TY - JOUR

T1 - Paleoenvironmental reconstruction based on the study of soils of an early iron age kurgan cemetery in the forest-steppe zone of the Russian plain

AU - Русаков, Алексей Валентинович

AU - Михайлова, Дарья

AU - Хохлова, Ольга

AU - Макеев, Александр

AU - Куст, Павел

AU - Асеева, Елена

AU - Русакова, Елена

AU - Казмирчук, Игорь

PY - 2025/2

Y1 - 2025/2

N2 - During the Late Holocene forest-steppe areas of the Russian Plain were influenced by climatic fluctuations. A soil chronosequence that included two buried and five surface soils located in the Late Sarmatian kurgan cemetery (Lipetsk region, Russia) was studied by pedological and microbiomorphic methods with numerical dating control. This research aims to reconstruct the paleoenvironments of the studied area over the period preceding the kurgan construction. Both buried and surface soils, formed in close proximity within the same geomorphic position and in the similar parent material, are presented by Greyzemic Luvic Phaeozem. The topsoil horizons of the buried soils were truncated while constructing the earthen mounds by ∼ 20 and ∼ 35 cm. The buried soils are similar to the surface soils, indicating the similarity of environmental conditions. However, the climate at ∼ 1700 years cal BP was slightly less humid than nowadays, that is evidenced by higher TOC and crystalline forms of iron oxides content. The microbiomorphic data show that the vegetation of the study site in the 3rd c. AD had a higher portion of thin-leaved arboreal species, a lower portion of meadow herbaceous species and less developed understory than nowadays. The earthen kurgan construction consists of a core part made of the earthen bricks and then covered by a mound. The brickwork includes bands of light and dark material, which are closely intertwined and are hard to separate from each other. In the dark parts were formed well-organised artificial clay coatings; light parts contain a high amount of phytoliths of hygrophytes.

AB - During the Late Holocene forest-steppe areas of the Russian Plain were influenced by climatic fluctuations. A soil chronosequence that included two buried and five surface soils located in the Late Sarmatian kurgan cemetery (Lipetsk region, Russia) was studied by pedological and microbiomorphic methods with numerical dating control. This research aims to reconstruct the paleoenvironments of the studied area over the period preceding the kurgan construction. Both buried and surface soils, formed in close proximity within the same geomorphic position and in the similar parent material, are presented by Greyzemic Luvic Phaeozem. The topsoil horizons of the buried soils were truncated while constructing the earthen mounds by ∼ 20 and ∼ 35 cm. The buried soils are similar to the surface soils, indicating the similarity of environmental conditions. However, the climate at ∼ 1700 years cal BP was slightly less humid than nowadays, that is evidenced by higher TOC and crystalline forms of iron oxides content. The microbiomorphic data show that the vegetation of the study site in the 3rd c. AD had a higher portion of thin-leaved arboreal species, a lower portion of meadow herbaceous species and less developed understory than nowadays. The earthen kurgan construction consists of a core part made of the earthen bricks and then covered by a mound. The brickwork includes bands of light and dark material, which are closely intertwined and are hard to separate from each other. In the dark parts were formed well-organised artificial clay coatings; light parts contain a high amount of phytoliths of hygrophytes.

KW - Geoarchaeology

KW - Late Sarmatian culture

KW - Late holocene

KW - Paleosol

KW - Phaeozems

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/80bbd30d-6f68-30a2-a9fe-5569dc2edda9/

U2 - 10.1016/j.catena.2024.108665

DO - 10.1016/j.catena.2024.108665

M3 - Article

VL - 249

JO - Catena

JF - Catena

SN - 0341-8162

M1 - 108665

ER -