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Architecture and soil stratigraphy of relict charcoal hearths in Europe and the USA

  • Relict charcoal hearths (RCH) are a widespread feature in forested areas in Europe and the USA. Before the usage of hard coal, charcoal from RCHs was the main energy source and chemical reagent for the production of iron from ore. Depending on region and age, RCHs have diameters CAA 2019 305 Poster session up to 30 m, and due to their size and shape they are nowadays often identified by GIS-analysis of widely available LiDAR data. We study the architecture and soil stratigraphy of RCHs in several type regions in the USA and Germany where high densities of RCHs are known (Connecticut, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Brandenburg, Bavaria) and propose a morphological classification scheme. Whereas RCHs on flatland mostly have a circular shape which is often surrounded by an about half a meter-wide ditch, RCHs on slopes are mostly elliptical and often have a different architecture than on flatland sites. While the RCH platforms in flatland are only about 30 cm higher than the surrounding area, the platform of RCHs on slopes has often aRelict charcoal hearths (RCH) are a widespread feature in forested areas in Europe and the USA. Before the usage of hard coal, charcoal from RCHs was the main energy source and chemical reagent for the production of iron from ore. Depending on region and age, RCHs have diameters CAA 2019 305 Poster session up to 30 m, and due to their size and shape they are nowadays often identified by GIS-analysis of widely available LiDAR data. We study the architecture and soil stratigraphy of RCHs in several type regions in the USA and Germany where high densities of RCHs are known (Connecticut, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Brandenburg, Bavaria) and propose a morphological classification scheme. Whereas RCHs on flatland mostly have a circular shape which is often surrounded by an about half a meter-wide ditch, RCHs on slopes are mostly elliptical and often have a different architecture than on flatland sites. While the RCH platforms in flatland are only about 30 cm higher than the surrounding area, the platform of RCHs on slopes has often a height of up to one meter in downslope direction. Therefore, RCHs on slopes are much easier to identify during GIS mapping than RCHs on flatland. Remarkably the size, shape and architecture between our studied RCHs in the USA and Germany are often very similar which could indicate common roots of collier’s knowledge and technology that can be explained by immigration of European craftsmen to New England in the 18th and 19th century.show moreshow less

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Metadaten
Author: Florian HirschORCiD, Anna SchneiderORCiDGND
ISBN:978-83-948382-7-0
Title of the source (German):Check Object Integrity : Book of Abstracts, CAA 2019
Publisher:Institute of Archaeology of Jagiellonian University
Place of publication:Krakau
Document Type:Conference publication not peer-reviewed
Language:English
Year of publication:2019
Contributing Corporation:Institute of Archaeology of Jagiellonian University in Kraków
First Page:304
Last Page:305
Faculty/Chair:Fakultät 2 Umwelt und Naturwissenschaften / FG Geopedologie und Landschaftsentwicklung
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