[Archport] Early agriculture and palaeoenvironmental history in the North of the Iberian Peninsula: a multi-proxy analysis of the Monte Areo mire (Asturias, Spain).

[José Paulo Francisco <arqconsulting@gmail.com>]

 

 

 

Journal of Archaeological Science
 

---

Early agriculture and palaeoenvironmental history in the North of the Iberian Peninsula: a multi-proxy analysis of the Monte Areo mire (Asturias, Spain)

References and further reading may be available for this article. To view references and further reading you must purchase this article.

Lourdes López-Merino^{a, ,} , Antonio Martínez Cortizas^b, and José Antonio López-Sáez^a,

^a G.I. Arqueobiología, Instituto de Historia (CCHS, CSIC), c/ Albasanz 26-28, 28037 Madrid Spain

^b Departamento de Edafología y Química Agrícola, Fac. Biología, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela. Campus Universitario Sur, 15782 Santiago de Compostela Spain

Received 8 January 2010; 

revised 2 March 2010; 

accepted 17 March 2010. 

Available online 24 March 2010.

Abstract

A multi-proxy study (pollen and NPPs, geochemical composition and radiocarbon dating), combined with principal components analysis, was applied to a core sampled in the Monte Areo mire (Asturias, N Spain), which covers the last 11,600 years cal BP. Both signals of Holocene climate change and transformations by human activities were recorded.

The cooler stage of the early Holocene, the Hypsithermal and the Neoglaciation periods, were indentified but later Holocene abrupt climate changes seem not to have been recorded due to the particular evolution of the fen/mire system and the impact of human activities on the local hydrology. Evidence for human activity included a first phase of pastoralism by ~7300 cal BP, and an extraordinary record of adoption and establishment of agriculture. The first evidence of cereal pollen, dated to approximately 6700 cal BP, represents one of the earliest records of agriculture in northern Spain. Contrary to previous studies which, based on assumed biogeographical limitations, proposed a late adoption of agriculture in the area, our results indicate a rapid expansion of agriculture in northern Spain from the eastern to the westernmost areas more in agreement with recent archaeobotanical investigations (Zapata et al., 2005).

The research also indicates that climate and human activities interplayed to determine the evolution of the studied area, and that a multi-proxy approach applied to natural archives appropriately located (in areas with evidence of past human occupation) is a productive way to obtain circumstantial evidence of early human activity.

Keywords: Northern Iberian Peninsula; palynology; non-pollen palynomorphs; geochemistry; early agriculture; palaeoenvironmental reconstructions; Holocene

Corresponding author. Tel.: 0034 916022778.

Note to users: The section "Articles in Press" contains peer reviewed accepted articles to be published in this journal. When the final article is assigned to an issue of the journal, the "Article in Press" version will be removed from this section and will appear in the associated published journal issue. The date it was first made available online will be carried over. Please be aware that although "Articles in Press" do not have all bibliographic details available yet, they can already be cited using the year of online publication and the DOI as follows: Author(s), Article Title, Journal (Year), DOI. Please consult the journal's reference style for the exact appearance of these elements, abbreviation of journal names and the use of punctuation.

There are three types of "Articles in Press":

• Accepted manuscripts: these are articles that have been peer reviewed and accepted for publication by the Editorial Board. The articles have not yet been copy edited and/or formatted in the journal house style.
• Uncorrected proofs: these are copy edited and formatted articles that are not yet finalized and that will be corrected by the authors. Therefore the text could change before final publication.
• Corrected proofs: these are articles containing the authors' corrections and may, or may not yet have specific issue and page numbers assigned.

---

Journal of Archaeological Science
Article in Press, Accepted Manuscript - Note to users