Department of General Geology and Geotourism

Abstrakt: Tvorenie geoparkov v Poľsku si vyžaduje vyznačenie perspektívnych oblastí, ktoré sa charakterizujú unikátnou georôznorodosťou. Hlavnými kritériami výberu by mala byť reprezentatívnosť geostanovísk ako aj dobrá spolupráca samospráv a spoločenská podpora pre iniciatívy tohto druhu. Práve tieto prvky sú vyžadované v rámci procedúry tvorenia geoparkov UNESCO . Obrovský význam majú v tomto kontexte prihraničné oblasti, ktorých rozvoj môže podporovať geoturizmus. Na zvláštnu pozornosť vzhľadom na krajinnú rôznorodosť pestrosť geologickej stavby si zaslúžia Karpaty -horský systém strednej Európy. Geologické dedičstvo má tu šancu byť chránené a propagované v rámci tvorených geoparkov. Pre túto iniciatívu v poľskej časti Karpát zaujímavým regiónom sú Pieniny. V rámci poľsko-slovenskej spolupráci bolo začaté prípravné štúdium pre tento región. Oblasť Geoparku Pieniny zahŕňa pieninské bradlové pásmo na poľskej a slovenskej strane vrátane priľahlých oblastí -Centrálne Pieniny, Malé Pieniny, Spišské Pieniny, bradlá regiónu Podhale, Ľubovnianska pahorkatina, Oravská Magura. Špecifikácia pieninského bradlového pásma, výnimočného územiav svetovom meradle, je výsledkom komplikovanej geologickej stavby, ktorá vyplýva z viacetapovej histórii tvorenia sa tejto štruktúry. Geoturistické atrakcie boli cieľom mnohých geologických exkurzií, počnúc školskými exkurziami, terénnymi kurzami všeobecnej geológie pre študentov prvého ročníka organizovaných vysokými školami z Poľska, Česka a Slovenska a končiac na exkurziách pre profesionálov organizovaných v rámci medzinárodných geologických kongresov. Turisti môžu tu obdivovať skvelú ilustráciu mnohých procesov dynamickej geológie. Môže sa tu tiež študovať dejiny geologických výskumov a baníctva, nerastné suroviny, minerálne vody, prvky mineralógie a petrografie, využitie kamenia v architektúre. Správnou jednotkou budúceho geoparku môže byť konzorcium poľského Pieninského národného parku, PIENAP a projektovanej chránenej krajinnej oblasti Malé Pieniny. Prvoradou úlohou v rámci tohto projektu bude geologická inventarizácia a valorizácia na potreby utvorenia parku. Najväčšie problémy sa môžu vyskytnúť z dôvodu legislatívy vzťahujúcej sa na fungovanie objektov tohto typu a aj malý význam samosprávy v Poľsku. Špecifickou črtou geoparkov je ich medzinárodný význam pri miestnom charaktere fungovania, preto veľmi dôležitá je spolupráca na úrovní obcí.

This preliminary study examines the potential effects of diagenetic processes on the oxygen-isotope ratios of bone and tooth phosphate (δ 18 O) from skeletal material of individuals representing the Corded Ware Culture (2500-2400 BC) discovered in Malżyce (Southern Poland). Intra-individual variability of Ca/P, CI, C/P, collagen content (%) and oxygen isotopes was observed through analysis of enamel, dentin and postcranial bones. Using a variety of analytical techniques, it was found that, despite the lack of differences in soil acidity, not all the parts of a skeleton on a given site had been equally exposed to diagenetic post mortem changes. In a few cases, qualitative changes in the FTIR spectrum of analysed bones were observed. The data suggest that apart from quantitative analyses, i.e., the calculation of Ca/P, CI, C/P and collagen content, qualitative analyses such as examination of the absorbance line are recommended. The degree to which a sample is, contaminated on the basis of any additional, non-biogenic peaks, deemed to be contaminated should also be specified.

The ongoing Ychsma Project aims to shed light on the chronology and function of the late Prehispanic period at the well-known archaeological site of Pachacamac, Peru, through extensive archaeological research. The Temple of the Monkey is a special building that has been cleared, mapped, and excavated within the general framework of the study of "pyramids with ramps," the most common form of monumental architecture at the site. Through the application of radiocarbon measurements, it can be shown that the temple has been used for around 150 yr and therefore is quite different from other pyramids with ramps previously studied (see . Details of the temple, 14 C sample selection, and methodology, as well as results, are discussed in this paper. The research has allowed us to make significant advances in the current understanding of pyramids with ramps and the function of the site of Pachacamac as a whole.

In 2007 a ceremonial complex representing the Globular Amphora Culture was discovered in Kowal (the
Kuyavia region, Poland). Radiocarbon dating demonstrated that the human remains associated with the complex are
of similar antiquity, i.e., 4.105 ± 0.035 conv. and 3.990 ± 0.050 conv. Kyrs. After calibration, this suggests a period
between 2850 and 2570 BC (68.2% likelihood), or more specifically, 2870 to 2500 BC (95.4% likelihood).
Morphological data indicate that the skeleton belonged to a male who died at 27–35 years of age. The unusual
morphology of his hard palate suggests this individual may have had a speech disorder. Stable oxygen isotope values
of the individual's teeth are above the locally established oxygen isotope range of precipitation, but due to sample
limitations we cannot conclusively say whether the individual is of non-local origin. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope
ratios were analyzed to reconstruct the diet of the studied individual, and show a terrestrial-based diet. Through ancient
DNA (aDNA) analysis, the mtDNA haplogroup K2a* and lactose intolerance as evidenced by homozygous LCT-13910C
allele were identified. These aDNA results are the first sequences reported for an individual representing the Globular
Amphora Culture, enriching the still modest pool of human genetic data from the Neolithic.

The Żabieniec kettle hole is the first peatland in central Poland analyzed quantitatively with four biotic proxies (plant macrofossils, pollen, testate amoebae and chironomids) to reconstruct the past environmental change. Palaeoecological data were supported by historical and archaeological records. We focused on autogenic vegetation change and human impact in relation to climatic effects. The aims of our study were (a) to describe the development history of the mire during the last 2,000 years, (b) to date and reconstruct the anthropogenic land-use changes and (c) to discuss a possible climatic signal in the peat archive. The combination of proxies revealed dramatic shifts that took place in the peatland since the Roman Period. Żabieniec was a very wet telmatic habitat until ca. AD 600. Then, the water table declined, and the site transformed into a Sphagnum-dominated mire. This dry shift took place mainly during the Early Medieval Period. Human impact was gradually increasing, and it was particularly emphasized by deforestation since AD 1250 (beginning of the Late Medieval Period). Consequently, surface run-off and aeolian transport from the exposed soils caused the eutrophication of the mire. Furthermore, chironomids and testate amoebae reveal the beginning of a wet shift ca. AD 1350. Openness considerably increased in the Late Medieval and the Modern Periods. The highest water table during the last 1,000 years was recorded between AD 1500 and 1800. This wet event is connected with deforestation, but it could be also associated with the Little Ice Age. Our study shows plant succession in the Żabieniec peatland, which can be explained with the recent landscape transformation. However, such changes are also possibly linked with the major climatic episodes during the last two millennia, such as the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age.

The Żabieniec kettle hole is the first peatland in central Poland analyzed quantitatively with four biotic proxies (plant macrofossils, pollen, testate amoebae and chironomids) to reconstruct the past environmental change. Palaeoecological data were supported by historical and archaeological records. We focused on autogenic vegetation change and human impact in relation to climatic effects. The aims of our study were (a) to describe the development history of the mire during the last 2,000 years, (b) to date and reconstruct the anthropogenic land-use changes and (c) to discuss a possible climatic signal in the peat archive. The combination of proxies revealed dramatic shifts that took place in the peatland since the Roman Period. Żabieniec was a very wet telmatic habitat until ca. AD 600. Then, the water table declined, and the site transformed into a Sphagnum-dominated mire. This dry shift took place mainly during the Early Medieval Period. Human impact was gradually increasing, and it was particularly emphasized by deforestation since AD 1250 (beginning of the Late Medieval Period). Consequently, surface run-off and aeolian transport from the exposed soils caused the eutrophication of the mire. Furthermore, chironomids and testate amoebae reveal the beginning of a wet shift ca. AD 1350. Openness considerably increased in the Late Medieval and the Modern Periods. The highest water table during the last 1,000 years was recorded between AD 1500 and 1800. This wet event is connected with deforestation, but it could be also associated with the Little Ice Age. Our study shows plant succession in the Żabieniec peatland, which can be explained with the recent landscape transformation. However, such changes are also possibly linked with the major climatic episodes during the last two millennia, such as the Medieval Warm Period and the Little Ice Age.