ICG2022-673
https://doi.org/10.5194/icg2022-673
10th International Conference on Geomorphology
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Geoarchaeological approach of the prehistoric inhabitation reconstruction of a key-region (Brăila-Jijila) from the Lower Danube Valley 

Laurentiu Tutuianu1,2, Mihaela Dobre1, Diana Hanganu1,2, Tiberiu Sava3, Luminiţa Preoteasa1,4, Sorin Ailincăi5, Cătălin Lazăr6, and Alfred Vespremeanu-Stroe1,4
Laurentiu Tutuianu et al.
  • 11GEODAR Research Center for Geomorphology, Geoarchaeology and Paleo-Environments, Bucharest University, 1 N. Bălcescu, 01004 Bucharest, Romania; 2Emil Racoviţă Institute of Speleology, Frumoasă 31, 010986 Bucharest, Romania 3RoAMS Laboratory, Horia Hulub
  • 2Emil Racoviţă Institute of Speleology, Frumoasă 31, 010986 Bucharest, Romania
  • 3RoAMS Laboratory, Horia Hulubei National Institute for R&D in Physics and Nuclear Engineering, 30 Reactorului, 077125 Măgurele, Romania
  • 4Sfântu Gheorghe Marine & Fluvial Research Station, Faculty of Geography, Bucharest University, Sf. Gheorghe, Tulcea, Romania
  • 5Institutul de Cercetari Eco-Muzeale "Gavrila Simion", Tulcea, Romania
  • 6Universitatea din Bucureşti, Bucuresti, Romania

The stratigraphy of the lower reaches and floodplains store mineral sediments, organic matter, pollen, and charcoal which are important proxies for understanding the environmental evolution that directly interacts with human activity.

The present study is based on four sediment cores (7 to 19 m long) from the Lower Danube floodplain in NW Dobrudgea, close to Galați-Măcin area. The cores were carefully described and sampled for grain size, loess on ignition, magnetic susceptibility, charcoal, pollen and radiocarbon dating to reconstruct the paleoenvironmental changes in a key region for Neolithic cultures dispersal across SE Europe. The results of these combined analyses from the four cores with a special focus on Jijila mastercore (placed in a lake derived from a former embayment) bring new data about the mid and late Holocene floodplain environmental changes and a new perspective regarding the first settlements emplacement in the study area. Lower Danube floodplain inhabitation is still a hotly debated subject. The archaeological findings suggest the first settlements date from the Bronze Age (La Grădini – Jijila; Brăila), whereas recent human bones datings point to an earlier inhabitation during the Mesolithic-Neolithic period (Brăiliţa). The newly obtained charcoal and pollen profiles on Jijila core show two intervals of higher intensity human activity, the first during the Neolithic period and the second during the mid and late Bronze Age. Both periods are highlighted with peaks in charcoal particles and pollen grains (cereals) indicative of human activity.

How to cite: Tutuianu, L., Dobre, M., Hanganu, D., Sava, T., Preoteasa, L., Ailincăi, S., Lazăr, C., and Vespremeanu-Stroe, A.: Geoarchaeological approach of the prehistoric inhabitation reconstruction of a key-region (Brăila-Jijila) from the Lower Danube Valley , 10th International Conference on Geomorphology, Coimbra, Portugal, 12–16 Sep 2022, ICG2022-673, https://doi.org/10.5194/icg2022-673, 2022.