Natural woodland composition and vegetation dynamic during the Linearbandkeramik in north-western Europe (central Belgium, 5200-5000 b.c.)

Aurélie Salavert (1) , Dominique Bosquet (2) , Freddy Damblon (3)

1 AASPE - Archéozoologie, archéobotanique : sociétés, pratiques et environnements
2 Agence wallonne du Patrimoine
3 IRSNB - Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique

Charcoal analysis was carried out on seven Linearbandkeramik sites in Hesbaye (central Belgium), where a first and a second stage of settlement were highlighted. This provides opportunity to examine the vegetation dynamic during the LBK culture which lasted around 200 years in this region. The natural forest at the arrival of the Neolithic farming communities may have been quite closed, with low species diversity. A few gaps in the forest canopy probably allowed the local development of heliophilous species like Rosaceae as well as shrubs in the undergrowth. The impact of human activities, like house building, setting up fields or foddering, favoured the availability of light and the development of heliophilous post-pioneer taxa like Maloideae which have been particularly exploited for firewood during the second stage of settlement.

Mots clés: charcoal analysis; Linearbandkeramik; central Belgium; natural forest; exploitation of forest edges

Domaines: Archéologie et Préhistoire

Aurélie Salavert, Dominique Bosquet, Freddy Damblon. Natural woodland composition and vegetation dynamic during the Linearbandkeramik in north-western Europe (central Belgium, 5200-5000 b.c.). Journal of Archaeological Science, 2014, 51, pp.84-93. ⟨halshs-01511040⟩