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Chronometric studies of charcoal production remains are largely based on 14C‐dating of associated charcoal. Owing to intrinsic limitations, however, this method provides no meaningful time resolution for post‐1650 CE features. We investigate the potential of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of heated sandy sediments as an alternative and complementary tool for dating charcoal kiln remains. Seven samples from five relic charcoal kilns and 11 complementary samples from the underlying sandy substrate are used. Through a range of procedural tests, we demonstrate that the single‐aliquot, regenerative‐dose procedure in combination with OSL signals from quartz allows determining equivalent doses both accurately and precisely. For four of the five investigated kilns, OSL ages are consistent with independent age information from 14C‐dating and written sources. Especially for post‐1650 CE features, the precision can be significantly better than that of 14C‐dating, and we highlight the potential of OSL dating for distinguishing, relatively, between charcoal production phases with an unprecedented time resolution. We conclude that the approach is a promising alternative to 14C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A heavy and impressive chest — part of the museum collection of the city of Antwerp — served as a strongbox to securely store the city's historical documents, including citizen privileges, public liberties, and responsibilities. A recent dendrochronological survey revealed that the tree-ring pattern of the lid dates to 1005–1294 CE, suggesting a felling date early in the 14th century. The Silver fir wood originated from the Vosges mountains in France, and hence was transported to the city of Antwerp that had already developed as an important trade centre along river Scheldt by the 13th century. The tree-ring pattern of the bottom plank could not be measured, but the presence of caulking material in some large cracks and metal clamps (sintels) revealed that this repurposed timber must have originated from a medieval ship. The archaeobotanical analysis of the mosses used as caulking material and of the pollen trapped in these mosses points toward two different locations where the ship was repaired, with at least one location outside the Low Countries. During the examination, a collection of wooden boxes stored inside the chest drew the attention. It was unclear whether the collection of boxes had any connection with the original content in the chest. Tree-ring dating on these wooden boxes made of oak and beech revealed their 14th to 16th century dating. Furthermore, inscriptions proved their relationship with historical documents. The combined dendrochronological, archaeobotanical, and historical examination demonstrates that this medieval chest was a privileged spectator of the city's turbulent history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wood and charcoal were key sources of energy during early industrialization in Europe (18th century), preceding the large-scale exploitation of fossil coal. Past timber harvesting implied land transformation and woodland resources management. Therefore, relict charcoal kilns and historical documents of forest management are important sources of information about past woodland composition and structure. However, ancient charcoal kilns are poorly documented in temperate woodlands in the lowlands of western Europe, especially combined with historical written sources. In this study, charcoal production was investigated in an area in NE France, by combining charcoal and historical sources analysis, along with innovative dating methodologies. Thus, by using both radiocarbon and optically-stimulated luminescence dating, we showed that the activity lasted until recent times (19th–early 20th centuries) and Carpinus was the dominant taxon in charcoal assemblage. Moreover, kiln attributes seemed to be independent of topographical variables. Woodlands in this area were subject to a coppice-with-standards management, where small diameter wood was preferred to produce charcoal and large diameter stems, mainly Quercus and Fagus, were traded as timber. The dominance of Carpinus is rather uncommon in charcoal studies but supports the importance of Carpinus as fuelwood since the Middle Ages, as confirmed by many written sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of charcoal production pits (pit kilns), excavated in central Belgium, provides information on Early and High Medieval woodland dynamics and human impact on the forest composition in the Northwest-European Lowland. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal recovered from the kilns demonstrates two different phases of charcoal production, one during the Early Medieval period (c. 650 AD–950 AD) and one during the High Medieval period (c. 1040 AD–1260 AD). Charcoal identification shows that the Early Medieval kilns are dominated by beech (Fagus sylvatica) while the younger kilns are dominated by oak (Quercus sp.), indicating a shift in woodland composition. This shift is likely to be a consequence of the earliest charcoal production activities, which resulted in the degradation of the primeval beech-dominated forest to a secondary forest dominated by oak, and intermixed with other more light-demanding taxa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As part of the study of the early medieval cemetery at Broechem (Belgium), human bones from 32 cremation graves have been dated through radiocarbon (14C) analysis. It was noted that many of the dates were not in accordance with the chronological ranges provided by the characteristics of the cultural artifacts deposited in the graves. In fact, the human bones were "older" than the artifacts. Subsequently, a number of animal bones (in all cases from domestic pigs) was radiocarbon dated, yielding dates that were more consistent with the information from the cultural artifacts than the human bones. The dates obtained on human and pig bones from the same grave often differed around 100 radiocarbon years. This paper tries to find an explanation for the pattern observed, concentrating on two hypotheses: aquatic reservoir versus old wood effects. The evaluation takes into account additional radiocarbon dates derived from charcoal fragments of the funeral pyre, from both short-lived and long-lived taxa. A conclusive explanation for the anomalous radiocarbon dates could not be reached but clear suggestions can be put forward for future experimental work that will without doubt shed more light upon the interpretational problems raised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fluvial environment of Early Holocene small‐ to middle‐sized lowland rivers in northwest Europe is mostly unstudied due to a lack of preserved and accessible deposits. A rescue excavation in the Scheldt valley in northern Belgium offered the opportunity to study a Boreal alluvial succession in detail. The results of palaeoecological and sedimentological analyses (diatoms, pollen, botanical macro‐remains, molluscs, grain size) characterize the biotic and physical environment in the middle reach of this medium‐sized river system. Although the Early Holocene in the Scheldt Basin has often been portrayed as a period of fluvial stability with marshy conditions and diffuse discharge, this study showed evidence of point bar formation by a small, low‐energy meandering river between ~9.5 and ~8.8 cal. ka BP. The point bar was at least temporarily vegetated and shows a shift from herbaceous riparian vegetation to an open willow‐dominated alluvial forest. This evidence points to a more open vegetation and a more energetic environment than traditionally described for rivers of this size and age. A link to the 9.3 ka BP cooling event is suggested and possible reasons for the scarcity of records of this type of deposits are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geological investigations of coastal sediment sequences play a key role in verifying earthquake and tsunami characteristics inferred from historical records. In this paper, we present a multi-proxy investigation of a coastal lowland site facing the Nankai-Suruga megathrust and appraise evidence for tsunamis and earthquake-triggered terrestrial mass movements occurring over the last 800 years. Combining a high-resolution chronology with X-ray computed tomography and analyses of particle size, diatoms, pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs and aerial photographs, we present the most compelling geological evidence of the 1361 CE Kōan (also known as Shōhei) tsunami reported to date from any site along the megathrust. This finding is consistent with either of two recent hypotheses: a single larger rupture of both the Nankai and Tōnankai regions or two smaller ruptures separated by a few days. Enhancing the site chronology using Bayesian age modelling, we verify evidence for inundation during the 1498 CE Meiō tsunami. While previous investigations identified evidence for historically recorded tsunamis in 1605, 1707 and 1854 CE and a storm surge in 1680 or 1699 CE, we encountered a thick sand layer rather than discrete extreme wave deposits in this interval. The overprinting of evidence highlights the potential for geological records to underestimate the frequency of these events. A terrestrial mass movement also deposited a sand layer at the site; radionuclide dating and aerial photographs provide independent confirmation that this may have been triggered by intense shaking in 1944 CE during the most recent great Nankai-Suruga megathrust earthquake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the medieval and post-medieval periods, charcoal production was a major industry in numerous forested regions of Northwest Europe. Utilizing LiDAR maps and field research, more and more remnants of charcoal production sites (relic charcoal kilns) are discovered. The charcoal fragments preserved in these remains are used in a wide range of scientific research, for instance, former forest composition, woodland exploitation, fuel production, and how biochar may affect soil properties. All of these fields of study necessarily require a chronological framework, which is most frequently established by 14C dating of charcoal. This method, however, is of very limited use for post-1650 CE features. For instance, the de Vries and Suess effects cause plateaus in the 14C calibration curve, implying that events from the last 350 years cannot be resolved in time. We previously reported on the potential of OSL dating of heated sediments associated with these past charcoal production, in particular for application to post-1650 CE features [1,2]. Here, we apply the same approach to kiln remains that are known to post-date 1930 CE and pre-date 1945 CE. The relict charcoal kilns were sampled in the Veluwe region, Central Netherlands. From a historical point of view, there was no real need to try and date these features. Their interbellum to end of World War II is well-established and inferred from aerial photographs, newspaper articles, and other written accounts. However, from an OSL-perspective, they are interesting. Can these features be dated as accurately? We use OSL signals from small (2 mm diameter) multiple-grain aliquots of quartz from the fine-sand fraction (125-180 µm) to document the OSL characteristics in terms of signal composition, sensitivity, dose-response, and the diagnostic tests commonly used to determine the suitability of the single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol for examining the distribution of equivalent dose (ED) in the samples. The outcomes are compared to known historical sources and will be presented during the meeting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]