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Anton Hansson

Anton Hansson

Laboratory assistant

Anton Hansson

A new early Holocene shoreline displacement record for Blekinge, southern Sweden, and implications for underwater archaeology

Author

  • Anton Hansson
  • Dan Hammarlund
  • Giacomo Landeschi
  • Arne Sjöström
  • Björn Nilsson

Summary, in English

We present evidence of a submerged early Holocene landscape off the Blekinge coastline in the Baltic Sea, dating to the Yoldia Sea and Initial Littorina Sea Stages when the water level was lower than at present. 14C dated wood remains obtained by surveillance diving and new archaeological findings in combination with bathymetric analyses and interpolations between other sites across the Baltic Sea were used for refinement of the shoreline displacement history of the region. The new results reveal a Yoldia Sea lowstand level at 20 m b.s.l., a subsequent Ancylus Lake highstand at 3 m a.s.l., and then a period of relatively stable water level at about 4 m b.s.l. during the Initial Littorina Sea Stage, several metres lower than previously concluded. The refined shoreline displacement record was used for palaeo‐reconstructions of the study area during four key periods, the Yoldia Sea lowstand phase, the Ancylus Lake transgression phase, the Ancylus Lake highstand phase and the Initial Littorina Sea lowstand phase, using elevation data and map algebra functions. A flow accumulation algorithm was used for reconstruction of the now submerged prehistoric river network in order to identify areas of high archaeological potential. Our revised shoreline displacement record, and especially its lowstand period during the Initial Littorina Sea Stage around 9500–8500 cal. a BP, raises future demands not only for specific archaeological shallow‐water surveys down to 4 m b.s.l. in the area, but also for a renewed cultural heritage management strategy. The results of this study fill an important gap in the early Holocene part of the shoreline displacement history of Blekinge, contributing to its completion since the deglaciation, which is unique for the Baltic Sea.

Department/s

  • Quaternary Sciences
  • eSSENCE: The e-Science Collaboration
  • Archaeology
  • Digital Archaeology Laboratory DARK Lab

Publishing year

2019-01

Language

English

Pages

57-71

Publication/Series

Boreas

Volume

48

Issue

1

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Topic

  • Geology
  • Archaeology

Status

Published

Project

  • Early Holocene landscape development and Baltic Sea history based on submerged wood remains, high-resolution bathymetry and lagoonal sediments in the Hanö Bay
  • Blue Archaeology. Assembling the cultural and natural heritage of submerged Stone-Age Seascapes in Sweden

Research group

  • Digital Archaeology Laboratory DARK Lab
  • Updating Pompeii-HT_760

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1502-3885