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The considerable intensification of human activity in the second and first centuries BC in Central Europe was related to the sudden appearance of a network of large fortified towns, which are known as oppida. Bibracte was one of the most important oppida in France, but knowledge about the evolution of its hinterland is still incomplete. This article addresses the evolution of the landscape surrounding this oppidum. Our research was based on a study of sedimentary profiles sampled around the archaeological site and examined by physical, geochemical and palaeoecological analyses. Sediment sequences indicate that the earliest human-induced erosion associated with geomorphological change occurred in the 4th–1st century BC. Geochemical results indicate ancient mining and metallurgy in the catchment during the same time. Palaeoecological proxies from the same period point to a mosaic of an open cultural landscape with locally suppressed forest vegetation and prevailing pastoralism. Anthropogenic impact resurged in the 11th–13th centuries AD and was associated with livestock grazing and rye (Secale cereale) cultivation. Thereafter, the reconstructed human impact from the 15th century AD onwards was probably related to forest management focused on timber floating as well as to the cultivation of chestnut (Castanea sativa) and hemp (Cannabis sativa).

The study of freshwater carbonates, such as travertines and speleothems, provides valuable insights into the regional biases of mid-Holocene climate development in Central-Eastern (CE) and South-Eastern (SE) Europe. The formation of a lake in the travertine deposition system of the Santovka site, located at the transition of the Western Carpathians and the Pannonian Basin, has led to the preservation of a valuable record. We analyzed the litho- and microstratigraphy, chemical composition, including δ18O and δ13C stable isotopes, and geochronology of the Santovka-village section. We then compared these palaeoclimatic records with reference records from Central-Eastern and South-Eastern Europe in terms of significant climate shifts. The prevalent part of the section studied, which spans between 8200 and 6400 cal BP, is represented by fluvial/fluvio-lacustrine sediments and lake marl. The 8.2 ka BP event was only detected in the δ13C record from the nearby Santovka-PB section. However, we found an abrupt change in both isotopic records around 7400–7200 cal BP, which is likely connected to increased detrital input and some minor palaeoecological changes in the Santovka-village section. These changes are most likely associated with the drying of the lake. The 8.2 event in Central-Eastern (CE) and South-Eastern (SE) Europe is well reflected in the δ13C records, while the change in δ18O was insignificant. In contrast, the newly suggested climate shift around 7400–7000 ka BP was detected at most sites in both δ18O and δ13C records. This development could be connected to a change in air mass circulation, synchronous with declining solar irradiance and increased evidence of drift ice in the North Atlantic.

This work provides comprehensive information on soil development on the floodplain of the river Thaya in the area of the foreland of the Early Mediaeval agglomeration of Pohansko near Břeclav. We evaluated the basic properties of late Holocene soils and their genesis, assessed the influence of humans and identified particular soil-forming processes based on a combination of selected physical (grain-size distribution, magnetic susceptibility), chemical (Fe, Mn, P, Ca, soil pH) and biochemical analyses (total organic carbon and soil organic matter) as well as micromorphological observations. Our research revealed three autochthonous soils: two buried soils and one recent soil. All the soils were identified as Gleyic Fluvisols developed from overbank deposits and affected by intensive oxidation-reduction processes. The A horizons of the soils evolved by the formation and accumulation of humus. The upper buried Fluvisol certainly evolved during the 9th and 10th centuries (presence of Great Moravian sherds). However, its pedogenesis possibly started much earlier and ended later. Despite the presence of macroscopic evidence of human activities in this soil, there is no evidence of any anthropic influence on soil formation processes. The basal buried Fluvisol developed even before the Great Moravian settlement. Nevertheless, due to a lack of dating, the exact age of this soil cannot be determined at this stage of our study. Future research focused on dating will advance our understanding of the Holocene dynamic and development of the palaeoenvironment.

Some of the most extraordinary finds from the Early Neolithic period are wooden wells. These constructions permit unusual insights into Neolithic settlements, their subsistence and environment, as well as into the surrounding landscape. A recent excavation of a Neo lithic settlement at Uničov in central Moravia, Czech Republic, yielded the discovery of a wooden well with a sediment infill from the beginning of the Neolithic period and allowed to study an array of topics by a multi-proxy approach using a set of complementary methods. Our study of the wooden lining demonstrates the carpeting skills of the first farmers, required also for building so-called ‘longhouses’. By comparing dendrochronological and radiocarbon dating, we estimated the time span of the well’s existence. The construction was used repeatedly over a longer time and was finally filled in intentionally. Studies of the well’s infill shed light on its usage and decline, providing a great proxy for the study of living dynamics and handling of waste in a Neolithic village. The environmental record extracted from botanical residues indicates that the immediate surroundings of the settlement were covered by an open-canopy woodland with a dominance of oak and hazel, and a large proportion of open habitats, whereas the surrounding landscape was not noticeably affected by humans. Key Words: Wooden well, past environment, subsistence strategy, Linearbandkeramik, Uničov, eastern Central Europe

Glaciofluvial and glaciolacustrine sediments were discovered in a small sandpit situated 800 m SE from Vindava (the Polský kopec Site). Sediments fill two channels located in superposition. Three facies associations (FA) were distinguished in this sedimentary section. The base of the lower channel is formed by gravel lag overlain by gravel-sandy sediments of 3-D dunes and a side bar (FA1). The upper channel infill begins also by basal lag and grades to a fining-upwards sequence from sand to silt (FA2). The sequence is formed from the base up by sediments of small 3-D dunes, A-type ripples, B-type ripples, C-type ripples, and horizontally laminated sediments. The sequence reveals a vertical transition from glaciofluvial (sand) to glaciolacustrine (silt) sedimentation. The sedimentary section is terminated by flat glaciofluvial bedforms (FA3) deposited under upper plane bed conditions. These bedforms arose after the restoration of glaciofluvial conditions. The base of the glaciolacustrine sequence is located at an altitude of ~ 275 m as well as the Old Kaolin Mine Site (850 m SW from the Polský kopec Site) where very similar sediments have been already described. The sediments of both localities represent a proglacial outwash plain in front of the retreating ice sheet (FA1 consists of ~ 23% of erratic rocks), where a relatively large lake, or a system of smaller lakes evolved at the same time.

The site is situated in the bottomland near the confluence of Dyje and Morava rivers. The junction area is split by many sides and inactive channels. The human impact (settlement establishment, deforestation and landscape management) is also reflected in the bottomland development. Processes lead to erosion, accumulation of sediments in river beds and changes in vegetation. One of the peaks of the settlement of the studied area can be considered during existence of the Great Moravian Empire when the settlement agglomerations developed directly in the floodplain. The area has been intensively archaeologically studied for a long time. In the context of the ongoing climate change and increasing intensity of floods the relationship between climate, natural conditions and the functioning of the human settlements comes to the forefront of scientific interest. For the reconstruction of the complicated floodplain development a combination of different research methods was used. For direct determination of stratigraphy an excavated transect through the sediments connecting the edge of the settlement (in the area of the so called Northern bailey) on the sand elevation („hrúd“) and lower flood-plain step in the area of presumptive paleomeander has been studied. Direct field documentation and palynological and sedimentological studies and 14C dating method were utilized. These methods have been supplemented by remote sensing methods: Geophysics (ERT, DEMP), Lidar. On their basis a digital relief model (extend of measured area was 54 000 m2) was created as well as a map of conductivity anomalies. The study documented a sequence of extinct riverbeds (a series of fluvial point bars) of various ages at the northern edge of Pohansko. Their stratigraphic position proves the stage when the active channel was eroding the edge of the archaeological site. The sediments stored in previous periods were destroyed by erosion in this space. The aggradation of the floodplain occurred in 14th–16th century. Results of pollen analysis indicate the presence of a mosaic of forested and open landscape of mesophilous alluvial woodlands and open areas. The immediate vicinity of the sedimentary area was not too much affected by agricultural activity at that time. Compared to palynospectra from sediments of the Great Moravian settlement, the deforestation intensity and the proportion of anthropogenic indicators were noticeably lower.

Only a few loess–palaeosol sequences from the last climatic cycle (Eemian-Weichselian) in East-Central Europe have been studied and correlated with up-to-date stratigraphic frameworks such as marine isotope stages (MIS) and Greenland Stadials/Interstadials (GS/GI). This paper examines the relations of local conditions and climatic trends to soil development, and the character of vegetation during MIS 5 period at the Palaeolithic site Moravský Krumlov IV. To revise the chronostratigraphy and interpretation of palaeosols, we applied a multi-proxy approach based on soil micromorphology, physical and geochemical analyses together with palaeobotanical evidence and results of optically stimulated luminescence dating. The part of the loess–palaeosol sequence under study was correlated with the Dolni Věstonice sequence and represents a time span from MIS 5e to MIS 5b. It comprises an Eemian luvisol (MIS 5e, Interglacial), an Early Weichselian chernozem (MIS 5e, GI 25) and a colluvium with a pedogenic imprint (MIS 5d, GI 24), loess (MIS 5d, GS 24), regosol (MIS 5c/5d, GI 23), and loess deposits (MIS 5c, GS 23). Unlike for the Dolni Věstonice, the record of MIS 5a has not been proved and there are no markers dividing individual palaeosols. The intensity of weathering is similar to comparable records from the Czech Republic and is elevated compared to Hungarian loess–palaeosol sequences. Evidence of forest vegetation with both deciduous and coniferous trees (MIS 5e, Interglacial) is followed by that of a steppe environment with a mosaic of trees (MIS 5e, GI 25) and, finally, a tundra or forest-tundra vegetation (MIS 5d, GI 24). Eemian luvisol is rarely preserved but recorded in contemporary sequences from the Czech Republic. The Early Weichselian part is rather similar to the record documented across sites in Lower Austria, in contrast to sites from the Czech Republic, and does not fit into the earlier established system of pedocomplexes.