Opportunities and Features of the Palynological Analysis Application on Various Types of Archaeological Sites

A wide variety of archaeological sites associated with various human activity has led to the emergence of a wide range of problems solved by archaeological palynology. On the example of the palynological materials accumulated in the Laboratory of Nature Sciences of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the opportunities and features of the palynological analysis application are considered both on classical objects for Russian archaeopalynology (cultural layer, buried soils, defensive ramparts, burial mounds, etc.) and on non-traditional ones (latrines, vessels, funerary objects, ceramics, etc.). It is shown that the reconstruction of the natural environment, generally accepted for palynology, is mainly possible for the materials from long timed sites of shepherds in caves and rock shelters and cultural layers of sites, settlements, hillforts. Materials obtained from other objects (ancient and medieval arable lands, storage pits, latrines, the contents of ritual objects, vessels, and the gastrointestinal tract of the buried) give an idea of very local and short-term environmental conditions or events usually associated with economic and/or daily activities of a person, with his food, funerary rites and traditions. In this regard, the possibilities of the palynological method and the purposes will be different for each specific research. Recommendations for the sampling for palynological analysis are given for each specific case.

PALYNOLOGICAL STUDIES OF ARTIFACTS FROM CATACOMBS No. 97 AND No. 98 FROM THE DARGAVS CEMETERY: ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Даргавский могильник является одним из уникальных памятников на юге России. где сохранились немногочисленные. но информативные находки из органики. В 2019 г. в ходе раскопок Терским отрядом ИА РАН катакомб № 97 (IX в.) и 98 (втор. пол. VIII - перв. пол. IX в.) для палинологического анализа отобрано три образца: № 1 - содержимое кожаного мешочка (катакомба № 97). № 2 - бусина из помета (катакомба № 97) и № 3 - грунт из стеклянного стакана (катакомба № 98). По данным палинологического анализа установлено содержимое кожаного мешочка (мука или зерно) и стеклянного стакана (напиток. содержащий культурные злаки. или хлебное изделие. накрывающее стакан). принадлежность бусины. изготовленной из помета мелкого рогатого скота, определен сезон погребения в катакомбе № 97 (два первых летних месяца). Наличие хелицер клещей в мешочке и телиоспор головни в стакане может свидетельствовать о зараженности запасов вредителями и патогенными грибами. Результаты определения шерсти из катакомбы № 97 позволяют предположить, что на погребенной была верхняя одежда из овечьей шкуры. Изученные находки тесно связаны с дохристианскими представлениями оставившего могильник раннесредневекового населения о непосредственной связи мира мертвых с плодородием и урожаем. The Dargavs cemetery is one of the unique sites in the South of Russia that has preserved few but informative organic residue. In 2019 during the excavations of catacombs No. 97 (9 century) and No. 98 (second half of the 8 - first half of the 9 century the Terskiy team of the Institute of Archaeology, RAS, selected three samples for palynological analysis. Sample No. 1 is contents of a small leather bag (Catacomb No. 97); Sample No. 2 is a bead from animal droppings (catacomb No. 97) and Sample No. 3 - soil from a glass tumbler (catacomb No. 98). The palynological analysis established the contents of the leather bag (flour or grains) and the glass tumbler (a drink containing cultivated gramineous plants or some bread stuff placed over the glass tumbler), the origin of the bead made from droppings of goats or sheep. The season of the burial in catacomb No. 97 was determined as the first two summer months. Presence of the chelicerae of ticks in the bag and teliospores of blight in the tumbler suggests that the stored food was contaminated with pests and pathogenic fungi. The determination of wool in catacomb No. 97 suggests that the buried person wore an outer coat made from sheep skin. The examined finds are closely related with pre-Christian beliefs of the early medieval population that has left this cemetery concerning direct links between the world of the dead and fertility and harvest.

Occurrence of Tankhoy field coals in South Baikal bottom sediments

The purpose of the study is to describe the first finds of coal-bearing clays and coals in the bottom sediments of the southern basin of Lake Baikal and compare them with terrestrial coal-bearing deposits of the Tankhoy field. Comparative analysis of the lithological composition and colour of bottom sediments and terrestrial sections, as well as the concentration of organic carbon and conducted palynological analysis allowed their correlation. At the lake’s depth of 900 m the authors discovered a coal-bearing strata in situ (st 56), which later was stratigraphically correlated with the terrestrial coalbearing part of the Tankhoy suite. The fragments of coal found in bottom sediments basically along the entire Tankhoy field, especially bedrock coals on the underwater slope in South Baikal up to 1300 m deep prove the distribution of the coal-bearing part of the Tankhoy suite in the sublacustrine part of the lake throughout the entire slope (from 5 to 10 km offshore) and confirm the distribution area of the Tankhoy paleolake over a significant area of the contour of modern southern basin of Lake Baikal. The finds of coal-bearing strata on these and other various sub-bottom depths, i.e. under various pressure and temperature conditions, suggest that coals themselves and coal-bearing mudstones may be a generation facility of secondary microbial methane. This should be taken into account when searching for gas hydrocarbon and gas hydrate accumulations as well as assessing methane cycles in Lake Baikal.

New Oligocene to Early Miocene Palynomorph Zonation of GZ-1 Well, Onshore Western Niger Delta, Nigeria

Palynological studies was carried out on GZ-1 well from the onshore western Niger Delta in order to recognized a new detected developments in the varieties of key pollen and spore taxa that have shorter and more distinguished interval zones to advance stratigraphical delineation. Palynological analysis was carried out using the conventional maceration technique for recovering acid insoluble organic-walled microfossils from sediments. The result yielded rich and diversified palynomorphs. The main assemblage were dominated by angiosperm pollen grain (dominant global flora from Late Cretaceous onwards) followed by pteridophytes/bryophyte spore. Dinoflagellate cysts, on the contrast, were less diverse while the Gymnosperm pollen were scarce. The identified palynomorph were used to establish seven main zones - AF1 Psilatricolporites crassus zone, AF2 Verrucatosporites usmensis zone, AF3 Triplochiton scleroxylon zone, AF4 Crassoretitriletes vanraadshooveni zone, AF5 Acrostichum aureum zone, AF6 Gemmatriporites ogwashiensis zone and AF7 Retitricolporites irregularis zone in this study. Established on quantitative events, the zones were also divided into seven subzones with some having finer subdivisions into (a) and (b) ranging in age from Early Oligocene to Early Miocene. Previous unfiled event trends of important indicator taxa of spores and pollen accredited to Pelliceria, Caesalapinoideae, Stenochlaena palustris, Polypodiaceae, Lygodium microphyllum, Polypodiaceae, Adiantaceae and Amanoa (Euphorbiaceae) have assisted improvement of formerly used palynological zonation schemes in the Niger Delta. It is anticipated that this quantitative zonation scheme erected, will help with imminent palynostratigraphical studies in the onshore Niger delta area.

HISTORY OF THE SOLOTVYNO HOLLOW OF TRANSCARPATHIA RELIEF DEVELOPMENT

The analysis of four stages of relief development is done, which created the corresponding complexes within the Solotvyno hollow. The main attention is paid to the morphostructural and morphosculptural features. The morphostructures of the third and fourth orders are distinguished. Among the elements of morphosculpture the main attention is paid to denudation and denudation-accumulative surfaces (Kycherska, Skrydeyska, Boronyavska). The role of the new technological movements in the formation of these surfaces and river valleys was rated. The second stage of the upper baden is associated with the retreat of the sea basin and the division of the land into mountains. The main features of the modern relief were formed in the Pliocene Pleistocene stage - a river network with a complex of terraces, denudation and denudation-accumulative surfaces, quest forms in the marginal zone. Age of the Kicherska denudation surface is pannon-pont. According to the palynological analysis, the estimated age of the Skrydei denudation-accumulative surface is upper pliocene-lower pleistocene. The age of the Boronyava surface is considered to be Eopleistocene, and pebbles of metamorphic rocks are present in its alluvium (up to 5%). In the modern period, newer differentiated tectonic movements have become more active, which have contributed to the active manifestation of exogenous processes: erosion, landslides, and halogen karst. Key words: denudation and denudation-accumulative surfaces; power of ancient alluvium; modern morphodynamic processes.

Late Cretaceous Palynostratigraphy of Subsurface Sediments of Southern Bornu Basin, Nigeria: Implications For Depositional Environments And Palaeoclimate.

Presented in this study are the findings of a cross-examination of the subsurface stratigraphic successions (1500-4600 m) penetrated by the Gaibu-1 well, Bornu Basin, NE Nigeria to understand the palaeoenvironmental settings and the palaeoclimatic conditions of the sediments. Sedimentological/textural description, lithological identification and palynological analysis were carried out using standard laboratory procedures and wireline (gamma-ray and SP) logs. The sediments consist predominantly of sandstone, siltstone, sandy shale, and shale. The sandstones range from fine-coarse, angular to sub-rounded, moderate to poorly sorted, and are texturally immature. Five (5) stratigraphic sub-divisions; the Bima, the Yolde, the Gongila, the Fika (Upper, Middle and Lower members) and the Gombe formations were identified. The palynozonation enabled four distinctive zones: (i) A (1) Triorites africaensis Assemblage Zone, (ii) A (2) Cretacaeiporites scabratus / Odontochitina costata Assemblage Zone, (iii) A (3) Droseridites senonicus Assemblage Zone, A (4) Syncolporites/Milfordia spp. Assemblage Zone. These suggest the well penetrated Cenomanian – Maastrichtian (younger) successions, interpreted to have been deposited in a series of continental to marginal marine environments. The sediments are characterised by palynofloral assemblages that are indicative of a tropical to subtropical climate condition that is warm and humid, which correspond to the late Cretaceous Palmae Province of Africa – Southern America.

Qualitative analysis of Apis mellifera L. honey in an ecotone area in the Bahian semiarid

This study aimed to identify the pollen types of 11 honey samples produced in apiaries of two cities in the State of Bahia, Brazil: Antônio Gonçalves (five samples) and Campo Formoso (six samples); to verify richness and diversity from each apiary and to compare the similarity among them. The samples were obtained from beekeepers according to the period of production and availability. The palynological analysis of these samples followed the standard procedures of melissopalynology with the use of acetolysis. The pollen types occurring in the honey samples were identified and at least 1,000 pollen grains per sample were counted to determine the frequency classes and the frequency of occurrence. Overall, 147 pollen types were detected, of which 143 are distributed in 35 botanical families. The most representative families concerning the number of pollen types were: Fabaceae (33), Asteraceae (18), Euphorbiaceae (11), Anacardiaceae and Malvaceae (09 types each), Rubiaceae (08) and Myrtaceae (07). The average value of pollen types per sample was 28.18. The genus that contributed the most was Mimosa L. (Fabaceae) with eight pollen types detected. The wealth of pollen types found revealed important information about the local flora which is explored by Apis mellifera. Therefore, it becomes an important tool to assist in the preservation and propagation of these plants and, consequently, increasing honey production.

Changes of microorganism composition in fresh and stored bee pollen from Southern Germany

Analysis of plant pollen can provide valuable insights into the existing spectrum of microorganisms in the environment. When harvesting bee-collected pollen as a dietary supplement for human consumption, timely preservation of the freshly collected pollen is fundamental for product quality. Environmental microorganisms contained in freshly collected pollen can lead to spoilage by degradation of pollen components. In this study, freshly collected bee pollen was sampled at different locations and stored under various storage conditions to examine the hypothesis that storage conditions may have an effect on the composition of microorganisms in pollen samples. The samples were analyzed using 16S and 18S amplicon sequencing and characterized by palynological analysis. Interestingly, the bacterial communities between pollen samples from different locations varied only slightly, whereas for fungal community compositions, this effect was substantially increased. Further, we noticed that fungal communities in pollen are particularly sensitive to storage conditions. The fungal genera proportion Cladosporium and Mycosphaerella decreased, while Zygosaccharomyces and Aspergillus increased during storage. Aspergillus and Zygosaccharomyces fractions increased during storage at 30 °C, which could negatively impact the pollen quality if it is used as a dietary supplement.

Detecting human impacts: Non-Pollen Palynomorphs as proxies for human impact on the environment

Human impact inferred from palynological analysis is an important field of investigation among palaeoecological studies. Reconstructing and quantifying human impact (e.g. farming activities, clearing, fire, erosion process) is an important step to understand how, when and to what extent humans have changed ecosystems and landscape during the Holocene. The study of Non-Pollen Palynomorphs (NPPs) has opened a new field of investigation and improved our knowledge of past human impact. However, NPPs analysis further is a “young science” and questions about their specific use to highlight human activities have been arising. In addition to taxa used as anthropogenic indicators in palynology, NPPs provide reliable information about human impact, in terms of grazing pressure, soil erosion, fire in relation with land management and lakes eutrophication. We propose here a review of current knowledge on the use of NPPs as proxies for human impact, with emphasis on the contribution of modern studies. The purpose of this chapter is to explore some specific questions that both beginners and more experienced scientists may have about methodology in data acquisition and result interpretation. Each section addresses a specific question and a choice of examples illustrates the potential of NPPs as anthropogenic indicators. As Shumilovskikh and van Geel (2020) have recently published a paper about NPPs in archaeological context, we have focused on the use of NPPs as anthropogenic indicators in studies investigating natural archives such as lakes and wetlands.