Format: Paper presentations with discussion
Convenors::
Amy Gusick
Natural History Museum Los Angeles County, USA
agusick@nhm.org
Chelsea Wiseman
Flinders University, Australia
chelsea.wiseman@flinders.edu.au
Jonathan Benjamin
Flinders University, Australia
jonathan.benjamin@flinders.edu.au
Since MIS 5e, when eustatic sea level was last similar to present conditions, global ice volume has fluctuated significantly, reaching its extent at the end of the last glacial maximum (LGM) circa 20,000 years ago. During this 100,000-year period, sea levels were substantially lower than they are today and large swaths of previously inundated land were exposed. This coincides with significantdispersals of anatomically modern Homo sapiens across the globe. The movement of peoples would have been facilitated by these exposed terrestrial environments, offering migration pathways and evolving, coastal habitats. With the current reduction in global ice volumes, sea levels have inundated approximately 20 million square km of cultural landscapes since the LGM. These now-submerged cultural environments would have been inhabited for millennia. Such a massive inundation challenges our ability to address the timing and nature of some of the most significant migrations and dispersals in human history. In some cases the archaeological record is truncated, leaving researchers no choice but to investigate these drowned places. As archaeologists and scientists have begun to acknowledge this, the past decades have seen an increase in research focused on submerged paleolandscapes. Worldwide, social scientists are collaborating with marine and geoscience disciplines to understand the history of the vast submerged paleolandscapes integral to our understanding of human cultures around the world.
Papers:
Research Advancements on the Submerged Cultural Landscapes of the Eastern Pacific Rim
Amy Gusick, Natural History Museum, Los Angeles County, USA
Jillian Maloney, San Diego State University, USA
Roslynn King, Colorado School of Mines, USA
Starting ~20,000 years ago, the eastern Pacific Rim region was subject to massive sea level rise, inundating previously exposed lands and causing significant changes to ecosystems and landforms. This massive inundation coincides with the currently understood timing of initial human dispersals into what is now North and South America. Recognizing that the drowned palaeolandscapes of this region may hold data integral to the story of our human migration histories, social scientists across the region have been collaborating with marine and geoscience disciplines and traditional knowledge holders to define the submerged cultural landscapes of the eastern Pacific Rim. The ecological and cultural hot spot of the Southern California Bight has been a focus for this research. Recent discoveries on the submerged landscapes of this region have added to our understanding of the paleoenvironment and palaeolandscape at a critical point in our human history, and show the importance of submerged landscapes to research on human dispersals and adaptations around the globe.
Recent Developments from the Submerged Cultural Landscape of Murujuga Sea Country, Northwest Shelf (Dampier Archipelago), Western Australia
Jonathan Benjamin, Archaeology, Flinders University, Australia
In 2020 the Deep History of Sea Country project team published the discovery of two underwater archaeological sites in Murujuga Sea Country (Dampier Archipelago), Western Australia. Further lab analysis and field-based observations have been since undertaken, and these contribute to our understanding of the submerged sites within the broader setting within this rich cultural landscape. An update to our initial field observations will be provided with special reference to site formation and preservation on the submerged continental shelf. A brief discussion will be undertaken regarding heritage protection, as these sites represent a case study application for the protection of Indigenous underwater cultural heritage in Australia with wider implications for tropical environments around the Asia Pacific Region.
The Crossing of Bass Strait and Underwater Cultural Heritage
Cos Coroneos, Cosmos Archaeology, Australia
A proposal to construct a high-voltage direct current electricity interconnector across Bass Strait, south-eastern Australia has resulted in the assessment of potential impacts to underwater cultural heritage across three Australian jurisdictions. Known as Marinus Link the project has had to satisfy the statutory requirements of heritage related legislation in the States of Tasmania and Victoria and of the Commonwealth (Federal) Government.
The resulting Underwater Cultural Heritage and Archaeology Impact Assessment accessed historical records, examined marine geophysical and geotechnical data as well as undertook diving inspections. The assessment identified a number of submerged terrestrial features such as buried estuarine channels and beach ridges. There is also evidence of a large lake between Tasmania and the mainland, speculated but now demonstrated, which would have dominated the physical and societal landscapes in the terminal Pleistocene.
This paper discusses the approach to assessment and its findings with an emphasis on how it satisfied the requirements for three jurisdictions with their own varying management attitudes and practices. The paper will also touch on the challenges in assessing maritime (primarily localised sites such as shipwrecks) and First Nations archaeology (predominantly through association with submerged terrestrial landscapes).
Modelling the Archaeological Potential of Palaeolandscapes in Torres Strait, Australia
Georgina Skelly, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia
Archaeological finds in terrestrial environments of Australia and New Guinea demonstrate that people occupied the wider Sahul region for tens of millennia prior to the Terminal Pleistocene marine transgression. The submerged landscapes of northeast Australia have the potential to fill gaps in understanding the arrival of people on mainland Australia. Torres Strait is a key research area that can shed light on gaps in the archaeological record as a former land bridge connecting Australia with New Guinea. Investigating submerged landscapes poses logistical and methodological challenges. In this presentation we discuss new methodological approaches developed for investigating the geomorphological impacts of sea-level rise on former terrestrial landscapes and consider the cultural implications of those impacts. Palaeolandscape modelling is used to provide a foundation for understanding social and cultural responses to changing land and seascapes. Based on modelled results, palaeolandscapes with moderate-high archaeological potential as ancient settlement foci can be identified. Results have implications for future archaeological investigation in the Torres Strait – terrestrial and submerged – and for the management of cultural sites belonging to people whose cultural landscapes are not defined by sea-level and whose homes are again faced with the challenges of rising sea-levels.
Braided Knowledge Systems and Palaeochannels: Ground Modelling, Archaeological Research, Intangible Cultural Landscapes, and Challenges for Submerged Palaeolandscapes Research Within Offshore Development in Australia
Hanna Steyne and Andy Emery, Wessex Archaeology, UK
Our western scientific understanding of the distribution, chronology, preservation, and archaeological potential of submerged palaeolandscapes on the Australian continental shelf is currently very limited, but engineering datasets collected for offshore development offer an opportunity to address this data gap. These landscapes offer potential to identify and date the first human arrivals to the Australian continent, and understand the movements, lifeways, and material culture of the First Australians.
The First Peoples of Australia know that they have always been a part of Country and the Quaternary sea-level changes and the associated impact on landscape/seascape are familiar to many coastal and saltwater First Peoples of Australia who preserve this knowledge within oral histories and maintain connections to terrestrial places now buried and submerged offshore.
This paper discusses a range of challenges for submerged palaeolandscape modelling in Australia within the context of offshore development. Some of the opportunities that holistic approaches to data collection, analysis, and interpretation offer will be discussed, along with opportunities for braiding western scientific and Indigenous knowledge systems to ensure that First Nations voices, histories, and wishes are centred throughout the process.
Life On the Edge: Innovative Approaches to Submerged Landscape Studies Across Multiple Cultural Landscapes and Marine Basins
Simon Fitch, Jessica Cook-Hale and Robyn Pelling, Submerged Landscapes Research Centre, School of Archaeological and Forensic Sciences, University of Bradford, UK
The need to identify, assess, analyse, and protect submerged archaeological landscapes becomes more pressing by the day as offshore development initiatives gather momentum to meet the global challenge of climate change. Such sites contain invaluable information about human responses to the last period during which our species had to adapt to rapid climate changes and relative sea level rise. They are also some of the most vulnerable and difficult to detect components of submerged cultural heritage due to their small size, composition of natural materials such as stone, wood, and bone, and comparatively ephemeral nature compared to marine cultural heritage sites such as shipwrecks. In this paper, we present results from our work at the UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship Life On The Edge (LOTE) project at the University of Bradford. LOTE is designed to meet these challenges, pioneer new methods in submerged landscape prospection for the Late Palaeolithic, innovate more accessible means for public engagement and stakeholders, and improve the overall state of the art and science of submerged landscape studies across multiple regions of the globe with diverse archaeological cultures. We specifically highlight our recent work on the Adriatic coast, the Gulf of Mexico, and Japan.
Echoes of Land and Sea: A Geoarchaeological Exploration of Submerged Palaeolandscapes at Isla Espíritu Santo, Mexico
Mayra Del Carmen Robles-Montes, Instituto Politécnico Nacional-Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Mexico
Morgan F. Smith, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga, USA
Enrique H. Nava-Sánchez, Departamento de Oceanología, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, México
Isla Espíritu Santo in Mexico is archaeologically significant as it contains one of the oldest known settlement records in the Baja California peninsula, dating back to ca. 12.5 ka. This island is believed to have been part of the migratory routes along the western North American Pacific associated with the Paleocoastal tradition. By employing the seismic reflection geophysical method and analysing the geological characteristics of the region’s coastal dynamics, we could identify morphological features of ancient shorelines and various acoustic anomalies. This research significantly enhances our understanding of the submerged palaeolandscapes, allowing us to propose interpretations of settlement patterns observed at current terrestrial sites and potential submerged prehistoric locations.
Findings from Florida: Perspectives on Submerged Landscape Research from the Epicentre of the Discipline in North America
Morgan Smith, University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, USA
Jessi J. Halligan- Texas A&M University, USA
The State of Florida in the United States hosts the densest recorded concentration of submerged Indigenous archaeological sites in North America, possibly the world. These resources range from sites that contribute to the understanding of the peopling of the Western Hemisphere, the extinction and extirpation of megafauna at the end of the Pleistocene, adaptations to climate change before, during, and after the Younger Dryas, human response to sea level rise, adaptation to coastal resources, funerary rituals, and Indigenous watercraft. Further, these sites often are repositories of paleontological, geological, and biological data that expand understanding of climate trends in the Eastern United States and Circum-Gulf region. This presentation will briefly summarise Florida’s role in the establishment of submerged landscape studies in North America. Then, discussion will ensue over the state of the art of Florida-based underwater archaeological research, highlighting recent and ongoing studies of submerged landscapes both inland and offshore. Last, the presentation will describe current efforts to re-evaluate and shape policy on submerged landscapes studies in the Gulf of Mexico over the next decade and beyond.
Occurrence and Preservation of Tangible Heritage: A Western Scientific Approach to Submerged Palaeolandscapes
Amanda Evans, Gray & Pape Inc., USA
In the United States of America, regulations and guidelines influence the study of submerged palaeolandscapes and engagement with Tribal Nations and traditional owners. During the conduct of geophysical surveys, these guidelines focus on the identification and perceived significance of tangible remains. Survey methods broadly follow universal best practices of geophysical survey followed by ground truthing of potential targets. This approach varies based on the project area’s specific geological or oceanographic conditions and instrumentation used, but there is growing evidence that the data being collected as part of development-led projects doesn’t satisfy the information needs of traditional owners. The US Federal Government is directed to seek free, prior, and informed consent from recognised Tribal Nations as part of the environmental permitting process. Developers then have an obligation to provide scientific reports of findings that present the results of geophysical and geotechnical surveys, prepared by qualified marine archaeologists, that make recommendations on what resources may or may not be present in the area, or affected by the proposed project. This paper will review the standard methods applied to compliance surveys and discuss some of the specific concerns raised by Tribal Nations about the review process, and specifically the presentation of data.
Advancements for Understanding Landscape Preservation on the North American Outer Continental Shelf
Neil Puckett, Maritime Principal Investigator, SEARCH LLC, USA
Ben Wells, Maritime Project Manager, SEARCH LLC, USA
Preserved fluvial features on the North American Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) have been investigated for decades, with the most comprehensive efforts occurring in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM). Scientists in the GOM have identified an extensive network of paleo-rivers and associated archaeological preservation at numerous locations such as Manasota Key Offshore, the Florida Big Bend, and the Paleo-Sabine River. Offshore wind development along the Atlantic coast has spring-boarded similar research in the northeast and central Atlantic. A broad network of drowned and buried ancient fluvial systems on the Atlantic OCS is in the process of being mapped. This research includes both remote sensing and coring designed to delineate and date ancient rivers, reconstruct ancient environments, and understand changing palaeolandscapes. Geoarchaeologists have focused their efforts on fluvial margins, terraces, and floodplains. This paper considers expectations for the preservation of intact fluvial margins, floodplains, and upland surfaces adjacent to ancient rivers on the OCS. We discuss our success identifying intact margin deposits immediately adjacent to drowned fluvial systems. We also review recent efforts to test for the preservation of terraces and floodplains overlooking fluvial systems where archaeological sites associated with past human occupation are most likely to occur.
Climate Change and the Revelation of Palaeolandscapes in the South American Lowlands: A Debate on the Ponta das Lajes Archaeological Site, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil
Jaime de Santana Oliveira, Arqueólogo do Instituto do Patrimônio Histórico Artístico Nacional, Brazil
This paper aims to present the Ponta das Lajes Archaeological Site, inserted in the context of the palaeolandscapes of the South American lowlands, revealed by climate change, and discuss the occupations of the Mid-Holocene in the Brazilian Amazon. To date, it is known that the teleconnections between El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and the warming of the Tropical North Atlantic (+TNA) play a critical role in the characterisation of extreme drought events in the Amazon Basin (AB). These climate changes caused the river to drop to a level not previously recorded in the last 100 years, thus revealing several archaeological sites that were submerged, revealing the way of life of groups that inhabited the region in the distant past. Among the various sites highlighted, this research dedicated to investigating the Ponta das Lajes archaeological site, located in an urban area of the municipality of Manaus, Amazonas State. As a methodological procedure, we adopted a bibliographic survey, technical visits, extensive prospecting and mapping of rock engravings over a period of two years (2023 and 2024).
The Potential Use of the Argentine Continental Shelf During the Human Colonisation of Southern South America
Atilio Francisco Zangrando, Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas (CADIC-CONICET), Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Juan Federico Ponce, Centro Austral de Investigaciones Científicas (CADIC-CONICET), Instituto de Ciencias Polares, Ambiente y Recursos Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Tierra del Fuego
The analysis of human colonisation of the southern tip of South America involves exploring diverse environmental and ecological changes, in addition to the important geographic transformations due to the retreat of ice fields and marine transgression during the Late Glacial. This communication examines the human colonisation of southern Patagonia (south of 47° latitude) between 15,000 and 10,000 cal yr BP, focusing on environmental and geographic transformations during the Late Glacial and Early Holocene. Using palaeogeographic models and Least Cost Path Analysis simulations via Geographic Information System (GIS), we explored potential dispersal pathways influenced by sea-level changes and spatial conditions. Results indicate the Argentine Continental Shelf likely facilitated early hunter-gatherer dispersal, offering potentially favourable ecological niches and habitation conditions. These tendencies align with evidence of a geographically discontinuous human presence across the plateau sectors during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition.
Seabed Mapping and Documenting of Underwater Features in the Area of Sozopol Peninsula, South Bulgarian Coast
Preslav Peev, Dept of Marine Geology and Archaeology, Institute of Oceanology, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Bulgaria
The paper presents the research methodology of an interdisciplinary project “The ‘land-sea’ interaction along the Western Black Sea: geoarchaeological and historical-geographical study“, (Grant Agreement no KП-06-Н-70/4) dedicated to the study of the land-sea interaction along the southern part of the Western Black Sea coast. The research area covers the Strandzha mountain coast, as well as the islands of Sveti Ivan and Sveti Petar, which provide favourable conditions for human activities since ancient times.
The research aims to establish the real factors and the regular features in the behaviour of local communities in the context of economic and cultural land-sea interaction in the Western Black Sea coastal area from prehistory to the end of the medieval period. The integrated and interdisciplinary approaches are the main methods applied to achieving the research goal. The article discusses the objectives and the advantages of geoarchaeological methods and GIS application in integrating geological, palaeogeographic, historical, and archaeological data. Geophysical and geological surveys were conducted for identification of underwater sites.
Bridging Disciplines: Exploring Submerged Late Pleistocene Landscapes and Human Adaptations Along the European Atlantic Coast
Jasmine Mifsud, University of Cantabria, Spain
Professor Pablo Arias, University of Cantabria, Spain
Collaboration between geoscience and marine archaeology promises a fruitful outcome in the exploration of underwater prehistoric environments, offering a better understanding of paleo-environmental changes and how prehistoric groups interacted with them. The climatic shifts required a specific response from the living environment, affecting the ways of life of Upper Palaeolithic Communities.
The focus of this study addresses the integration of geoscience and marine archaeology by examining the seabed along the European Atlantic Coastline using geophysical analysis. Through seabed mapping and cultural landscape interpretation, the study investigates how geophysical features have evolved over time and how these transformations may have influenced human adaptations in search for more suitable living conditions. Therefore, by reconstructing the environmental conditions of the past, it will be possible to identify regions with a high probability of possessing evidence of human activity and improve the chances of discovering submerged prehistoric sites.
The European Atlantic coastline serves as the ideal case study due to its situation along different latitudes, providing significant information on geological and climatic transformations. By bridging the two distinct disciplines, this research not only uncovers the past but also provides an understanding on how humans adapted to past climatic challenges, offering insight for the future.
Beyond Submerged Landscapes: SUBNORDICA and the Next Generation of Research
Geoff Bailey, University of York, UK, and Flinders University, Australia
In the past two decades there has been a growing momentum of interest and activity in the investigation of submerged landscapes, with many new research programs across the world, notably in Europe, the Americas, South Africa and Australia. Increasingly, these involve large teams and international collaboration, notably the EU-funded SPLASHCOS research and training network and the ERC-funded SUBNORDICA project. The research landscape is constantly changing with the development of new techniques and technologies, new discoveries, and much enthusiasm about the potential of underwater research. At the same time, the discipline remains in a pioneer stage of development, with ongoing scepticism or uncertainty about whether archaeological and cultural remains can be revealed through purposeful and systematic search strategies, and whether this new discipline can really produce results that deliver on its aspiration to transform narratives of world (pre)history. One of the key challenges is the problem of integrating whole-landscape reconstructions using ship-based remote sensing and coring offshore and in deep water, and site-specific investigations by divers, usually in shallow water and inshore locations. I will survey some of the issues currently emerging in current research, and likely directions in the coming decades.
Subsistence of Submerged Cave Dwellers of Song Toyapakeh at Nusa Penida, Bali, Based on Archaeological Remains
Mimi Savitri, Gendro Keling, Ati Rati Hidayah, I Wayan Sumerata, Afifah Sholihah, I Putu Yuda Haribuana, I Gusti A.A. Eka Sri Wahyuni, Dept of Archaeology, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia
Song Toyapakeh is the only submerged cave in Indonesia which indicates past human subsistence activities. Findings from the cave located in the boundary of Sunda Land include faunal bones and artifacts located at a depth of 16 m below sea level. The faunal bones were identified as cervidae, elephantid families and turtles. Artifacts were found in the form of tools to support their survival. The evidence shows that the cave had been on land and inhabited by humans in the late Pleistocene period.
The research conducted scuba diving for collecting data, using landscape archaeology approach, and comparison methods to reveal the subsistence of inhabitants of Song Toyapakeh during climate change. The subsistence of underwater cave dwellers is important to examined as it has the potential to fill the knowledge gap not only related to Indonesia, but also related to world prehistory during the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene era. Reconstructing subsistence under these conditions provide valuable insights into the adaptation and subsistence strategies of cave-dwelling humans.
Unifying Submerged and Terrestrial Edaphic Records to Reconstruct the Acheulean Landscape of Lesvos Island, Greece
Nena Galanidou and Peny Tsakanikou, Dept of History and Archaeology, University of Crete, Greece
Simon Kübler, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Dept of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lehrstuhl für Geologie, München, Germany
Rodafnidia, an Acheulean site on the Lisvori Basin on Lesvos Island, Greece currently frames Lower Palaeolithic research at NE Mediterranean. Stone tools have been excavated from fluvio-lacustrine deposits at Rodafnidia by the Kalloni Gulf and collected through extensive ground surface surveys over the southern and western part of the island. Rodafnidia is pIR-IR225 K-feldspar dated to the second half of the Middle Pleistocene. The ages obtained for the sediments provide only minimum age range for hominin presence and activity around the site. Lower Palaeolithic hominin activity took place over topographically complex, volcanic landscapes, with abundant and diverse natural resources, including thermal springs, volcanic rocks, water resources (palaeochannels) and the Kalloni palaeolake. Sea-level drop during the glacial periods, resulted to the exposure of extensive terrain in areas previously dominated by marine environments, forming landbridges and expanding the productive zones for resource extraction between the land and the sea. Here we present our groundbreaking work to study landscape suitability, off-and on-shore, using the study of edaphics. Our aim is to identify areas that would have been preferentially targeted or avoided by hominins in an attempt to unify terrestrial and underwater records into a holistic consideration of the Lesvos palaeolandscape and its affordances.
Discussant
Peter Veth, University of Western Australia, Australia
It is over a decade since the SPLASHCOS initiative was funded. That research network was supported by the European Commission under its Cooperation in Science and Technology program. Its stated aim was to bring together archaeologists, marine geoscientists, heritage agencies and industrial organisations to research, manage and preserve archives of archaeological and palaeoclimatic information, in this case from the drowned landscapes of the European continental shelf. In this presentation the Discussant will review papers from the Submerged Paleolandscape Symposium, reflect on advances made in theory and method from the last decade, and comment on where new and novel information about past peoples and lifeways is being generated from submerged sites and places.