The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change
Vegetation is changing across the Arctic in response to increasing temperatures, which may influence archaeological sites in the region. At the moment, very little is known about how different plant species influence archaeological remains. In this study we visited 14 archaeological sites stretching...
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2020
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Online Access: | https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/the-impact-of-vegetation-on-archaeological-sites-in-the-low-arctic-in-light-of-climate-change(1905f87b-cefd-4c3c-a693-bc5381daacfb).html https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 https://curis.ku.dk/ws/files/246824203/The_Impact_of_Vegetation_on_Archaeological_Sites_in_the_Low_Arctic_in_Light_of_Climate_Change.pdf |
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ftcopenhagenunip:oai:pure.atira.dk:publications/1905f87b-cefd-4c3c-a693-bc5381daacfb 2024-05-19T07:32:56+00:00 The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change Matthiesen, Henning Fenger-Nielsen, Rasmus Harmsen, Hans Madsen, Christian Koch Hollesen, Jørgen 2020 application/pdf https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/the-impact-of-vegetation-on-archaeological-sites-in-the-low-arctic-in-light-of-climate-change(1905f87b-cefd-4c3c-a693-bc5381daacfb).html https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 https://curis.ku.dk/ws/files/246824203/The_Impact_of_Vegetation_on_Archaeological_Sites_in_the_Low_Arctic_in_Light_of_Climate_Change.pdf eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Matthiesen , H , Fenger-Nielsen , R , Harmsen , H , Madsen , C K & Hollesen , J 2020 , ' The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change ' , Arctic , vol. 73 , no. 2 , pp. 141-152 . https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 vegetation Low Arctic archaeological sites root damage visibility Nuuk Fjord TUNDRA SOIL PRESERVATION EROSION GROWTH ROOTS article 2020 ftcopenhagenunip https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 2024-05-02T00:33:11Z Vegetation is changing across the Arctic in response to increasing temperatures, which may influence archaeological sites in the region. At the moment, very little is known about how different plant species influence archaeological remains. In this study we visited 14 archaeological sites stretching across a climatic gradient from the outer coast to the inner fjords in the Nuuk Fjord area of West Greenland to assess the impact of vegetation growth on archaeological preservation. Examination of the physical disturbance of archaeological layers and materials by roots from different plant species showed that horsetail (Equisetum arvense) was particularly destructive because of its deep penetrating rhizomes and ubiquity across the study area. Willow (Salix glauca) also caused physical disturbance due to a dense root network, but its roots were mainly found in the upper 30 cm of the soil. Focus was also given to the impact from vegetation on the visibility of sites, where growth of willow was found be the main problem, especially in the inner fjords. Historic descriptions and aerial photographs from the sites show that shrub growth was already widespread in the region by the 1930s, but photos of some of the sites investigated show that the willow shrubs are significantly taller today, which has decreased the visibility of site features. The impact from horsetail and willow on archaeological sites may be mitigated using geotextiles and grazing by livestock, but both methods require further studies before being implemented in the study area. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic Climate change Greenland Nuuk Tundra University of Copenhagen: Research ARCTIC 73 2 141 152 |
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Open Polar |
collection |
University of Copenhagen: Research |
op_collection_id |
ftcopenhagenunip |
language |
English |
topic |
vegetation Low Arctic archaeological sites root damage visibility Nuuk Fjord TUNDRA SOIL PRESERVATION EROSION GROWTH ROOTS |
spellingShingle |
vegetation Low Arctic archaeological sites root damage visibility Nuuk Fjord TUNDRA SOIL PRESERVATION EROSION GROWTH ROOTS Matthiesen, Henning Fenger-Nielsen, Rasmus Harmsen, Hans Madsen, Christian Koch Hollesen, Jørgen The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change |
topic_facet |
vegetation Low Arctic archaeological sites root damage visibility Nuuk Fjord TUNDRA SOIL PRESERVATION EROSION GROWTH ROOTS |
description |
Vegetation is changing across the Arctic in response to increasing temperatures, which may influence archaeological sites in the region. At the moment, very little is known about how different plant species influence archaeological remains. In this study we visited 14 archaeological sites stretching across a climatic gradient from the outer coast to the inner fjords in the Nuuk Fjord area of West Greenland to assess the impact of vegetation growth on archaeological preservation. Examination of the physical disturbance of archaeological layers and materials by roots from different plant species showed that horsetail (Equisetum arvense) was particularly destructive because of its deep penetrating rhizomes and ubiquity across the study area. Willow (Salix glauca) also caused physical disturbance due to a dense root network, but its roots were mainly found in the upper 30 cm of the soil. Focus was also given to the impact from vegetation on the visibility of sites, where growth of willow was found be the main problem, especially in the inner fjords. Historic descriptions and aerial photographs from the sites show that shrub growth was already widespread in the region by the 1930s, but photos of some of the sites investigated show that the willow shrubs are significantly taller today, which has decreased the visibility of site features. The impact from horsetail and willow on archaeological sites may be mitigated using geotextiles and grazing by livestock, but both methods require further studies before being implemented in the study area. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Matthiesen, Henning Fenger-Nielsen, Rasmus Harmsen, Hans Madsen, Christian Koch Hollesen, Jørgen |
author_facet |
Matthiesen, Henning Fenger-Nielsen, Rasmus Harmsen, Hans Madsen, Christian Koch Hollesen, Jørgen |
author_sort |
Matthiesen, Henning |
title |
The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change |
title_short |
The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change |
title_full |
The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change |
title_fullStr |
The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change |
title_sort |
impact of vegetation on archaeological sites in the low arctic in light of climate change |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://curis.ku.dk/portal/da/publications/the-impact-of-vegetation-on-archaeological-sites-in-the-low-arctic-in-light-of-climate-change(1905f87b-cefd-4c3c-a693-bc5381daacfb).html https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 https://curis.ku.dk/ws/files/246824203/The_Impact_of_Vegetation_on_Archaeological_Sites_in_the_Low_Arctic_in_Light_of_Climate_Change.pdf |
genre |
Arctic Arctic Climate change Greenland Nuuk Tundra |
genre_facet |
Arctic Arctic Climate change Greenland Nuuk Tundra |
op_source |
Matthiesen , H , Fenger-Nielsen , R , Harmsen , H , Madsen , C K & Hollesen , J 2020 , ' The Impact of Vegetation on Archaeological Sites in the Low Arctic in Light of Climate Change ' , Arctic , vol. 73 , no. 2 , pp. 141-152 . https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic70248 |
container_title |
ARCTIC |
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73 |
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2 |
container_start_page |
141 |
op_container_end_page |
152 |
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