| 1. |
|
|
| 2. |
- Josefsson, Torbjörn, et al.
(författare)
-
The history of early cereal cultivation in northernmost Fennoscandia as indicated by palynological research
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer-Verlag New York. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 23:6, s. 821-840
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- The age of the introduction of cereal cultivation in northern Europe has long been debated by researchers from many disciplines, in particular archaeology and palaeoecology. Over the past 40 years extensive palynological data have been collected concerning pre-industrial land use in northern Fennoscandia. This paper reviews palynological studies that include records of fossil cereal pollen from northernmost Sweden, Finland and Norway at latitudes north of 63A degrees N. The geographical extent of known early cultivation sites is constantly expanding, with more than 100 records of cereal pollen pre-dating ad 1700. The oldest records of scattered cereal pollen derive from Neolithic times. Periods of continuous cultivation, indicated by cereal pollen recorded recurrently in the sediment profiles, derive from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age. Collectively, the reviewed pollen records indicate that cereal cultivation was first introduced into areas close to the coast and later to the interior, and that it may have been practiced locally long before sedentary settlements based on intensive cultivation were established during medieval times. The data do not indicate a latitudinal spread of cultivation from south to north. However, methodological problems relating to pollen morphology of cereals, site characteristics and lack of connections to archaeologically excavated sites imply that the value of many early cereal pollen finds remains unclear. To increase our understanding of the context in which cereal cultivation was introduced in northernmost Fennoscandia, multidisciplinary studies integrating palaeoecology, archaeology and history are needed.
|
|
| 3. |
- Drobyshev, Igor, et al.
(författare)
-
The first annually resolved analysis of slash-and-burn practices in the boreal Eurasia suggests their strong climatic and socio-economic controls
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 33, s. 301-312
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Slash-and-burn (SAB) was a widespread agricultural practice across large parts of the boreal region until the early 20th century. Despite its paramount importance in the procurement of food and particularly in supporting frontier populations of settlers during the colonization of the Eurasian boreal zone, analyses of spatial and temporal patterns in the use of SAB at annual and sub-annual scales are currently missing. We present the first such analysis of climatic and social controls of SAB practices in a remote region in the northern Ural mountains from 1880 to 1894. We observed a significant positive correlation between the total number of burns and the village population (p = 0.005, R-2 = 0.26), indicating that the frequency of burns directly reflected the local demand for food. The amount of agricultural land, regarded as a cumulative measure of burning activity over multiple decades, showed a strong positive correlation with the village population (p < 0.001, R-2 = 0.60). This result supported our interpretation of burns as an important food procurement tool, probably also positively affected by higher labour availability in larger villages. Villages where the number of burns were higher than predicted by the "the population vs. burns" regression tended (p = 0.15) to have larger areas of arable land than predicted by the "population vs. arable land" regression. This pattern implied that variability in the local environmental and/or socio-economic settings of the villages made some of them more (or otherwise less) favourable for agricultural activities based on SAB. Most reported burns occurred in June and July. The three years with the maximum number of reported burns had a tendency to be wetter during these months when compared to the same period during an "average" year (p = 0.19). The pattern suggested that farmers preferred conducting burns during years with a below-average climatological fire hazard. An earlier start of the fire season favoured burning activity (p = 0.10 R-2 = 0.33), while its later ending had no significant effect on the number of burns (p = 0.53). Our study documented strong climatic controls of SAB practices at the annual scale and their social controls at above-annual scales. These patterns emerged despite the common use of slash-and-burn to mitigate generally limited food availability in the northern Ural mountain region and likely conservative estimates of these practices in available records.
|
|
| 4. |
- Fredh, Erik Daniel, et al.
(författare)
-
Farm establishment, abandonment and agricultural practices during the last 1,300 years : a case study from southern Sweden based on pollen records and the LOVE model
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 28:5, s. 529-544
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of the study was to identify changes in agricultural practices and periods of agricultural expansion and regression during the last 1,300 years in the South-Swedish Uplands. Sediments from the small lake of Skärpingsgölen (1.2 ha) were used to quantify land-cover at a local scale (c. 1 km radius) in 50-year intervals based on pollen analysis and the LOVE model (Local Vegetation Estimates). The results showed a dramatic change in land-cover, starting c. ad 1150, from a grazed, deciduous woodland, dominated by Corylus, Betula and Quercus, to a semi-open landscape dominated by Picea and open agricultural land. A hamlet, situated next to the lake, was probably established during the 12th century, abandoned during the late medieval crisis (late 14th century) and re-colonized during the 16th century. High values of Cannabis-type pollen (up to 10% of the pollen sum) suggest that hemp retting was carried out in the lake from the 13th to the 17th centuries, while elevated levels of microscopic charcoal indicate that slash-and-burn cultivation was practiced during the early 14th and the 16th–18th centuries. The LRA-based estimates of vegetation show that the modern landscape, dominated by managed coniferous woodlands, is very different from the landscape only 50–100 years ago. This type of study is useful for comparisons with historical and archaeological records, and provides sufficient temporal and spatial resolution to identify short-lived abandonments and shifts in agricultural practices.
|
|
| 5. |
- Hagenblad, Jenny, et al.
(författare)
-
The introduction history of Hordeum vulgare var. nudum (naked barley) into Fennoscandia
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : SPRINGER. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 33:2, s. 237-245
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Hordeum vulgare var. nudum (naked barley) is one of the oldest and most common cereals found from Neolithic Fennoscandia. After the Bronze Age, naked barley largely disappeared and was replaced by Hordeum vulgare var. vulgare (hulled barley) and other cereals. During the early 19th century, naked barley of Asian origins was reintroduced to Fennoscandia. In this study, we have genetically characterized samples of Fennoscandian landraces of naked barley which were preserved in gene banks and museum collections. The analyses show that the Fennoscandian naked barley can be split into three groups: First, naked two-row barley, with a likely origin in Asia; second, naked six-row barley, with a likely origin in the eastern Himalayas and introduced during the 19th century; third, naked six-row barley genetically related to the original Fennoscandian hulled barley. The results suggest that this last group represents the ancient form of naked barley, which was possibly introduced in the Neolithic. At that time both naked and hulled barleys were grown and enough gene flow probably occurred between these two subspecies to create a Fennoscandian barley that is genetically distinct, irrespective of whether it is hulled or naked. This hypothesis was further supported by genotyping of the Nud gene, which is responsible for the naked phenotype. All naked barleys which we studied contained the same mutation allele, nud1.a, thus showing that naked Fennoscandian barley arose by crossings between naked and hulled barley and not by new mutations of hulled barley.
|
|
| 6. |
- Josefsson, Torbjörn, et al.
(författare)
-
Cereal cultivation from the Iron Age to historical times: evidence from inland and coastal settlements in northernmost Fennoscandia
- 2017
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 26, s. 259-276
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- For several decades researchers have debated when cereal cultivation was introduced to northernmost Europe. Most previous studies have concentrated on sites along the coast or close to major rivers; these are areas well-suited to agriculture and represent routes for people and knowledge transfer, but omit other vast areas suitable for cultivation and sedentary settlement. Here, we present strong evidence of permanent cultivation from ad 480 onwards at a settlement located at the 64th parallel North in northern Sweden, currently situated 30 km inland from the Gulf of Bothnia. This predates the beginning of permanent cultivation at sites along the present coastline mentioned here and in results from previous studies of places at approximately the same latitude. Our results are based on continuous finds of cereal pollen grains at certain sites, selected on the basis of archaeological records, old maps, plus past and present elevations above sea level. We highlight the importance of taking factors into account such as access to waterways, communication routes and coast displacement following land uplift when choosing study sites in order to pinpoint early cultivation and sedentary settlements. We suggest that these results have implications for attempts to resolve the question of the history of early agriculture in other parts of northern Fennoscandia.
|
|
| 7. |
- Karlsson, Jon, et al.
(författare)
-
Tracing a bog-iron bloomery furnace in an adjacent lake-sediment record in Ängersjö, central Sweden, using pollen and geochemical signals
- 2016
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 25:6, s. 569-581
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent studies of bloomery sites in Sweden indicate the amount of iron produced with this early low-technology smelter was greater than previously thought, which implies greater economic importance. Little is known about the history of bloomery technology, not least the timeframe over which individual bloomeries were operated, as well as their impact on the landscape because of resource consumption and pollution. In this study we performed pollen and geochemical analyses of the lake-sediment record from Rortjarnen, which is 120 m from the remains of a documented bloomery [one radiocarbon date: ad 1300-1435 (1 sigma)], in A"ngersjo, Halsingland. A surface-soil transect shows a limited geochemical signal only within 20 m of the bloomery, and the sediment pollen record provides little direct evidence of an active bloomery and is consistent with other studied sites in the area linked to forest grazing or cultivation. Instead, we find major changes in sediment geochemistry during ad 800-1200, centered on a unique peak in Pb at ad 1030-1060. These changes include, e.g., Si (biogenic) and P, together with changes in pollen (e.g., Betula, Picea, Cyperaceae), which together indicate disturbance in the forest and especially the adjoining fen. We attribute these changes to a period of bloomery-related activities predating the radiocarbon date of the charcoal from the bloomery, and suggest that date represents a late phase for the site.
|
|
| 8. |
- Klaminder, Jonatan, 1976-, et al.
(författare)
-
Landscape of ice and fire : uniquely well-preserved scots pine trunks reveal forest fires near the retreating weichselian ice margin
- 2024
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 33, s. 519-527
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Environmental conditions for trees that established in central Fennoscandia shortly after the final retreat of the Weichselian ice sheet remain poorly understood. In this study we examine tree rings of five well-preserved Pinus sylvestris (Scots pines) that grew in the area in front of the retreating ice sheet in northern Sweden. They became buried in flood sediments deposited by a glacial outburst flood (jökulhlaup) about 9.5–9.9 kyr cal bp and the aim of our study was to search for information regarding damage from fires and bioclimatic conditions in their ancient tree ring records. Our analysis, providing a glimpse into the local early Holocene environment in north-central Sweden, suggests that: 1, there were repeated fires (four fire events detected) during the early Holocene; and 2, bioclimatic conditions when the ancient pines were growing resembled those of modern sub-alpine pine woods. The latter is indicated by their patterns of tree ring growth (growth rate and variation), which were statistically similar to those of pines growing in sub-alpine woods with an open canopy, but different from pines in protected and managed boreal forests. Lower δ13C for the ancient latewood in comparison to pine wood from trees growing near the Scandinavian mountains before the 1850s were probably caused both by stomata fractionation due to lower atmospheric CO2 during the early Holocene and by the moist local environment created by the nearby ancient Ancylus lake, which preceded the Baltic Sea. Periods with cloudy and cold summers were also indicated by the occurrence of ‘false rings’. Finds of charred fragments of Calluna vulgaris (heather, ling), an understory shrub that can burn even with a relatively high moisture content, suggest that heath vegetation was crucial to make fire a reoccurring ecological factor in the area during the early Holocene.
|
|
| 9. |
- Staland, Hanna, et al.
(författare)
-
The history of a farm-shieling system in the central Swedish forest region
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 19, s. 103-119
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The local vegetation history of three sites in the forested region of central Sweden was studied. These sites were the forest village site A"ngersjo and the two nearby shieling sites, Gammelvallen and A-jingsvallen. The aim of the study was to elucidate the relationship between the establishment of the farm and of the shielings. The results indicate that agriculture began in the area in the Roman Iron Age or Migration period. There is evidence of contemporaneous human activity in the village of A"ngersjo and the shieling at A-jingsvallen, suggesting the development of a farm-shieling system. We suggest that permanent farms and shielings were established concurrently as a local system, and that one of the main reasons was to demonstrate that the territory between the farm and the shieling was a potential resource area belonging to the farm. The problems of using pollen to differentiate between a shieling and a farm are also evaluated and it is concluded that multiple sites as well as a multidisciplinary approach is essential in order to be able to address such complex problems as the emergence of the farm-shieling system.
|
|
| 10. |
- Staland, Hanna, et al.
(författare)
-
Vegetation development at a mountain settlement site in the Swedish Scandes during the late Holocene: palaeoecological evidence of human-induced deforestation
- 2009
-
Ingår i: Vegetation History and Archaeobotany. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0939-6314 .- 1617-6278. ; 18, s. 297-314
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A palaeoecological study was conducted close to the forest limit in the northern Scandinavian mountain range. The aim was to elucidate the degree to which human impact has affected the vegetation at Hiednikvalta, a Stallo settlement site. Stallo settlements consist of round hut foundations that have a hearth in the middle and are surrounded by a low turf wall. They were probably established by Sami people using the mountain areas for hunting and/or reindeer herding. In order to separate the effects of humans and climate on the vegetation, a reference area approach was adopted, i.e. the vegetation development at the Stallo settlement site Hiednikvalta was compared with the vegetation development in a forested reference area AvvuhatjAyenhkkAyen, at the same altitude as Hiednikvalta but with no archaeological remains of settlements. Peat stratigraphies were retrieved at the two sites and pollen analysis, loss-on-ignition (LOI), pollen accumulation rates (PAR), macrofossil analysis and Betula pollen size statistics were all examined. The results indicate that Hiednikvalta was forested with Betula trees prior to the Stallo settlement period, which occurred between the eighth and thirteenth centuries. Human activities resulted in a decrease in tree cover at the site, as found in a previous study at Adamvalta, another Stallo settlement site in the region. However, the magnitude of vegetation change, and the post-Stallo vegetation development differed between the two areas, suggesting that site-specific factors are important. The use of reference areas in palynological studies is also discussed.
|
|
