A Synthesis of Pollen Composition in Prehistoric Cultivation Layers in Southwestern Norway

Erik Daniel Fredh, Lisbeth Prøsch-Danielsen and Christin Eldegard Jensen

Environmental Archaeology, 2022, vol. 27, issue 2, 127-145

Abstract: Pollen records and radiocarbon dates from cultivation layers were compiled to explore agricultural changes in southwestern Norway, with a focus on cereals and associated herbs. Variations in the pollen composition were examined using rarefaction and multivariate analyses. The results showed that prehistoric cultivation layers were preserved in the region from c. 2200 BC to AD 1400. That the landscape was open and dominated by grassland is inferred from the preponderance of grass and other herbaceous pollen, originating from meadows and pastures. A few annual weeds were associated with cereals, such as Spergula arvensis and Polygonum persicaria. The main change in our record occurred during the Early Iron Age (c. 500 BC-AD 600), when cultivated fields and grassland expanded at the expense of woodland, and was probably associated with the establishment of permanent fields and hay-meadows. This study shows that pollen analysed from cultivation layers can be synthesised to provide a regional picture of land-use development.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1080/14614103.2018.1536499

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