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Detailed palaeogeographical studies of the accumulative fan in the Serteyka River valley in W Russia and underlying biogenic deposits were carried out. The base of a representative core of biogenic sediments in the distal zone is dated to 1291 BC, while its top to 1631 AD. In this paper, palynological, plant macrofossils, Chironomide and Cladocera, geochemical, geochronological and sedimentological analysis were performed. Four phases of biogenic deposition were distinguished by pollen and geochemical analyses. Two of them coincide with the climatic fluctuation during Medieval Climate Anomaly and Little Ice Age. During the formation of the fan, overbank deposits were accumulated also, indicating numerous and intense floods, which are in line with the trend observed for other sites in this region. The accumulative fan is formed by lower, middle and upper deluvia and agricultural diamicton in its top. All units have specific sedimentological and geochemical features as well as low admixture of plant macrofossils. The beginning of the formation of this relief form dates back to the second half of the 17th century AD, and the end of the accumulation falls on the second half of the 18th century AD. Our work suggests that natural conditions had an impact on the formation and development of studied accumulative fan, however, the decisive factor causing the intensification of the slope processes were related with deforestation resulted from strong human impact, which was marked in palynological and macrofossils analyses (e.g. increase in the contribution of plants macrofossils related to agriculture). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study examined plant remains from the Smólsk 2/10 site, situated on the border of two different landscapes and preserving traces of Neolithic occupation from several cultures: Early Linear Pottery culture (LBK, ca 5300-5200 cal. BC to ca 5000 cal. BC). Stroke Band Pottery culture (SBP, ca 4700-4400 cal. BC), the Brześć Kujawski group of Lengyel culture (BKG, ca 4500-4000/3900 cal. BC), Funnel Beaker culture (TRB, ca 3950-3380 BC), and also some features of the Lusatian culture (Hallstatt C, ca 970-790 cal. BC).

Wood was a very popular craft material in medieval times. Typical objects made from wood included stave-built vessels, turned bowls, tools, kitchen utensils, fishing gear, toys, weapons and musical instruments. The great functional variety of these objects, as well as the clearly non-accidental selection of wood for their manufacture raised the question of why specific types of wood raw materials were chosen. Xylological research to identify the type of material used based on the anatomy of the wood has shown that craftsmen of the time preferred pine, oak and ash. The selection of raw wood materials depended on the type and use of the given object, as well as the processing required for its production. Also important were some specific properties of different types of wood, optimizing the use of the objects. Examples include large barrels made almost exclusively from the hard wood of oak or yew, turned vessels made mainly from the straight-grained ash, as well as torches made from resinous pine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the results of a study on sediment deposition processes in the palaeolake shore zone, at the multilayered Serteya II archaeological site in Western Russia. In recent years, geomorphological, palaeopedological and palaeoecological research was undertaken in strict cooperation with archaeological fieldwork. The Serteya II site occupies a substantial area of a kame terrace and biogenic plain within a palaeolake basin. From an archaeological point of view, the site is represented by few Mesolithic artefacts, but mostly by remnants of hunter-gatherer-fisher communities attributed in the Russian scientific tradition to the Neolithic period and dated from 6300 BC to 2000 BC. Later, the area was used by people in the Bronze Age, Early Iron Age and Early Middle Ages. The integration of archaeological and multidisciplinary palaeoenvironmental research allowed the natural and human induced deposition of mineral-organic and minerogenic sediments to be reconstructed, as well as the development of structures in the lake shore zone. The changes from lacustrine to fluvial system were documented and the human impact is recorded mostly in the acceleration of slope processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Rakushechny Yar site is a floodplain multi-layer archaeological site encompassing strata dated from the Early Neolithic to the Bronze Age. It is characterised by a complex stratigraphy, with the presence of different deposits, buried soils and archaeological layers. Fluvial deposits interlay different settlement strata, which provides an opportunity to elaborate a precise chronological scheme and to study the successive changes in hydrological regime, climate and vegetation, along with the phases of human occupation. A study of the pastes used in ceramic manufacture was conducted to investigate changes in the procuring of raw materials, whose procurement would have depended heavily on their availability and sedimentation process. The fluvial deposits, which have safely preserved the Neolithic-Bronze Age archaeological layers, reach thicknesses of more than 6 m, which makes this site interesting both for the reconstruction of the human-environmental interaction and for the palaeoenvironmental history of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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