Abstract An understanding of long-term climate variability may provide a valuable perspective on the possible response of human societies to modern climate change. The present study, based on geochemical and sedimentological analyses on well dated (using AMS 14 C and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dates) alluvial sediments from Sina River basin (in Maharashtra, central India), provides a detailed understanding of the complex interplay between climate and cultural dynamics during the Late Holocene. The radiocarbon dates of the organic residues from the potsherds represent the Medieval period ( c. 1.6–0.95 cal ka BP), whereas the OSL sample shows an age of c. 7.5 ± 0.4 ka. Further, several cultural objects (e.g. potsherds, shell bangles, and copper artefacts) available at the site were also investigated in order to understand the extent of human activity in the region. The temporal changes in the proxies along with the abundance of cultural materials in the fluvial section during the Medieval period suggest that the human population attempted to adapt against the fluctuating climate conditions. The regional comparison of geo-archaeological datasets shows that the pronounced weakening of the monsoonal rainfall during the Late Holocene coincides with the disruption, migration and resettlement of indigenous societies, deciphering the possible impact of climate on human settlement.

ABSTRACT Shorelines formed by terminal lakes record past changes in regional moisture budgets. In the western Great Basin of North America, winter precipitation accounts for nearly half of the annual total and is well correlated with northeast Pacific storm track activity and moisture transport. We evaluated these relationships and found that historical precipitation between 1910 and 2012 was better correlated to moisture transport (0.78, p < 0.01) than to storm track activity (0.54, p < 0.01) because moisture transport better captures dynamics associated with the Sierra Nevada rain shadow. We derived modern analogs of enhanced and reduced storm track activity and moisture transport from reanalysis products and used associated winter precipitation anomalies with these analogs as inputs to a coupled water balance and lake evaporation model of the Walker Lake basin. Simulated lake-level responses were compared with a radiocarbon-dated lakeshore chronology spanning the past 3700 yr. Wet analogs developed from winters in the 90th and 75th percentiles for storminess and moisture transport produced lake levels that exceeded estimated late Holocene highstands by 50 m. Dry analogs (10th and 25th percentiles) produced lake levels corresponding to Medieval megadrought lowstands. The twentieth century is shown to be as wet as any century in the past 3700 yr. Our results demonstrate the sensitivity of terminal lakes to winter season circulations and highlight the value of using moisture transport as a predictor of cool season precipitation and to evaluate how past or future changes in regional circulations will influence the water balance of dryland regions.

ABSTRACT Glaciers in central Asia that developed under a range of climatic conditions from arid to humid provide an excellent opportunity to test glacial responses to changes in climate. To do this, we mapped and dated glacial deposits at 11 sites spread over five mountain ranges in central Asia: the Altai, Tian Shan, Altyn Tagh, Qilian Shan, and Kunlun. The glacial chronologies for these sites were determined from new 10 Be and 26 Al exposure ages for the mapped moraines, in addition to 10 Be ages available in the literature. Paleo–equilibrium-line altitudes were estimated for past glacier extents from the dated moraines. The equilibrium-line altitudes (ELAs) were also estimated for existing glaciers to characterize the spatial pattern in modern climate across the study region. Differences between the modern and paleo-ELAs (∆ELAs) were used to explore the climatic reasons for variations in the glacier sensitivities and responses to past changes in climate. The results show that the glaciers in more humid regions advanced to their maximum during marine oxygen-isotope stage (MIS) 3–2 with ΔELAs of ~1100–600 m. However, glaciers in the arid interior of central Asia, in the rain shadows of the Karakorum and Pamir ranges and in the Gobi Desert ranges, reached their maximum between MIS 6 and 4, and glacier extents during the subsequent colder/drier MIS 3–2 were significantly smaller or did not extend beyond their cirques. Comparisons of our results and the sensitivity analysis of modern glaciers suggest that depression of air temperature was the primary driver of glacier advances in central Asia but that precipitation played a major role in shaping the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of glacier advances. Precipitation was especially important in hyperarid conditions. Therefore, inferences about paleoclimate parameters from past glacial extents must be made after careful consideration of the climatic setting in which the glaciers are found, as well as their sensitivity to climatic factors.

Abstract Cretaceous sandstones occur mainly in the north and NE of Germany. Some of them have been quarried for more than a thousand years and they have been transported to other regions, even abroad, from as early as medieval times. These are the Elbe Sandstones in Saxony, the Wealden Sandstones and the Bentheimer Sandstone in Lower Saxony and the Baumberger Sandstone in North Rhein-Westfalia. All of these are still quarried, and all can be used as building stone as well as for sculptures. They are introduced with their special features and their use over the centuries.

Abstract New archaeointensity results were obtained from 14 groups of baked-brick fragments collected in and around Pisa (Tuscany, Italy). The fragments were assembled from civil and religious buildings whose dating of construction or renovation, over the past millennium, was constrained by documentary sources. This collection, analysed using the Triaxe protocol, was found particularly suitable for intensity experiments, with a success rate of c. 84% corresponding to 276 fruitful specimens associated with 125 independent brick fragments. The Tuscan data clearly show a peak in intensity at the transition between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. They are also in very good agreement with, and complementary to, a dense dataset previously obtained in France. Considering the results available within a 700 km radius of Beaune (between Paris and Pisa), all satisfying a set of quality criteria, a mean geomagnetic field intensity variation curve was constructed for the past millennium using a newly developed transdimensional Bayesian technique. This curve, which thus incorporates the new Tuscan results, allows a better recognition of three intensity peaks (during the twelfth century, the fourteenth century and around AD 1600) in western Europe. The detail of this curve is a clear illustration of the centennial-scale resolution that can be achieved using accurate archaeointensity data.

Abstract Old chalk and flint mine workings occur widely across southern and eastern England. Over 3500 mines are recorded in the national Stantec Mining Cavities Database and more are being discovered each year. The oldest flint mines date from the Neolithic period and oldest chalk mines from at least medieval times, possibly Roman times. The most intensive period for mining was during the 1800s, although some mining activities continued into the 1900s. The size, shape and extent of the mines vary considerably with some types only being found in particular areas. They range from crudely excavated bellpits to more extensive pillar-and-stall styles of mining. The mines were created for a series of industrial, building and agricultural purposes. Mining locations were not formally recorded so most are discovered following the collapse of the ground over poorly backfilled shafts and adits. The subsidence activity, often triggered by heavy rainfall or leaking water services, poses a hazard to the built environment and people. Purpose-designed ground investigations are needed to map out the mine workings and carry out follow-on ground stabilization after subsidence events. Where mine workings can be safely entered they can sometimes be stabilized by reinforcement rather than infilling.

Early vitreous materials include homogeneous glass, glassy faience, faience and glazed stones. These materials evolved slowly into more specialized substances such as enamels, engobes, lustres, or even modern metallic glass. The nature and properties of vitreous materials are summarized briefly, with an eye to the historical evolution of glass production in the Mediterranean world. Focus is on the evolution of European, Egyptian, and Near East materials. Notes on Chinese and Indian glass are reported for comparison. The most common techniques of mineralogical and chemical characterization of vitreous materials are described, highlighting the information derived for the purposes of archaeometric analysis and conservation.