the Adriatic Sea region during the Last Glacial Maximum

The climate and environmental conditions in the Carpathian Basin and the adjacent northern Italy/Adriatic region during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) exhibit some major differences, as compared to present-day conditions. For instance, high accumulation rates recorded in loess deposits point to an active dust cycle during the LGM. Here, we investigate the climate conditions and provide new insights into the regional dust cycle based on regional climate simulations for both LGM and present-day boundary conditions. The high-resolution model output (grid spacing of ~8.5 km) is in good agreement with available proxy data, showing much colder (particularly during winter) and drier conditions during the LGM over the model domain. Further, the simulated aeolian dust cycle of small grain size particles (<20 μm) is investigated in more detail for LGM conditions. Highest dust emissions are simulated to the east of the Alpine ice sheet and in the Kvarner Bay region. In the northern Carpathian Basin, dust deposition plumes indicate prevailing northerly (NW, N and NE) winds. Strong Bora winds flowing down the slopes of the Dinaric Alps appear to play a major role in the local to regional dust cycle in the northern Adriatic region. From a seasonal perspective, the dust cycle is most active during winter and spring. A closer look at climate and environmental conditions at key areas reveals that high mean wind speeds and low precipitation rates correlate well with the high dust emissions during winter and spring. In contrast, lower wind speeds, increasing precipitation and the greening of vegetation prevent high dust emissions during summer and autumn. An additional analysis of the occurrence frequency of cyclonic circulation patterns in the Adriatic shelf region reveals that individual passing cyclones played an important role in the transport of dust particles from the alluvial Po plain towards the eastern Adriatic loess stacks.

The Earliest Cremation Burials in the South-Eastern Alpine Region from the Middle Bronze Age – Signs of Intercultural Connections with the Northern Carpathian Basin

Abstract The article considers cremation graves from the site of Podsmreka near Višnja Gora (Slovenia). Based on the analysis of their pottery, it could be shown that the graves can be dated to the Middle Bronze Age period (Br B2/C1) and thus represent one of the oldest cremation burials of the Bronze Age in Slovenia. First, the ceramic finds from the radiocarbon dated settlement contexts are discussed in order to reach a more exact chronological framework for the vessel forms from graves. A synthesis of all Middle Bronze Age graves, both inhumations and cremations, from central and eastern Slovenia allows us to get a better understanding of when the change in burial practices occurred. Surprisingly, the best analogies for the vessels from graves at Podsmreka near Višnja Gora can be found in the northern Carpathian Basin, where we observe a long-standing tradition of cremation burials. The analysis of radiocarbon samples from two graves from Šafárikovo in Slovakia allowed us to verify the absolute chronology of urn amphorae vessels with particular form and decoration, which we can date between the second half of the 16th and the first half of the 15th century BC. Such astonishing correspondences in the pottery between the northern Carpathian Basin and the south-eastern Alpine region seem to indicate that the very area of the Upper Tisza river, and the territory of the Piliny Culture, played a crucial role in the transmission of new burial practices, not only to Slovenia, but also across wider areas along the Sava and Drava rivers on the distribution area of the Virovitica group.

Late Glacial and Holocene paleoecology and paleoenvironmental changes in the northern Carpathians foreland: The Żarska Cave (southern Poland) case study

The study of past environments, their ecology, and detailed changes through time has become an important task of environmental science. Records of paleoenvironment usually vary between regions owing to different influences of local climate, vegetation, relief, and depositional processes. Therefore, studying local sequences thoroughly allows paleoenvironmental and paleoecological reconstructions for particular regions, but it also provides important data that complement the global record. The Żarska Cave is an exceptional site, which owing to its thick and undisturbed Holocene sediments with very rich paleobotanical and paleozoological materials has become the most complete example of the uppermost Upper Pleistocene and Holocene cave deposits in the Polish uplands. The aim of our study was to understand paleoenvironmental changes in southern Poland, from the late Glacial to the late Holocene, which has been targeted by use of a detailed geological analysis accompanied by analysis of a wide range of paleobotanical, paleozoological, and archeological assemblages. All the results obtained have permitted characterization of the paleoenvironmental changes occurring in the area of the Polish Jura during the last &gt;15 ka years. A particularly well-represented sequence covers the Allerød interstadial, which revealed the presence of forests with associated shade-loving mollusks and rodents. The beginning of the Holocene was clearly identified with an increase of shaded forest habitats, which developed in a still relatively cold climate with continental features, and with the first appearance of mesophilous deciduous trees. During the middle Holocene, unusual evidence for maple forests is documented, which developed before the formation of beech forests, typical for the late Holocene. The obtained sequence has great significance not only for the Polish Jura region, but also has wider implications for southern Poland and the vast area of the northern Carpathian foreland.

Maastrichtian climate changes – the calcareous nannofossil record from flysch deposits of the Outer Carpathians

The Outer Carpathians are known for a few sections, where transitions from the Upper Cretaceous to the Palaeogene, including the K-Pg boundary interval, were described. One of them, the Bąkowiec section in the Skole Nappe, was examined with reference to the record of biostratigraphy and palaeoenvironmental changes, mainly based on the analysis of calcareous nannofossil assemblages. This study shows no evidence for the K-Pg boundary; however, the presence of the nannofossil species Micula prinsii , marking the topmost Maastrichtian UC20dTP Zone, was noted. The appearance of this low-latitude taxon and relevant changes in the composition of nannofossil assemblages indicate an influx of Tethyan warm water into the northern Carpathian basins during the latest Maastrichtian, shortly before the K-Pg boundary event. Therefore, the authors infer that the upper part of the Bąkowiec section recorded the latest Maastrichtian warming of climate, probably triggered by Deccan volcanic activity.

The Chronostratigraphy of the Aurignacian in the Northern Carpathian Basin Based on New Chronometric/Archeological Data from Se\u0148a I (Eastern Slovakia)

The northern Carpathian Basin has important geological, paleoenvironmental, and archeological records that are key to our understanding of the first modern human occupation of Europe. However, the nature and timing of hominin settlements in the region during the Late Pleistocene remain poorly understood. New fieldwork at Seňa I, Slovakia, has identified the only known stratified open-air Aurignacian site in the region and assigned the assemblage to at least 33.5 ± 2.4 ka ago through infrared-stimulated luminescence dating. Additionally, new archeological and geoscientific data are presented. This paper discusses the Seňa I findings in the context of the regional archeological record and shows how they contribute to the establishment of clear time constraints for the Aurignacian in eastern central Europe.

Early Upper Paleolithic surface collections from loess-like sediments in the northern Carpathian Basin

The way in which modern humans first entered Europe has been a recent focus of Upper Paleolithic research. A leading theory posits that the Danube served as a conduit for migration from Southeastern into Central and Western Europe. However, a challenge to this has been the scarcity of Early Upper Paleolithic sites along the Middle Danube (Carpathian) Basin. Though several sites with Early Upper Paleolithic features (Szeletian, Aurignacian) are known from surface prospections, few have been archeologically investigated in detail.Here, our aim is to elucidate this long-standing deficiency by evaluating two unknown and three known sites from the northern Carpathian Basin in Hungary and Slovakia through a series of “keyhole” excavations. The objectives were to see if in situ stratified material still existed and to characterize the sites’ archeological assemblages and sedimentological contexts. To do this, field observations supplemented by granulometry were employed to determine if the surrounding sedimentary matrix was eolian loess and/or if it had been mixed with underlying older deposits.The results indicate that the lithics represent Early Upper Paleolithic assemblages that experienced post-depositional mixing. However, two sites (Seňa I, Nagyréde 1) showed more nuanced site formation processes and may contain in situ artifacts warranting further exploration. These studies highlight the importance of including sedimentological research into archeological investigations, because the paucity of sites may not simply mean a lack of human occupation, but can indicate a dynamic geomorphological evolution of the Pleistocene landscape that may have erased past traces of human settlements through insufficient sedimentation. The results provide new insights into the Early Upper Paleolithic settlement and the sedimentary dynamics of the Carpathian Basin ultimately leading to a greater understanding of the early modern human settlement patterns in Europe.

The Badenian Salinity Crisis in the palynological record: vegetation during the evaporative event (Carpathian Foredeep, southern Poland)

The Badenian Salinity Crisis took place at the early/late Badenian boundary and resulted in massive chemical sedimentation in the central Paratethys. The evaporating basin of the northern Carpathian Foredeep left behind gypsum and halite deposits tens of meters thick. As a very good medium for preservation, these evaporites are a fine source of diversified terrestrial palynomorphs. Plant communities reconstructed on the basis of both palynological analysis of sediments from the Bochnia and Wieliczka salt mines, as well as previously published studies from different localities within the evaporite basin, reveal the presence of wetland and mesic environments along the coasts of the northern part of the central Paratethys during the evaporative event. Among the most important taxa are Engelhardia , Ericaceae, Fagus , Liquidambar , Quercus , Taxodium / Glyptostrobus , Tricolporopollenites pseudocingulum , and Ulmus . The most characteristic feature of the palynofloras studied is the large amount (up to even 50%) of Ericaceae pollen in the spectra. Taxa representing a warm-temperate climate predominate in the palynofloras examined; however, representatives of a tropical/subtropical climate (i.a. Mastixiaceae) are also present. The presence of plant communities associated with wetland areas shows that the climate remained humid.

The Świlcza Hoard. An Extraneous 5th Century AD Complex from the Northern Carpathian Foreland

The Świlcza Hoard. An Extraneous 5th Century AD Complex from the Northern Carpathian Foreland

Composition of Atlantic forest in northern Carpathian foothills, from a charcoal record from a Neolithic domestic site at Żerków (Poland): The relevance of oak and hazel

Abstract A study of firewood remains from the foothills of the Western Carpathians in Poland yielded information about the history of forest communities growing in the vicinity of human settlements in the Atlantic period. The anthracological material was collected at Żerków, a Neolithic site of the Linear Band Pottery culture, situated on the highest parts of a hill covered by fertile soil. The anthracological assemblage was dominated by Quercus and Corylus avellana, followed by Acer and Maloideae, suggesting that those taxa probably were significant constituents of the local forest during the Atlantic period. Based on the ecological requirements of the identified taxa, such communities occupied areas of more open canopy, but it is unclear whether the material reflects the composition of the primeval forest or rather the presence of open canopy created by human impacts on local ecosystems during the period of settlement.

Dating of a Last Glacial loess sequence by relative geomagnetic palaeointensity: A case study from the Middle Danube Basin (Süttő, Hungary)

A thorough rock- and palaeomagnetic investigation of an almost 13-m-thick Upper Pleistocene loess–palaeosol sequence (LPSS) outcropping near the village of Süttő in northern Hungary was conducted to obtain rock magnetic and palaeomagnetic-based chronostratigraphies. The results of our rock magnetic investigations indicate that the classical “Chinese” model of magnetic enhancement, showing increasing concentration-dependent rock magnetic parameters in the course of pedogenesis, is also valid for the northern Carpathian Basin. We constructed a relative geomagnetic palaeointensity (RPI) record for the central part of the section by using the natural remanent magnetisation (NRM) after demagnetisation in alternating fields of 15 mT and by employing anhysteretic remanent magnetisation (ARM), low-field susceptibility (Klf) and “saturation” remanent magnetisation (“S”IRM) as normalisers. The three obtained RPI data sets show almost identical trends and are therefore regarded as reliable recorders of the palaeointensity of the Earth's magnetic field. The obtained RPI record allows for indirect dating of the LPSS at Süttő by correlation with the GLOPIS and the PISO stack. The derived age model is in agreement with the OSL-based chronostratigraphy, but contradicts the chronology based on the correlation between the susceptibility record and marine isotope stratigraphy (MIS), which gives rise to the hypothesis of a possible decoupling of the palaeoclimate in the Carpathian Basin and the marine realm during early MIS 3.

Spatial pattern of intraspecific mitochondrial diversity in the Northern Carpathian endemic spring snail, Bythinella pannonica (Frauenfeld, 1865) (Gastropoda: Hydrobiidae)

Bythinella is a species-rich genus of spring-snails, having a wide range in Europe and Asia Minor. The genus contains several endemic species with narrow ranges, creating interest from a conservation perspective as well as their use as a model for research into biogeographical patterns and evolutionary development. Most of the species of the genus Bythinella are difficult to distinguish by traditional methods due to their similar shell morphology. In previous studies, molecular approaches often came to conclusions that contradicted those from a morphology-based approach, hence the classification of species of Bythinella has been in dispute. Bythinella pannonica has clearly distinct shell morphological features, and consequently is one of the few species of undisputed taxonomic status within this genus. As an important step towards clarifying the systematics of this genus, we have attempted to describe the structure and spatial pattern of diversity of the mitochondrial COI marker within this species, in the hope of applying these findings generally to the whole genus. Molecular results support the monophyly of B. pannonica within the genus. The largest pairwise intraspecific COI sequence difference was almost 5 %, much larger than the value of 1.5 % previously proposed as a barcoding threshold for delimitation of Bythinella species. This finding suggests that incautious application of barcoding might lead to incorrect taxonomic conclusions. Within B. pannonica there are two deeply divergent intraspecific clades, the spatial distribution of which has been shaped by fragmentation, as well as by short and long distance dispersal events. These two clades have not been found syntopically but, as a peculiar feature of this taxon, they are able to persist in nearby habitats. We have demonstrated that the patchy distribution of suitable habitats and the restricted, but non-zero gene flow amongst the populations might play a key role in maintenance of the observed genetic structure of this species.

Plicuteria lubomirski (Ślósarski, 1881) (Gastropoda: Pulmonata: Hygromiidae), a forgotten element of the Romanian mollusc fauna, with notes on the correct spelling of its name

In this paper two new localities of the hygromiid land snail Plicuteria lubomirski (Œlosarski, 1881) are reported from Romania (Suceava and Harghita Counties). Its presence at the Lacu Roou (Gyilkos-to) area represents the southeasternmost occurrence of the species. The only sample of P. lubomirski hitherto reported from Romania (leg. JICKELI in 1888 at Borsec Bai) seems to be lost from museum collections. The northern Carpathian distributional type is suggested for the species. The nomenclatural problem regarding the spelling of the specific name (i.e. lubomirskii or lubomirski) is discussed. The original, but less frequently used spelling (lubomirski) is suggested based on our understanding of the regulations of the ICZN.

The Northern Carpathians plate tectonic evolutionary stages and origin of olistoliths and olistostromes

The olistostromes formed in Northern Carpathians during the different stages of the development of flysch basins, from rift trough post-rift, orogenic to postorogenic stage. They are known from the Cretaceous, Paleocene, Eocene, Oligocene and Early Miocene flysch deposits of main tectonic units. Those units are the Skole, Subsilesian, Silesian, Dukla and Magura nappes as well as the Pieniny Klippen Belt suture zone. The oldest olistoliths in the Northern Carpathians represent the Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous rifting and post-rifting stage of the Northern Carpathians and origin of the proto-Silesian basin. They are known from the Upper Jurassic as well as Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous formations. In the southern part of the Polish Northern Carpathians as well as in the adjacent part of Slovakia, the olistoliths are known in the Cretaceous- Paleocene flysch deposits of the Pieniny Klippen Belt Zlatne Unit and in Magura Nappe marking the second stage of the plate tectonic evolution - an early stage of the development of the accretionary prism. The most spectacular olistostromes have been found in the vicinity of Haligovce village in the Pieniny Klippen Belt and in Jaworki village in the border zone between the Magura Nappe and the Pieniny Klippen Belt. Olistoliths that originated during the second stage of the plate tectonic evolution occur also in the northern part of the Polish Carpathians, in the various Upper Cretaceous-Early Miocene flysch deposits within the Magura, Fore-Magura, Dukla, Silesian and Subsilesian nappes. The Fore-Magura and Silesian ridges were destroyed totally and are only interpreted from olistoliths and exotic pebbles in the Outer Carpathian flysch. Their destruction is related to the advance of the accretionary prism. This prism has obliquely overridden the ridges leading to the origin of the Menilite-Krosno basin. In the final, postcollisional stage of the Northern Carpathian plate tectonic development, some olistoliths were deposited within the late Early Miocene molasse. These are known mainly from the subsurface sequences reached by numerous bore-holes in the western part of the Polish Carpathians as well as from outcrops in Poland and the Czech Republic. The largest olistoliths (kilometers in size bodies of shallow-water rocks of Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous age) are known from the Moravia region. The largest olistoliths in Poland were found in the vicinity of Andrychów and are known as Andrychów Klippen. The olistostromes bear witness to the processes of the destruction of the Northern Carpathian ridges. The ridge basement rocks, their Mesozoic platform cover, Paleogene deposits of the slope as well as older Cretaceous flysch deposits partly folded and thrust within the prism slid northward toward the basin, forming the olistostromes.

Depositional environments of a salina-type evaporite basin recorded in the Badenian gypsum facies in the northern Carpathian Foredeep

Abstract An integrated group of conceptual models for evaporite deposition is presented for a shallow salina-type basin, supplied both with marine and non-marine water, and with a water level separated from and drawn down below world sea-level. Knowledge of, and terminology for, modern limnology is used in these models in order to build a new and more comprehensive link between the hydrography and hydrochemistry of brines and the depositional and stratigraphical record anticipated in such basins. In these modelled basins it is assumed that (as in saline lakes): (1) the evaporite deposition reflects the stratification-mixing cycles in the brine column; (2) the evaporative crystallization of salts culminates during the mixing periods; and (3) the evaporite facies are linked to the position of water zones separated by a horizontal pycnocline. The models are prepared especially for interpretation of subaqueous coarsely crystalline gypsum (selenite) deposition in perennial-to-ephemeral saline pans, and also for fine-grained gypsum deposition (clastic, microbialite and pedogenic) on specific, flat, semi-emerged shoals (majanna-type shoals), commonly flooded by wind-driven brine sheets, in between them. Coarse, crystalline selenites appear to form below the pycnocline and the crystallization of particular well-developed grass-like selenite beds is thought to be connected with the pycnocline highstands. Such beds are both marker beds and ideal datum surfaces. The models presented are used for sedimentological interpretation of the various gypsum facies of the Badenian (Middle Miocene) evaporite basin in the northern Carpathian Foredeep. The observed architecture of these facies suggests that the margin of the basin was occupied by a system of variable saline pans (dominated by selenite deposition) and evaporite shoals (dominated by gypsum microbialite deposition); some of these shoals were majanna-type. Many features of the studied facies can be clearly explained by the models presented, particularly by the rapid and variable fluctuations in water and pycnocline levels incomparable in time scale and size with any global sea-level changes. All these features together consistently suggest that the Badenian gypsum basin was a salina-type basin with a water level below global sea-level, although salts in the basin are/were basically marine in origin.

The Badenian evaporite basin of the northern Carpathian Foredeep as a model of a meromictic selenite basin

Abstract The hydrography and brine flow patterns in the Middle Miocene (Badenian) evaporite basin of the northern Carpathian Foredeep (in Ukraine, Poland and the Czech Republic) are reconstructed based on studies of the peculiar, conformably oriented, bottom-grown gypsum crystals present in the selenite deposits along the basin margin. The crystal apices are turned in a similar horizontal direction that is interpreted as the product of consistent flow of the bottom brines during crystal formation. Similarly the regular millimetre-scale growth zoning in these crystals presumably reflects the annual stratification-mixing pattern in the brine column typical of monomictic basins. In the central, deeper parts of the basin deposition was dominated by Na-chloride, and the selenitic facies are lacking. These central areas are interpreted as being meromictic during the oriented selenite deposition. The permanent pycnocline separated a mixolimnion, at the surface, from an anoxic (euxinic) monimolimnion, at the bottom, where direct evaporative crystallization of gypsum was not possible. The mixolimnion, which extended far onto the shallow margin of the basin, showed only a seasonal (annual) pycnocline and monomictic hydrography. Oriented selenites grew just in this mixolimnetic marginal zone, under predominantly counterclockwise (cyclonic) flow.