Archaeoseismology and Palaeoseismology in the Alpine ... - Tierra

1 st INQUA‐IGCP‐567 International Workshop on Earthquake Archeology and Paleoseismology
GEOLOGICAL‐GEOMORPHOLOGICAL SETTING AND HUMAN INTERFERENCE
DURING THE 13 TH ‐15 TH CENTURIES AD. AT VILNIUS LOWER CASTLE, EAST
LITHUANIA
M. Stančikaitė (1), D. Kisielienė (1), J. Mažeika (1), R. Guobytė (2) and P. Blaževičius (3)
(1) Institute of Geology and Geography, Ševčenkos, 13. 03223‐Vilnius. LITHUANIA. stancikaite@geo.lt
(2) Lithuanian Geological Survey, Konarskio, 35. 03223‐Vilnius. LITHUANIA. rimante.guobyte@lgt.lt
(3) Institute of History and Archaeology of the Baltic Sea Region, University of Klaipėda. Tilžės, 13. 91251‐Klaipėda. LITHUANIA.
povilas@lietuvospilys.lt
Abstract: Together with the archaeological data, results of geological‐geomorphological investigations alongside with palaeobotanical data
(pollen and plant macrofossils) and isotope ( 14 C) measurements were applied for the reconstruction of environmental situation and pattern of
human activity during 13 th ‐15 th Century AD. in the surroundings of Vilnius Lower Castle. Studied zone is located on the third sandy terraces of
river Neris (54º41"N, 25º17"E) surrounded by the residual relief formed during the retreat of the Late Weichselian ice sheet. A prominent
complex of morainic hills (up to 160m a.s.l.) appears eastwards from the Castle zone and transform westwards into flat, sandy terraces (90m
a.s.l.) of alluvial origin. Evidence of continuous cultivation of cereals including F. esculentum and S. cereale was coincident with landscape
clearing indicated during the later 13 th and early 14 th Century AD. Temporary decline of human activity was recorded in the middle of 14 th
Century AD. The expansion of Vilnius Town recorded during the later 14 th Century AD. continued during the 15 th century AD. which is known as
a period of economic and cultural prosperity.
Key words: environmental history, Middle Ages, Vilnius Castle, Lithuania
INTRODUCTION
Multidisciplinary research on cultural landscape history
provides scientists and society with a new data describing
character and pattern of the human activity during the
different stages of the prehistory or historical times.
Evaluation of the environmental conditions and influence
of different nature processes into the society may have
been indicated as one of the main aims of similar survey.
Recent multidisciplinary investigations (geological‐
geomorphological survey, palaeobotanical (pollen and
plant macroremain) and isotope ( 14 C) analysis) alongside
with archaeological excavations were applied for the
reconstruction of the environmental and human history in
the territory of Vilnius Lower Castle, east Lithuania (Fig.
1A).
DISCUSSION
Formation of the surface in the biggest part of the present
Lithuania territory has been determined by the Late
Weichselian ice sheet (Guobytė, 2002). Marginal
formations of this Glaciation cross the south eastern part
of the country (Fig. 1B) creating characteristic landscape
of Vilnius Town with Vilnius Castles are within these
marginal formations, in the confluence of Neris and
Vilnelė Rivers that makes landscape even more attractive
(Fig. 2A). The prominent hills, of erosive origin, that
appear eastwards from the Vilnelė River transform
westwards into flat, sandy terraces of alluvial origin.
Constructed on this landscape, the Vilnius Castles
complex consisted of an Upper Castle that was situated
on a top of an erosion hill (~140 m a.s.l.) and a Lower
Castle (91.6 m a.s.l.) that stretched at the foot of it (Fig.
2B). Constructions of the buildings were accurately fit to
146
the geomorphological pattern of the territory (Fig. 3)
especially during the earliest stages of the population.
Fig. 1: Location of investigated site