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New chronologic and stratigraphic constraints from the Garda morainic amphitheater define the extension of the last glaciation in the Adige-Sarca system and improve the Alpine LGM dataset. Together with the available chronology of the Rhine and Tagliamento systems, our results indicate a synchronous maximum culmination of Alpine glaciers during the LGM, which anticipated by about 3.5 ka the maximum extension of the Eurasian Ice Sheet (EIS). This is ascribed to the sensitivity of Alpine glaciers to the availability of moisture from southerly circulation, as recently documented by speleothem δ 18 O curve from Sieben Hengste (7 H). According to global circulation models, the waxing of the North American Ice Sheet (NAIS) at 26–23 ka pushed the North Atlantic jet stream southwards. This enhanced precipitation rates in southern Europe by advection of moisture from the Mediterranean Sea, triggering expansion of the Alpine glaciers. NAIS waning after 23 ka led to the gradual re-establishment of westerly circulation and renewal of a moisture supply to northern Europe, feeding the EIS to its maximum volume. Reduced supply of moisture from the Mediterranean Sea sealed the fate of the Alpine glaciers, which entered a final recessional phase after 22 ka and faded out after 17.5 ka.

Permafrost represents a largely understudied genetic resource. Thawing of permafrost with global warming will not only promote microbial carbon turnover with direct feedback on greenhouse gases, but also unlock an unknown microbial diversity. Pioneering metagenomic efforts have shed light on the permafrost microbiome in polar regions, but temperate mountain permafrost is largely understudied. We applied a unique experimental design coupled to high-throughput sequencing of ribosomal markers to characterize the microbiota at the long-term alpine permafrost study site ‘Muot-da-Barba-Peider’ in eastern Switzerland with an approximate radiocarbon age of 12 000 years. Compared to the active layers, the permafrost community was more diverse and enriched with members of the superphylum Patescibacteria (OD1, TM7, GN02 and OP11). These understudied phyla with no cultured representatives proposedly feature small streamlined genomes with reduced metabolic capabilities, adaptations to anaerobic fermentative metabolisms and potential ectosymbiotic lifestyles. The permafrost microbiota was also enriched with yeasts and lichenized fungi known to harbour various structural and functional adaptation mechanisms to survive under extreme sub-zero conditions. These data yield an unprecedented view on microbial life in temperate mountain permafrost, which is increasingly important for understanding the biological dynamics of permafrost in order to anticipate potential ecological trajectories in a warming world. Permafrost harbours novel microbial diversity featuring species with poorly understood adaptation mechanisms to sub-zero conditions, which has important implications for our understanding of the biological dynamics in a warming world. Graphical Abstract Figure. Permafrost harbours novel microbial diversity featuring species with poorly understood adaptation mechanisms to sub-zero conditions, which has important implications for our understanding of the biological dynamics in a warming world.

Growth in fundamental drivers—energy use, economic productivity and population—can provide quantitative indications of the proposed boundary between the Holocene Epoch and the Anthropocene. Human energy expenditure in the Anthropocene, ~22 zetajoules (ZJ), exceeds that across the prior 11,700 years of the Holocene (~14.6 ZJ), largely through combustion of fossil fuels. The global warming effect during the Anthropocene is more than an order of magnitude greater still. Global human population, their productivity and energy consumption, and most changes impacting the global environment, are highly correlated. This extraordinary outburst of consumption and productivity demonstrates how the Earth System has departed from its Holocene state since ~1950 CE, forcing abrupt physical, chemical and biological changes to the Earth’s stratigraphic record that can be used to justify the proposal for naming a new epoch—the Anthropocene.Human energy consumption and productivity have steeply risen around 1950 CE, leading to a departure from the Earth’s Holocene state into the Anthropocene, suggests a quantitative analysis of humanity’s influence on the Earth system.

Recently, radiocarbon dating underwent considerable technological advances allowing unprecedented sample size downscaling. These achievements introduced novel opportunities in dating cultural heritage objects. Within this pioneering research, the possibility of a direct 14 C dating of lead white pigment and organic binder in paint samples was investigated on polychrome sculptures, a foremost artistic expression in human history. The polychromy, an indivisible part of polychrome sculpture, holds a key role in the interpretation and understanding of these artworks. Unlike in other painted artworks, the study of polychromies is repeatedly hampered by repaints and degradation. The omnipresence of lead white within the original polychromy was thus pursued as dating proxy. Thermal decomposition allowed bypassing geologic carbonate interferences caused by the object's support material, while an added solvent extraction successfully removed conservation products. This radiocarbon dating survey of the polychromy from 16 Portuguese medieval limestone sculptures confirmed that some were produced within the proposed chronologies while others were revised. Within this multidisciplinary study, the potential of radiocarbon dating as a complementary source of information about these complex paint systems guiding their interpretation is demonstrated. The challenges of this innovative approach are highlighted and improvements on sampling and sample preparation are discussed.

The medieval Turks of the eastern Asian steppe are known for funerary finds exalting horsemanship and military heroism that thrived on intertribal warfare. Existing bodies of research on various categories of objects—which include architecture, stelae, grave goods and inhumations—are in depth but highly regionalized. As a result, our understanding of the archaeological culture of the Turks on a spatio-temporal scale commensurate with territorial shifts in their political dominion throughout the period of the Turk khaganates (mid-6th to mid-8th centuries CE) remains disjunct. The present paper addresses this problem of disparate data. We present a synthesis of the archaeological research of medieval Turks spanning Mongolia, southern Siberia, and Xinjiang in view of results of the excavation of medieval burials at Tunnug 1 in Tuva Republic—where Turkic remains are dispersed and not easily distinguishable from other funerary cultures of connecting time periods. We argue that Turkic funerary culture can be better characterized as polymorphic–the presence of different regional amalgams of burial traditions. The horse-and-human burials and commemorative ogradka known to be quintessentially Turkic are but one of the more dominant amalgams. This pattern of differential practices is congruent with the history of medieval Turks evolving as peoples of mixed lineages and political groupings, rather than people of a unitary culture.

Polar ice core records attest to a colossal volcanic eruption that took place ca. A.D. 1257 or 1258, most probably in the tropics. Estimates based on sulfate deposition in these records suggest that it yielded the largest volcanic sulfur release to the stratosphere of the past 7,000 y. Tree rings, medieval chronicles, and computational models corroborate the expected worldwide atmospheric and climatic effects of this eruption. However, until now there has been no convincing candidate for the mid-13th century “mystery eruption.” Drawing upon compelling evidence from stratigraphic and geomorphic data, physical volcanology, radiocarbon dating, tephra geochemistry, and chronicles, we argue the source of this long-sought eruption is the Samalas volcano, adjacent to Mount Rinjani on Lombok Island, Indonesia. At least 40 km ³ (dense-rock equivalent) of tephra were deposited and the eruption column reached an altitude of up to 43 km. Three principal pumice fallout deposits mantle the region and thick pyroclastic flow deposits are found at the coast, 25 km from source. With an estimated magnitude of 7, this event ranks among the largest Holocene explosive eruptions. Radiocarbon dates on charcoal are consistent with a mid-13th century eruption. In addition, glass geochemistry of the associated pumice deposits matches that of shards found in both Arctic and Antarctic ice cores, providing compelling evidence to link the prominent A.D. 1258/1259 ice core sulfate spike to Samalas. We further constrain the timing of the mystery eruption based on tephra dispersal and historical records, suggesting it occurred between May and October A.D. 1257.

This article presents the results of a comprehensive material analysis of medieval decorative bands from two different excavations in present-day Poland, specifically from early medieval cemeteries in Gródek upon the Bug River and Pień. The bands are complex materials composed of various fibres and precious metals, dyed with natural dyes using recipes that are often unknown today. They represent rare archaeological finds, challenging to analyse not only due to the complexity of their structure and materials but also because of significant deterioration caused by exposure to environmental conditions and harmful substances present in the burial soil. Optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) facilitated the identification of raw materials, manufacturing techniques, and ornamentation. SEM coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) was employed to analyse the metal threads, determine their elemental composition, and assess their preservation state. Natural dye identification was performed on selected objects using high-performance liquid chromatography combined with spectrophotometric detectors and tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization (HPLC-UV-Vis-ESI-MS/MS). The analysis of these results enabled drawing conclusions regarding the origin of the bands and their manufacturing methods. The dating of the bands, based on ornamentation and manufacturing techniques, was confirmed by radiocarbon dating, indicating they date back to the 10th–12th centuries. They were produced using two weaving techniques, a narrow haberdashery loom and a tablet loom, primarily from silk and metal threads—silver and silver-gilt. Some materials consisted of red-dyed silk (using kermes or madder), including a metal thread core. The analysis also provided valuable insights into textile degradation, particularly the corrosion mechanisms affecting the metal threads.

Understanding the past and present-day dynamics of salt structures is critical due to their scientific significance and societal and economic implications. Past and present salt movement can trigger hazards like sinkholes and landslides, posing risks to inhabited areas and industries such as mining, hydrocarbon extraction, and energy storage. Moreover, there is a considerable data gap regarding uplift rates of salt diapirs in humid continental climates. In this study, we investigate the relative uplift rates of the Manzalesti salt diapir, one of Europe’s largest rocksalt outcrops. We combine radiocarbon dating of vegetal fragments in sediment-filled dissolution notches (paleo-river terraces) and detailed vertical offsets extracted from digital outcrop models to calculate relative rock uplift rates. The results reveal relative salt uplift rates of 10.5 ± 0.8 and 29.8 ± 4.2 mm/year over the past ~ 720 years. We also compared these results against recent PSInSAR-derived velocities that confirm average relative vertical rates of 10 mm/year, peaking at 55 mm/year, filling a key data gap for uplift rates of salt diapirs in humid continental climates.

Well-dated and well-preserved Later Stone Age sites are unfortunately scarce in West Africa. The few known ones exhibit significant typo-technical variability, reflecting diverse socio-cultural behaviors that remain poorly understood. The Ravin Blanc X (RBX) site in eastern Senegal provides new insights into this period. Excavations at one of the sectors of the site (RBX-1) have revealed a well-preserved Early Holocene occupation, featuring a quartz knapping workshop associated with a fireplace. This site is the latest known LSA occupation in the Falémé valley and bridges a critical gap in the region's prehistoric sequence. The lithic industry at RBX-1 is dominated by a very homogeneous quartz, which was specifically selected for its high-quality knapping properties. Two main categories of sought blanks were produced: broad, thick, and rectilinear blanks, and elongated, thin and narrow blanks with an oblique distal termination forming a natural asymmetric point. The strong investment in blank standardization from the extraction stage significantly reduced the need for subsequent retouching, which was rarely observed in the RBX-1 lithic assemblage. Comparisons with other LSA sites in West Africa suggest that RBX-1 shares technological similarities with the sites of Fatandi V (Falémé valley, Senegal) and Damatoumou 1 (Ounjougou, Mali), possibly indicating a West African Late LSA Sahelo-Sudanian facies. In contrast, sites located in Guineo-Congolian forest contexts exhibit different knapping strategies and typological choices. The discovery of RBX-1 enhances our understanding of the LSA in West Africa by providing a rare, well-dated stratigraphic context (around 9100 calBP/7100 calBCE) which highlights the complexity of regional lithic traditions and raises new hypotheses about cultural transitions during the Pleistocene-Holocene shift.

The monastery of St. John in Müstair, a UNESCO world heritage site, preserves archaeological remains and stone structures dated from the 8th century to the present. It has been extensively studied archaeologically so that numerous samples of historical materials, including mortar, are available for study. In addition to that, some of the structures have been precisely dated with dendrochronology. The monastery is located in a region characterized by dolomite rocks and the mortars are therefore of dolomitic nature, being perfectly suited to test the possibility of being dated with 14C. Furthermore, the presence of embedded carbon fragments has provided additional independent data to support or deny the results of mortar dating. A comparison of the results obtained from radiocarbon (14C) dating of bulk mortars, sieved fractions enriched in binder, lime lumps and carbon fragments, for two samples is presented, in relation to the petrographic characterization and the mineralogical phase content. This preliminary study shows that the dating of 14C can potentially be applied to the mortar of Müstair, as results in accordance with the established chronologies have been obtained for one sample. However, if the dolomitic sand contamination is very high, further studies are needed to develop a specific sample preparation technique.