A high-quality annually laminated sequence from Lake Belau, Northern Germany: Revised chronology and ist implications for palynological and tephrochronological studies

• Main Authors: Dörfler, Walter, Feeser, Ingo, van den Bogaard, Christel, Dreibrodt, Stefan, Erlenkeuser, Helmut, Kleinmann, Angelika, Merkt, Josef, Wiethold, Julian
• Other Authors: Institut fûr Ur- und Frühgeschichte, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel (CAU), Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (GEOMAR), Institut für Ökosystemforschung, Institut national de recherches archéologiques préventives (Inrap), Archéologie, Terre, Histoire, Sociétés Dijon (ARTeHiS), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Bourgogne (UB)-Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication (MCC)
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2012
• Subjects: Germany; lake sediments; chronology; pollen analysis; envir; geo; Hekla
• Online Access: https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01864128

International audience The annually laminated record of Lake Belau offers an exceptional opportunity to investigate with high temporal resolution Holocene environmental change, aspects of climate history and human impact on the landscape. A new chronology based on varve counts, 14C-datings and heavy metal history has been established, covering the last 9400 years. Based on multiple varve counting on two core sequences, the easily countable laminated section spans about 7850 varve years (modelled age range c. 9430 to 1630 cal. BP). Not all of the record is of the same quality but approximately 69% of the varves sequence is classified to be of high quality and only c. 5% of low quality. The new chronology suggests dates generally c. 260 years older than previously assumed for the laminated section of the record. The implications for the vegetation and land-use history of the region as well as revised datings for pollen stratigraphical events are discussed. Tephra analysis allowed the identification of several cryptotephra layers. New dates for volcanic eruptions are presented for the Lairg B event (c. 6848 cal. BP, 2s range 6930–6713 cal. BP), the Hekla 4 event (c. 4396 cal. BP, 2s range 4417–4266 cal. BP), and Hekla 3 eruption (c. 3095 cal. BP, 2s range 3120–3068 cal. BP).