Beyond lake settlements:Studying Neolithic environmental changes and human impact at small lakes in Swizerland, Germany and Austria

• Applicant: Privatdozentin Dr. Renate Ebersbach, since 1/2018
• Subject Area: Prehistory and World Archaeology
• Term: from 2014 to 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 256810635

The prehistoric lake village sites of Switzerland, Germany and Austria have been known for more than 150 years. Over one hundred of them were accorded UNESCO World Cultural Heritage status in 2011. Mainly dating to the Neolithic (including Copper Age) and Bronze Age, the zone of lacustrine settlement represents an early phase of sedentarization in the northern foothills of the Alps. Despite much significant research on material culture, settlement dynamics, economy and ecology, the focus has hitherto been almost exclusively on the classic sites situated on the larger pre-Alpine lakes. Our proposal focusses on small shallow lakes and their immediate setting, in order to obtain new high-resolution data on natural environment and human impact at a landscape level. Recent palaeoecological investigation suggests that small shallow lakes preserve undisturbed laminated annual sediments with potential for generating ultra-high-resolution diachronic data on vegetation, palaeoclimate and human impact. Three micro regions containing suitable small lakes set within complex archaeological landscapes that themselves are currently understood at varying levels of resolution, provide the foci for the interlinked interdisciplinary research programmes proposed by the project partners. The overall aim is to integrate micro-regional, regional, and macro-regional studies so as to gain a better understanding of large-scale processes of adaptation and anthropogenic impact over time.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Austria, Switzerland
• Partner Organisation: Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung (FWF)
• Participating Persons: Professor Dr. Albert Hafner; Dr. Timothy Taylor; Professor Dr. Willy Tinner
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Dr. Helmut Schlichtherle, until 1/2018