International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, Mar 1, 2010
The last throes of the Ice Age finished 11,500 years ago. The ameliorating climate was exploited ... more The last throes of the Ice Age finished 11,500 years ago. The ameliorating climate was exploited by opportunistic people who took advantage of the rich resources exposed as the ice retreated. These pioneers were the Mesolithic peoples, who were to become the building blocks of the British, yet relatively little is known about them as they have been largely sidelined in preference to the artefact-rich phases of humanity which followed.ijna_260 195..234
Analysis of archaeological sites stratified within marine sediments can open a window to cultures... more Analysis of archaeological sites stratified within marine sediments can open a window to cultures that are now lost between the waves. These sites and their environmental context harbour a resource that can also provide index points for sea level rise during a period of acute climate change. A decade of archaeological investigations in the western Solent by the Hampshire and Wight Trust for Maritime Archaeology, utilising divers and geophysical survey data, has led to the discovery of Mesolithic sites within submerged landscapes. They lie between 6.5m and 11.5m below British Ordnance Datum. However, the discovery of these delicate and vulnerable sites is presenting new challenges to the maritime archaeologist. The need to record, rescue and interpret the remains underwater is necessitating the development of new underwater sampling techniques.
HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), Nov 3, 2014
Coastal managers face an ongoing battle to moderate impacts from the sea in the face of a changin... more Coastal managers face an ongoing battle to moderate impacts from the sea in the face of a changing climate and pressures from human use of the coastal zone. The challenges that lie ahead are forecast to increase while resources are being forced to go further. This document quantifies the value of under-used coastal indicators that can be applied as tools to inform long term patterns of coastal change. In addition, it provides instruments to communicate past change effectively, model areas under threat and interpret progressive coastal trends. • To develop additional tools for decision making in coastal management. When tough coastal management decisions are required to determine levels of future risk, science based evidence is necessary to support these decisions. The project has analysed scientific data within archives to provide evidence of long-term coastal adaptation. • To extract data from under-used sources from archaeology, art, maps, charts and photographs. It was realised that data from archaeology, heritage features, art, photographs, maps and charts can provide both qualitative and quantitative information on coastal evolution and reactions to climate change spanning from the past decade to many thousands of millennia. The potential of these datasets were not being used to support understanding of long-term coastal change. • To demonstrate the value of archaeological, historic and artistic resources to understanding long-term coastal change. Study of this data allows understanding and modelling of past changes on the coast and human interactions with these processes. This knowledge can be used to plan for current and future changes in the face of increased coastal erosion, flooding and coastal instability. • The project was delivered between 2011 and 2014. • Project partners from the United Kingdom, France, Belgium and the Netherlands were involved, representing large parts of the coast of the Channel-Southern North Sea area. • The project was part funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg IVA 2 Seas Programme. • Data research-using local, regional and national sources of information on geology, geomorphology, archaeology, history, art, maps, charts and photographs. Using existing data enables maximum value to be extracted from available resources. Records consulted included heritage, environmental and geological databases, documentary archives, archaeological collections, online sources, art galleries, private art collections and publications. • Ranking approach-developed four complementary methods for assessing the data sources for their potential to inform on coastal change. The ranking systems were: 1) archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence; 2) artistic depictions; 3) maps and charts; and 4) historic photographs. The ranking enabled sites of highest potential to inform on coastal change to be identified, this helped target sites for more detailed field investigations. It also demonstrated where sites or areas of the coast were represented within several of the available data sources. • Fieldwork-a range of archaeological and palaeoenvironmental fieldwork approaches were taken to extract primary data from high potential sites. Site visits to areas shown within artistic depictions gathered information on current coastal conditions. Working in the intertidal and marine zones enabled techniques to be used to gather data from exposed and buried archaeological and palaeoenvironmental remains. Survey ranged from 'low-tech' drawn records in the intertidal zone and by divers underwater, through to the application of technology deployed from boats to image buried sites and landscapes. More intrusive investigation included a range of augering to collect samples through to larger archaeological excavations. Selected fieldwork case studies are presented in the report.
HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), Nov 3, 2014
Sommaire Valeur des sources de données pour la compréhension des changements côtiers Apport de l'... more Sommaire Valeur des sources de données pour la compréhension des changements côtiers Apport de l'archéologie, du patrimoine et de l'art à la gestion côtière Outils d'analyse des sources d'information sur les changements côtiers Croiser les données pour l'analyse à long terme Conclusions et recommandations Le projet Arch-Manche Contacts Résumé 2 4 6 57 58 2 Les gestionnaires du littoral sont confrontés à un combat grandissant contre les effets de la mer, dans un contexte de changements climatiques, et contre ceux de la pression humaine sur la zone côtière. Ce document souligne la valeur d'indicateurs, jusqu'ici sous utilisés, mais qui sont utiles pour connaître les caractéristiques des changements côtiers sur le long terme. De plus, il fournit des outils de communication, sur les changements passés réels, de modélisation, sur les zones menacées et d'interprétation, sur les tendances de l'évolution côtière. • Pour développer de nouveaux outils d'aide à la décision dans la gestion côtière. Lorsque, dans la gestion côtière, des décisions sont difficiles à prendre au regard de la détermination des niveaux de risques futurs, des bases scientifiques sont nécessaires à cette prise de décision. Le projet a traité les données scientifiques pour apporter des preuves de l'adaptation côtière sur le long terme. Le projet Arch-Manche Grosses vagues battant la côte de Freshwater Bay pendant les tempêtes de janvier 2014, île de Wight, UK (cl. Anna Mustchin). Présentation de l'évolution côtière aux intervenants Comment démonter les changements passés aux divers intervenants ? La formule "un dessin vaut mieux qu'un long discours" est tout à fait adaptée quand il s'agit de démontrer le niveau de changement côtier à un large éventail d'acteurs de la gestion côtière. Alors que les techniques scientifiques appliquées, l'analyse des vestiges archéologiques et des paysages, génèrent des données statistiques et textuelles, les représentations artistiques fournissent une vision immédiate et tangible des faits. Les photographies anciennes et les peintures des environs du château du Guildo, sur la Côte d'Emeraude (France) donnent une vue détaillée des changements, sous une forme facilement accessible aux diverses parties prenantes. Ci-dessus : Diverses vues (cartes postales) et peinture du château du Guildo (France) (cartes postales collection privée, peinture Musée de Beaux-Arts de Lille et photo. D'après Feiss-Jehel 2011). Apport de l'archéologie, du patrimoine et de l'art à la gestion côtière Reconstitution 3-D de l'estuaire du Léguer pendant le Moyen Âge, avec localisation des principales pêcheries et établissements (doc.
Reconstructing the colonization and demographic dynamics that gave rise to extant forests is esse... more Reconstructing the colonization and demographic dynamics that gave rise to extant forests is essential to forecasts of forest responses to environmental changes. Classical approaches to map how population of trees changed through space and time largely rely on pollen distribution patterns, with only a limited number of studies exploiting DNA molecules preserved in wooden tree archaeological and subfossil remains. Here, we advance such analyses by applying high throughput (HTS) DNA sequencing to wood archaeological and subfossil material for the first time, using a comprehensive sample of 167 European white oak waterlogged remains spanning a large temporal (from 550 to 9,800 years) and geographical range across Europe. The successful characterization of the endogenous DNA and exogenous microbial DNA of 140 (~83%) samples helped the identification of environmental conditions favoring long-term DNA preservation in wood remains, and started to unveil the first trends in the DNA decay pr...
International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, 2005
... Stone Age Stove under the Solent. Garry Momber,; Claire Campbell. Article first published onl... more ... Stone Age Stove under the Solent. Garry Momber,; Claire Campbell. Article first published online: 10 MAR 2005. DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-9270.2005.0051b.x. Issue. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology. Volume 34, Issue 1, pages 148149, April 2005. Additional Information ...
ABSTRACT OPEN ACCESS Web: http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/bailey334 Interest in the processes by ... more ABSTRACT OPEN ACCESS Web: http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/bailey334 Interest in the processes by which human populations expanded out of Africa after about 2 million years ago to colonise the rest of the world has never been higher in the scientific and public consciousness, thanks to new fossil and archaeological finds, palaeoclimatic data and DNA-based information on phylogenetic histories. What has been largely left out of account is the far-reaching effects on human adaptive strategies and patterns of dispersal of physical landscapes subject to geological instability associated with long-term tectonics, seismic activity, volcanism or sea level change. We aim to explore whether these processes may have acted as ‘agents without intent’ selecting for new strategies of human adaptation and social action at every scale, from the local to the continental and from the short-term event of a single earthquake to wholesale reconfiguration of the physical landscape.
We explore the proposition that the Red Sea Basin was an attractive coastal habitat for human set... more We explore the proposition that the Red Sea Basin was an attractive coastal habitat for human settlement in early prehistory and an important zone of cultural contact and population dispersal between Africa and Asia, rather than a barrier. We use the global record of sea-level change associated with the glacial-interglacial cycle to reconstruct the position of shorelines at different periods, taking into account isostatic and tectonic movements of the Earth's crust. We demonstrate that the Bab al-Mandab Straits would have been reduced to a shallow and narrow channel at the time of lowered sea levels that persisted for most of the glacial period, posing very little obstacle to human movement, even in the absence of watercraft. At the same time, the persistence of low sea levels means that any record of coastal settlement is mostly submerged and inaccessible without underwater exploration. Palaeolithic sites on the present-day coastline are difficult to evaluate because they are mostly surface finds of stone tools lacking stratigraphic context or absolute dates, and are in any case associated, at best, with earlier and short-lived episodes of high sea level. We have therefore begun archaeological survey and underwater exploration in the Farasan Islands. We have recorded approximately 1000 sites on land, mostly shell mounds formed during the past 6000 years. These sites are typically associated with waveundercut coral platforms formed at the shore edge, and shallow embayments rich in molluscs and other marine life. We have shown that similar features can be found under water down to depths of at least 60 m, representing shorelines formed at periods of lower sea level, and that these features can be mapped, sampled and photographed by diving teams using mixed gas diving technologies. Future work will be extended to the search for archaeological sites associated with these submerged features.
SHACKLEY, M. L. 1973. A contextual study of the Mousterian industry from Great Pan Farm, Newport,... more SHACKLEY, M. L. 1973. A contextual study of the Mousterian industry from Great Pan Farm, Newport, Isle ofWight, Proc. Isle Wight Natur. Hist. Archaeol. Soc., 6, 542-54 STONE, P. G. 1891. The Architectural Antiquities cif the Isle cif Wight: From the Eleventh to the Seventeenth Centuries, London: privately published Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England). 1979. Long Barrows in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, London: HMSO TARDIF-PANHAUD, N. 1978. Dom Bellot et L'architecture Religieuse au Quebec, Quebec: Universite Lava) TOMALIN, D.]. 1991. Combe-cluster barrow cemeteries in the Isle ofWight; a locational prediction model, Proc. Isle Wight Natur. Hist. Archaeol. Soc., 11, 85-96 ToMALIN, D.]. 2000. Geomorphological evolution of the Solent seaway and the severance ofWight, in M. B. Collins and K. Ansell (eds) Solent SdenceA Review, g--19, Amsterdam: Elsevier 23
Prehistoric Archaeology on the Continental Shelf, 2014
Human technological development has been driven by a need to modify behaviour. The greatest influ... more Human technological development has been driven by a need to modify behaviour. The greatest influences that forced people to adapt were climate change and sea-level rise. These have invariably been linked with the result that many of the sites that witnessed technical change have become submerged. To access the archaeological material that can develop our understanding of early human adaptation and diffusion around the globe we need to look underwater. Historically, this has attracted little attention as archaeologists and historians believed the processes of erosion and sediment reworking greatly reduced the ability of anthropogenic material to survive. This was in spite of the recovery of material from the anaerobic environments within submerged deposits that demonstrated good in situ preservation of material. Recent technological advances, however, have been able to image extensive areas of palaeo-landsurfaces within our coastal seas. This paper considers what new information from submerged sites can tell us about past human dispersal, survival and cultural adaptation when influenced by changing climates. The work at Bouldnor Cliff in the Solent, UK and La Mondree near Cherbourg in France is drawn on to help identify the ingredients for survival of sites, review the potential for long-term survival of substantive remains and to assess the potential for similar sites on the Northwest European continental shelf.
Submerged Landscapes of the European Continental Shelf
The Big Question T his book is designed to provide the best partial answer to an apparently clear... more The Big Question T his book is designed to provide the best partial answer to an apparently clear-cut and uncomplicated question: "Why do some prehistoric sites, settlements, landscapes, and artifacts survive on the sea floor, after inundation by postglacial sea-level rise, when many others are destroyed or scattered by waves and currents?" There are over 2600 known submerged prehistoric sites in European seas (Jöns et al. 2016). At the glacial maximum when sea level was at its lowest, at about-130 m, an additional increment of land became available on the European continental shelf estimated at about 40% of the present-day European land area, amounting to an estimated 4 million km 2. The question of what determines the survival or destruction
International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, Mar 1, 2010
The last throes of the Ice Age finished 11,500 years ago. The ameliorating climate was exploited ... more The last throes of the Ice Age finished 11,500 years ago. The ameliorating climate was exploited by opportunistic people who took advantage of the rich resources exposed as the ice retreated. These pioneers were the Mesolithic peoples, who were to become the building blocks of the British, yet relatively little is known about them as they have been largely sidelined in preference to the artefact-rich phases of humanity which followed.ijna_260 195..234
Analysis of archaeological sites stratified within marine sediments can open a window to cultures... more Analysis of archaeological sites stratified within marine sediments can open a window to cultures that are now lost between the waves. These sites and their environmental context harbour a resource that can also provide index points for sea level rise during a period of acute climate change. A decade of archaeological investigations in the western Solent by the Hampshire and Wight Trust for Maritime Archaeology, utilising divers and geophysical survey data, has led to the discovery of Mesolithic sites within submerged landscapes. They lie between 6.5m and 11.5m below British Ordnance Datum. However, the discovery of these delicate and vulnerable sites is presenting new challenges to the maritime archaeologist. The need to record, rescue and interpret the remains underwater is necessitating the development of new underwater sampling techniques.
HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), Nov 3, 2014
Coastal managers face an ongoing battle to moderate impacts from the sea in the face of a changin... more Coastal managers face an ongoing battle to moderate impacts from the sea in the face of a changing climate and pressures from human use of the coastal zone. The challenges that lie ahead are forecast to increase while resources are being forced to go further. This document quantifies the value of under-used coastal indicators that can be applied as tools to inform long term patterns of coastal change. In addition, it provides instruments to communicate past change effectively, model areas under threat and interpret progressive coastal trends. • To develop additional tools for decision making in coastal management. When tough coastal management decisions are required to determine levels of future risk, science based evidence is necessary to support these decisions. The project has analysed scientific data within archives to provide evidence of long-term coastal adaptation. • To extract data from under-used sources from archaeology, art, maps, charts and photographs. It was realised that data from archaeology, heritage features, art, photographs, maps and charts can provide both qualitative and quantitative information on coastal evolution and reactions to climate change spanning from the past decade to many thousands of millennia. The potential of these datasets were not being used to support understanding of long-term coastal change. • To demonstrate the value of archaeological, historic and artistic resources to understanding long-term coastal change. Study of this data allows understanding and modelling of past changes on the coast and human interactions with these processes. This knowledge can be used to plan for current and future changes in the face of increased coastal erosion, flooding and coastal instability. • The project was delivered between 2011 and 2014. • Project partners from the United Kingdom, France, Belgium and the Netherlands were involved, representing large parts of the coast of the Channel-Southern North Sea area. • The project was part funded by the European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg IVA 2 Seas Programme. • Data research-using local, regional and national sources of information on geology, geomorphology, archaeology, history, art, maps, charts and photographs. Using existing data enables maximum value to be extracted from available resources. Records consulted included heritage, environmental and geological databases, documentary archives, archaeological collections, online sources, art galleries, private art collections and publications. • Ranking approach-developed four complementary methods for assessing the data sources for their potential to inform on coastal change. The ranking systems were: 1) archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence; 2) artistic depictions; 3) maps and charts; and 4) historic photographs. The ranking enabled sites of highest potential to inform on coastal change to be identified, this helped target sites for more detailed field investigations. It also demonstrated where sites or areas of the coast were represented within several of the available data sources. • Fieldwork-a range of archaeological and palaeoenvironmental fieldwork approaches were taken to extract primary data from high potential sites. Site visits to areas shown within artistic depictions gathered information on current coastal conditions. Working in the intertidal and marine zones enabled techniques to be used to gather data from exposed and buried archaeological and palaeoenvironmental remains. Survey ranged from 'low-tech' drawn records in the intertidal zone and by divers underwater, through to the application of technology deployed from boats to image buried sites and landscapes. More intrusive investigation included a range of augering to collect samples through to larger archaeological excavations. Selected fieldwork case studies are presented in the report.
HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), Nov 3, 2014
Sommaire Valeur des sources de données pour la compréhension des changements côtiers Apport de l'... more Sommaire Valeur des sources de données pour la compréhension des changements côtiers Apport de l'archéologie, du patrimoine et de l'art à la gestion côtière Outils d'analyse des sources d'information sur les changements côtiers Croiser les données pour l'analyse à long terme Conclusions et recommandations Le projet Arch-Manche Contacts Résumé 2 4 6 57 58 2 Les gestionnaires du littoral sont confrontés à un combat grandissant contre les effets de la mer, dans un contexte de changements climatiques, et contre ceux de la pression humaine sur la zone côtière. Ce document souligne la valeur d'indicateurs, jusqu'ici sous utilisés, mais qui sont utiles pour connaître les caractéristiques des changements côtiers sur le long terme. De plus, il fournit des outils de communication, sur les changements passés réels, de modélisation, sur les zones menacées et d'interprétation, sur les tendances de l'évolution côtière. • Pour développer de nouveaux outils d'aide à la décision dans la gestion côtière. Lorsque, dans la gestion côtière, des décisions sont difficiles à prendre au regard de la détermination des niveaux de risques futurs, des bases scientifiques sont nécessaires à cette prise de décision. Le projet a traité les données scientifiques pour apporter des preuves de l'adaptation côtière sur le long terme. Le projet Arch-Manche Grosses vagues battant la côte de Freshwater Bay pendant les tempêtes de janvier 2014, île de Wight, UK (cl. Anna Mustchin). Présentation de l'évolution côtière aux intervenants Comment démonter les changements passés aux divers intervenants ? La formule "un dessin vaut mieux qu'un long discours" est tout à fait adaptée quand il s'agit de démontrer le niveau de changement côtier à un large éventail d'acteurs de la gestion côtière. Alors que les techniques scientifiques appliquées, l'analyse des vestiges archéologiques et des paysages, génèrent des données statistiques et textuelles, les représentations artistiques fournissent une vision immédiate et tangible des faits. Les photographies anciennes et les peintures des environs du château du Guildo, sur la Côte d'Emeraude (France) donnent une vue détaillée des changements, sous une forme facilement accessible aux diverses parties prenantes. Ci-dessus : Diverses vues (cartes postales) et peinture du château du Guildo (France) (cartes postales collection privée, peinture Musée de Beaux-Arts de Lille et photo. D'après Feiss-Jehel 2011). Apport de l'archéologie, du patrimoine et de l'art à la gestion côtière Reconstitution 3-D de l'estuaire du Léguer pendant le Moyen Âge, avec localisation des principales pêcheries et établissements (doc.
Reconstructing the colonization and demographic dynamics that gave rise to extant forests is esse... more Reconstructing the colonization and demographic dynamics that gave rise to extant forests is essential to forecasts of forest responses to environmental changes. Classical approaches to map how population of trees changed through space and time largely rely on pollen distribution patterns, with only a limited number of studies exploiting DNA molecules preserved in wooden tree archaeological and subfossil remains. Here, we advance such analyses by applying high throughput (HTS) DNA sequencing to wood archaeological and subfossil material for the first time, using a comprehensive sample of 167 European white oak waterlogged remains spanning a large temporal (from 550 to 9,800 years) and geographical range across Europe. The successful characterization of the endogenous DNA and exogenous microbial DNA of 140 (~83%) samples helped the identification of environmental conditions favoring long-term DNA preservation in wood remains, and started to unveil the first trends in the DNA decay pr...
International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, 2005
... Stone Age Stove under the Solent. Garry Momber,; Claire Campbell. Article first published onl... more ... Stone Age Stove under the Solent. Garry Momber,; Claire Campbell. Article first published online: 10 MAR 2005. DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-9270.2005.0051b.x. Issue. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology. Volume 34, Issue 1, pages 148149, April 2005. Additional Information ...
ABSTRACT OPEN ACCESS Web: http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/bailey334 Interest in the processes by ... more ABSTRACT OPEN ACCESS Web: http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/bailey334 Interest in the processes by which human populations expanded out of Africa after about 2 million years ago to colonise the rest of the world has never been higher in the scientific and public consciousness, thanks to new fossil and archaeological finds, palaeoclimatic data and DNA-based information on phylogenetic histories. What has been largely left out of account is the far-reaching effects on human adaptive strategies and patterns of dispersal of physical landscapes subject to geological instability associated with long-term tectonics, seismic activity, volcanism or sea level change. We aim to explore whether these processes may have acted as ‘agents without intent’ selecting for new strategies of human adaptation and social action at every scale, from the local to the continental and from the short-term event of a single earthquake to wholesale reconfiguration of the physical landscape.
We explore the proposition that the Red Sea Basin was an attractive coastal habitat for human set... more We explore the proposition that the Red Sea Basin was an attractive coastal habitat for human settlement in early prehistory and an important zone of cultural contact and population dispersal between Africa and Asia, rather than a barrier. We use the global record of sea-level change associated with the glacial-interglacial cycle to reconstruct the position of shorelines at different periods, taking into account isostatic and tectonic movements of the Earth's crust. We demonstrate that the Bab al-Mandab Straits would have been reduced to a shallow and narrow channel at the time of lowered sea levels that persisted for most of the glacial period, posing very little obstacle to human movement, even in the absence of watercraft. At the same time, the persistence of low sea levels means that any record of coastal settlement is mostly submerged and inaccessible without underwater exploration. Palaeolithic sites on the present-day coastline are difficult to evaluate because they are mostly surface finds of stone tools lacking stratigraphic context or absolute dates, and are in any case associated, at best, with earlier and short-lived episodes of high sea level. We have therefore begun archaeological survey and underwater exploration in the Farasan Islands. We have recorded approximately 1000 sites on land, mostly shell mounds formed during the past 6000 years. These sites are typically associated with waveundercut coral platforms formed at the shore edge, and shallow embayments rich in molluscs and other marine life. We have shown that similar features can be found under water down to depths of at least 60 m, representing shorelines formed at periods of lower sea level, and that these features can be mapped, sampled and photographed by diving teams using mixed gas diving technologies. Future work will be extended to the search for archaeological sites associated with these submerged features.
SHACKLEY, M. L. 1973. A contextual study of the Mousterian industry from Great Pan Farm, Newport,... more SHACKLEY, M. L. 1973. A contextual study of the Mousterian industry from Great Pan Farm, Newport, Isle ofWight, Proc. Isle Wight Natur. Hist. Archaeol. Soc., 6, 542-54 STONE, P. G. 1891. The Architectural Antiquities cif the Isle cif Wight: From the Eleventh to the Seventeenth Centuries, London: privately published Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England). 1979. Long Barrows in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, London: HMSO TARDIF-PANHAUD, N. 1978. Dom Bellot et L'architecture Religieuse au Quebec, Quebec: Universite Lava) TOMALIN, D.]. 1991. Combe-cluster barrow cemeteries in the Isle ofWight; a locational prediction model, Proc. Isle Wight Natur. Hist. Archaeol. Soc., 11, 85-96 ToMALIN, D.]. 2000. Geomorphological evolution of the Solent seaway and the severance ofWight, in M. B. Collins and K. Ansell (eds) Solent SdenceA Review, g--19, Amsterdam: Elsevier 23
Prehistoric Archaeology on the Continental Shelf, 2014
Human technological development has been driven by a need to modify behaviour. The greatest influ... more Human technological development has been driven by a need to modify behaviour. The greatest influences that forced people to adapt were climate change and sea-level rise. These have invariably been linked with the result that many of the sites that witnessed technical change have become submerged. To access the archaeological material that can develop our understanding of early human adaptation and diffusion around the globe we need to look underwater. Historically, this has attracted little attention as archaeologists and historians believed the processes of erosion and sediment reworking greatly reduced the ability of anthropogenic material to survive. This was in spite of the recovery of material from the anaerobic environments within submerged deposits that demonstrated good in situ preservation of material. Recent technological advances, however, have been able to image extensive areas of palaeo-landsurfaces within our coastal seas. This paper considers what new information from submerged sites can tell us about past human dispersal, survival and cultural adaptation when influenced by changing climates. The work at Bouldnor Cliff in the Solent, UK and La Mondree near Cherbourg in France is drawn on to help identify the ingredients for survival of sites, review the potential for long-term survival of substantive remains and to assess the potential for similar sites on the Northwest European continental shelf.
Submerged Landscapes of the European Continental Shelf
The Big Question T his book is designed to provide the best partial answer to an apparently clear... more The Big Question T his book is designed to provide the best partial answer to an apparently clear-cut and uncomplicated question: "Why do some prehistoric sites, settlements, landscapes, and artifacts survive on the sea floor, after inundation by postglacial sea-level rise, when many others are destroyed or scattered by waves and currents?" There are over 2600 known submerged prehistoric sites in European seas (Jöns et al. 2016). At the glacial maximum when sea level was at its lowest, at about-130 m, an additional increment of land became available on the European continental shelf estimated at about 40% of the present-day European land area, amounting to an estimated 4 million km 2. The question of what determines the survival or destruction
The Common Cultural Connections (CCC’s) project has been co-funded by the Creative Europe Program... more The Common Cultural Connections (CCC’s) project has been co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. The project is being led by the Maritime Archaeology Trust (MAT) in the UK, alongside the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in France and the University of Cantabria in Spain. The aim of the project is to enhance understanding of the shared cultural heritage of the three European partner regions through an innovative mobile exhibition.
The project will reach new audiences improving access to cultural heritage and providing greater opportunities for people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to become involved, learning about their heritage and encouraging a sense of place and belonging through an understanding of our shared past. Moreover, it will build links between schools and groups of the three partner countries to continue to learn and exchange information about our shared cultural heritage.
The project will focus on an under-represented aspect of our shared heritage: archaeological evidence from coastal and marine sites. Our coastlines and waters are rich in sites of national and international interest, from unique submerged landscapes providing evidence from a time when the UK and Europe were linked, to shipwrecks, harbours and ports containing evidence of trade and networks between the partner countries. Due to their nature, however, such sites can often be overlooked as ‘out of sight, out of mind’. The project will work to raise the profile of this unique and finite resource, encouraging people to become involved in their cultural heritage.
The submerged Mesolithic site at Bouldnor Cliff offers a unique glimpse into the rapidly changing... more The submerged Mesolithic site at Bouldnor Cliff offers a unique glimpse into the rapidly changing coastal environment ca. 8000 BP. At a depth of only 11m in the Solent, wood artefacts and ecofacts have survived in an anoxic layer of peat overlaid with a clay stratum, and in association with several deposits of worked flints. Careful diving, excavation, and sampling protocols were followed to ensure that the fragile, waterlogged timbers were surfaced in the same condition as when they were deposited. The high level of wood preservation has made it possible to determine which of these timbers are ecofacts, forest detritus from the once-freshwater fen, and which are artefacts, timbers worked with stone tools at what may have been a logboat construction site. While many timbers are likely ecofacts representing the surrounding oak (Quercus sp.) dominated forest and others are of ambiguous categorization, a few are clearly artefacts. These include oak trunk fragments with apparent axe or adze hollowing marks, wood ‘cores’ with ‘chip’ debitage, axe marks on de-barked limbs, sharpened pegs, and an intriguing group of planks that were cut flat on one side and rounded on the other. As a whole, the assemblage is indicative of woodworking and timber conversion technologies not attested elsewhere in Britain until 2000 years later, if at all. The site also demonstrates the human responses to a changing coastline, one of which was addressing the needs for waterborne transit in an increasingly marshy environment that would soon succumb to the ingressive sea.
We report on a preliminary exploration of the submerged landscapes in the Saudi Arabian sector of... more We report on a preliminary exploration of the submerged landscapes in the Saudi Arabian sector of the southern Red Sea aboard the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR) Research Vessel, AEGAEO, in May–June 2013. The survey sampled areas of the continental shelf down to the shelf margin at ~130 m depth in the vicinity of the Farasan Islands and combined high resolution acoustic techniques with sediment coring to reconstruct features of the now-submerged landscape of potential archaeological significance, including geological structure, topography, palaeoenvironment, and sea-level change. The region is currently of wide interest and significance: to archaeologists because it is currently regarded as one of the primary pathways of dispersal for early human populations expanding out of Africa during the Pleistocene, in which the extensive but now-submerged shelf region may have played a key role; and to marine geoscientists because the Red Sea offers unusual opportunities as a ‘laboratory’ for investigating Pleistocene sea-level change. Preliminary results indicate that the submerged landscape was characterised by a complex topography with fault-bounded valleys and deep basins, some of which may have hosted, at least intermittently, fresh water during periods of lowered sea level.
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Papers by Garry Momber
The project will reach new audiences improving access to cultural heritage and providing greater opportunities for people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to become involved, learning about their heritage and encouraging a sense of place and belonging through an understanding of our shared past. Moreover, it will build links between schools and groups of the three partner countries to continue to learn and exchange information about our shared cultural heritage.
The project will focus on an under-represented aspect of our shared heritage: archaeological evidence from coastal and marine sites. Our coastlines and waters are rich in sites of national and international interest, from unique submerged landscapes providing evidence from a time when the UK and Europe were linked, to shipwrecks, harbours and ports containing evidence of trade and networks between the partner countries. Due to their nature, however, such sites can often be overlooked as ‘out of sight, out of mind’. The project will work to raise the profile of this unique and finite resource, encouraging people to become involved in their cultural heritage.