Logo SPP2361

SPP2361
On the Way to the Fluvial Anthroposphere


Duration: 04/2022 - 03/2025
Funding: DFG

Partners: Prof. Dr. Anja Linstädter1, Prof. Dr. Natascha Mehler2, Prof. Dr. Christoph Zielhofer3, Dr. Peter Kühn4, PD Dr. Lukas Werther5, Prof. Dr. Gerrit Schenk6, Prof. Dr. Peter Frenzel7, Prof. Dr. Sigrid Hirbodian8

1 University of Potsdam, Biodiversity Research / Systematic Botany, Potsdam, Germany
2 University of Tübingen, Department of Medieval Archaeology, Tübingen, Germany
3 Leipzig University, Institute of Geography, Leipzig, Germany
4 University of Tübingen, Soil Science and Geomorphology, Tübingen, Germany
5 German Archaeological Institute, Romano-Germanic Commission, Frankfurt am Main, Germany    
6 Technical University Darmstadt, Institute of History, Darmstadt, Germany
7 Friedrich Schiller University of Jena, Institute of Geosciences, Jena, Germany
8 University of Tübingen, Faculty of Humanities, Department of History, Tübingen, Germany

photo: U. Werban
photo: U. Werban

Within the two projects described below as part of the DFG priority program "Towards the fluvial anthroposphere", geophysical methods are being used to map fluvial systems over large areas. Filled-in channels, buried trenches and palaeosols are of particular interest. The also used direct push methods support the derivation of the respective floodplain stratigraphy through high-resolution.

Local pathways to the fluvial anthroposphere at Echaz (Rhine) and Eger (Danube).
A comparative analysis from 1100 to 1800 AD.

The aim is to provide a multidisciplinary description of fluvial societies and floodplains by integrating archaeological, geoscientific and historical research approaches. Floodplains of two similar southern German 3rd order karst rivers, the Echaz (Rhine) and the Eger (Danube) and their tributaries will be systematically compared in trends in socio-ecologicalprocesses in the Middle Ages and pre-industrial modern times. Both floodplains have been profoundly altered in very different local ways.
Our focus lies on the reconstruction and analysis of hydropower utilization and hydraulic engineering, urban crafts, waste disposal and land use. This makes it possible to trace formative effects on the floodplain and identify new indicators for anthropogenic influences. These information help with spatiotemporal modeling in order to obtain transferable and scalable results.

photo: M. Pohle
photo: M. Pohle
photo: U. Werban
photo: U. Werban

Lower Havel region and Donaumoos region: "Failed" or "successful" reclamation of floodplains and peatlands - a comparative analysis.

photo: S. Birnstengel
photo: S. Birnstengel
Since the Holocene, large parts of riverine floodplains and peatlands have been massively altered by human interventions such as deforestation, land reclamation and hydraulic engineering. The main objective of this interdisciplinary project is a comparative assessment of land use, reclamation, hydraulic engineering and ecological changes in two fluvial socio-ecological systems in Central Europe: the Lower Havel region and the Danube Moss region. Here, we reconstruct human interventions using a multi-methodological approach. We use findings from historical archaeology, geosciences and plant ecology to understand the interactions between climate, hydro-sedimentary dynamics, vegetation, society and material culture as well as socio-ecological transitions. The retrospective study of these processes helps us to better understand current impacts of climate change and human interventions on these fragile socio-ecological systems and to contribute to the discussions on cultural heritage, restoration and rewetting.