Geology, Paleoenvironments and the Straigraphic Position of the Wallertheim Find Horizins
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Geology, Paleoenvironments and the Straigraphic Position of the Wallertheim Find Horizins
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REPORTS
FOR
THE
SE OND
W LLERTHEIMWORKSHOP
Tubingen,March23-25,1997
aU6ingm.
Edited
by
Nicholas
J.
Canard
and
Andrew
W.
KandelInstitutfurUr-undFruhgeschichteUniversitatTubingenSecondPrinting
WALLERTHEIMWORKSHOPIITubingen,
March
23-25,1997
GEOLOGY,
PALEOENVIRONMENTSAND
THESTRATIGRAPHIC
POSITION
OF
THE
W
ALLETHEIM
FIND
HORIZONS
I
PaulHaesaerts,
InstituteRoyaldesSciencesNaturellesdeBelgiqueRueVautier29B-I040BrusselsBELGIUM
Roger
Langohr
and
Geo-,Archaeo-andEcopedologyResearchGroupUniversityofGentKrijgslaan281/S8B-9000GentBELGIUM
Nicholas
J.
Conard
UniversitatTiibingen
Institut
furUr-und
Fruhgeschichte
AbteilungAltereUrgeschichteund
Quartarokologie
Schloss
Hohentubingen
D-72070TubingenGERMANY
The
bestplacetobeginareview
of
the
sedimentsinWallertheimiswiththework
ofSchmidtgen
andWagner.Intheirfigures,oneimmediatelyrecognizesthemaincharacteristics
of
thestratigraphy.TheseincludeTertiaryclaysatthebase
of
thesection;the
Talwegterrasse
andtheloessrestinguponit;asequence
of
fluviatiledepositsincludingthe
Fundschicht;
iron-rich,humicclays;humuswithcalciumcarbonateplates;andfinallythethickoverlyingdeposits
of
loess.Withfewexceptions,thegeologicalobservationsmadebySchmidtgenandWagnerhavebeenconfirmedbythecurrentresearch.Furthermore,thechronostratigraphicinterpretationpublishedin1929correspondsverycloselywiththepresentinterpretation.EventheagesproposedbySchmidtgenandWagner,basedon
Soergel s
(1925)publication
of
theMilankovitchcurve,areconsistentwithmodernchronometricdatesandotherstratigraphicarguments.Whilelaterworkhassupplementedourunderstanding
of
theQuaternaryprofileinWallertheim,theoriginaldescriptionprovidedresearcherswithanoutstandingstartingpoint.Ourpreliminaryresultsfromavariety
of
geoscientificmethodsfavorplacingthevastmajority
of
theWallertheimsequenceinthelastinterglacial-glacialcycle.Oldersedimentsincludethegravels
of
the
Talwegterrasse
andtheremnants
of
theloessfromthepenultimateglaciationthatrestuponthisterraceinthewesternpart
of
thesection.Stratigraphicallyoverlyingthesesediments,thoughnotnecessarilyhigherinelevation,followroughlyISm
of
fluviatileandloessicdeposits.Thecurrentstratigraphicsystemdividesthemainprofileintosixprimarysedimentarycycles.Cycles1-3arepart
of
thefluviatilesystem
of
theWiesbach,whileterrestrialsedimentscomprisethedeposits
of
cycles
4
6.Aquaticandsemi-aquaticspeciesfromthefirstthreecyclesincludepike
Esoxlucius ,
beaver
Castor
ji
er
andthewatervole
Avicolaterrestrisy.
Thesecyclescanbefurtherdividedtoafinerlevel
of
detail.Here,however,wewillconcernourselvesprimarilywiththemoresignificantaspects
of
theWallertheimsedimentsandtheirchronologicalandpaleoenvironmentalsignificance.
Sedimentary
cycle
1
beginswiththedepositionoffluviatileclaysandsiltswhichoverlythegravelsandTertiaryclayatthebase
of
thecentralandeasternpart
of
themainexcavationprofile.Here,aswithelsewhereinthefirstthreecycles,weseestronglateralfaciesshiftsfrommorefluviatiledepositsintheeasttomoreterrestrialdepositsinthewest.TheMiddlePaleolithicoccupation
of
findhorizonA(Figure1)liesinayellow-brownsiltwhichcorrespondstotheupperportion
of
thiscycleandbelongstoaperiod
of
aggradingfloodplainsedimentation.Casts
of
rootletsareubiquitouswithinthefindhorizonandindicatethepresence
of
agrassyvegetationatthetime
of
theoccupation.ThericharchaeologicalfindsfromhorizonAareinprimarycontextandshowlittleevidence
of
beingdisplacedbygeologicalorbiologicalforces.Thisphase
of
sedimentationendswiththeformation
of
asoilandbringscycleItoaclose.Thefindswithintheremnants
of
thissoilbelongtofindhorizonB(Figures1and2).Althoughitisplausiblethatthissoilisinter-Eemian,atpresent,itseemsmostlikelythatthissoilcorrelateswiththeEemianinterglacial.Faunalremainsincluding
Damadama
and
Susscrofa
fromfindhorizonsAandBsupportthiscorrelation.
I
ThisreportisanexcerptfromConard,HaesaertsandLangohr,
996
46
WALLERTHEIMWORKSHOPIITubingen,March23-25,1997
Sedimentary
cycle2beginswiththeerosion
of
thesoilandthereworking
of
thesoilandthefindsfromhorizonBintoirregularpockets.Overlyingthesepockets,particularlyinthewesternpart
of
theprofile,apoorlysortedgravelfollows.Thisperiod
of
sedimentaryinstabilityprobablycorrespondstotheend
of
theinterglacialandmaybepartiallyexplainedbyalocaldeclineinvegetation.Thisgravelliesatthebase
of
sedimentarycycle2andincludesthereworkedfinds
of
horizon
C.
Althoughthestratigraphicprofilesfromthe1920sdifferslightlyfromthecurrentones,theplacement
of
Schmidtgen s
Fundschicht
correspondsmostcloselytothat
of
findhorizon
C.
SchmidtgenandWagner scorrelation
of
the
Fundschicht
withthefirstcoolingafterthelastinterglacial,andtheirdating
of
thehorizonto110-113kyrremainsentirelyplausible.Overlyingthegravelsatthebase
of
cycle2severalclearlydefineddepositscontainfindhorizonsD,EandF(Figure1).Thefirst
of
thesedepositsisaea.SOcmthick,red-brown,clay-richsiltwithinwhichliesthearchaeologicallyimportanthorizonD.Thissedimentisanalluvialdepositwhichpinchesouttothewestasoneleavesthefluviatilesystemandentersthecolluvialsystem.Movingupwardintheprofile,wenextseeea.60cm
of
grayclaywithcleardeposits
of
ironoxideandblackorganicmaterial.Thelowerportion
of
thisdepositcontainsarichaccumulationofbovidremainsandasmallnumber
of
artifactsfromfindhorizonE.Faunalpreservationin
this
depositisexcellent,andmoreremarkably,botanicalremainshavealsobeenrecovered.ThebotanicalremainsincludeleavesidentifiedbyF.Damblonasblackpoplar,
Populusnigra.
Thisspecies
of
treelivestypicallyinmoistdrainagesandfloodplainsduringwarmerclimaticphases.Thesefinds,alongwithpreliminarymolluscandata,supportthegeologicalargumentsthathorizonEcorrespondstoawarmclimaticphaseandthatthedepositaccumulatedonamarshyfloodplain.Atpresent,weinterpretthisasthefirstwarmperiodaftertheEemianinterglacial,whichistheequivalent
of
isotopestageScorSt.GermainIfromthepollensequencefromGrandPile(Kukla1977,WoillardandMook1982).However,wecannotentirelyruleoutthatthesedimentsandfindsbelongtoone
of
theclimaticoscillationswithintheEemianinterglacial.
It
haslongbeensuspectedthatthelastinterglacialincludedsignificantclimaticoscillations.ThissuspicionhasrecentlybeensupportedbydatafromdetailedoxygenisotopemeasurementsfromGreenlandandnewbotanicalstudies(GRIP1993,Dansgaardetal.1993,Fieldetal.1994).Continuingupthestratigraphicprofilewithinsedimentarycycle2,wefindtheyoungestarchaeologicalmaterialsfromhorizonF.Thesefindsfromnearthetop
of
thegrayclayaredominatedbyabundantfaunalremains
of
horse.LikefindhorizonE,relativelyfewartifactshavebeenrecoveredfromthishorizon.Thisoftenclean,homogeneous,grayclayaccumulatedinalowenergysedimentarymilieuinamarshorwetfloodplain.Themajority
of
findsinhorizonsD,EandFare
insitu
andbelongtoperiods
of
sedimentaryaggradation.AlongwithhorizonsDandE,wefavorcorrelatinghorizonFwiththefirstclimaticameliorationfollowingthelastinterglacial.Atpresentitappearsthatthemajority
of
thefaunalmaterialfromhorizonsEandFaretheresult
of
naturalpaleontologicalaccumulationsindependent
of
hominidactivitiesintheWiesbachdrainage.Cycle3beginswithasiltysheet-washandsplashdepositonabaresurfaceorashallowpond.Atthistimeanerosionaleventisrecordedinthecentralportion
of
themainprofilewhereadepression1015mwideandlmdeepisreadilyvisible.Thebase
of
thisdepressionisfilledwithcross-beddedsands.Siltsandclaysthatoriginatefromthedeposits
of
cycles1and2andthesilty,whitesplashdepositsfromthebase
of
cycle3filltheupperportion
of
thedepression.BoringsbyJ.Preuss teamhavedemonstratedthatthisdepressioncanbefollowedmanytens
of
metersintothesedimentssouth
of
theprofile.Intactsedimentsfromcycles1and2areclearlyvisibleonboththeeasternandwesternsides
of
thedepression.Thiserosionaleventmayhaveresultedfromthedegradation
of
apermafrost.Followingtherapidfilling
of
thedepression,
ahydromorphic
soildocumentsapoormarshvegetation.Thissoilischaracterizedbylarge,verticallyoriented,ironoxide-filledbiogalleriesoccurringwithinastratifiedbrownsilt.Thetop
of
thissoilcorrespondstotheend
of
sedimentarycycle3.Withthestart
of
cycle4,weenteraterrestrialsystem
of
sedimentation.Hereamixtureofhumiferouseolianandcolluvialsiltandsandwasdepositedonagrasscoveredsurface.Thesesediments
47
WALLERTHEIM
WORKSHOP1ITubingen,March23-25,1997
correspondtoaperiod
of
verydryandcoldconditions.
The
depositcontainsobviousstratificationwith
many
recognizablebrownsiltbandsandareaswithvisiblemicrolayers
of
loess.Thesedepositsare
not
horizontal,butratherslopedownwardslightlyfrom
west
toeast.Noteworthyarethemany
thick
calciumcarbonateplates
that
followtheslope
of
thebeds.
The
ea.3m
thickhumic
depositsareeasilyidentifiedintheprofiles
of
W.
Wagner
andotherpublicationsaboutWallertheim.Wetentativelycorrelate
the
deposits
of
cycle3withisotopestage5band
the
deposits
of
cycle4withisotopestage5a.
Cycle
4endswithextremelycoldanddryconditionsduringwhichseveralcycles
of
permafrostproducedthermalretractioncracksextendingmorethan
two
metersinto
the
underlyingsediments.Wecorrelatethiscoldphasewith
the
start
of
isotopicstage4.Subsequently,loessblewoverthisbareornearlybaresurfaceandfilledthecracks.
Sedimentary
cycle5
beginswiththedeposition
of
loessuponwhichaweaklydevelopedchernozemforms.Evidence
of
freezingand
thawing
ispreserved,but
there
isnoevidenceforpermafrost.
The
top
of
thissoilisthenerodedfollowedby
the
deposition
of
stratifiedsilt,sandandveryfinegravel.
Cycle6
coincideswith
theonset
of
MiddleWeichselianloessdeposition.Withinthemainprofileapale
gray
tundrasoilispreservedintheeastern
part
of
the
exposureandcorrespondstoacoldclimaticphase.Thedepositsfromallsixsedimentarycyclesare
cut
byaseries
of
faultswhichdisplacethesedimentsbyseveraltens
of
centimeters.
The
genesis
of
thesemultiplefracturingandthrustingeventsisnotclear,but
most
plausibleexplanationsincorporateeithertectonicorpermafrostprocesses.
REFERENCES
Conard,
NJ.,
P.Haesaertsand.R.Langohr.1996.Quaternary
Geology
andPalaeolithicArchaeologyinWallertheimlRheinhessen.
Frankfurtergeowiss.Arbeiten
D,20:131-141.Dansgaard,W.S.,J.Johnsen,H.B.Clausen,D.Dahl-Jensen,
N.
S.Gundestrup,
C.
U.
Hammer,
C.
S.Hvidberg,J.P.Steffensen,
A.
E.Sveinbjornsdottir,J.JouzelandG.Bond.1993.Evidenceforgeneralinstability
of
pastclimatefroma
250-kyr
ice-corerecord.
Nature
364:218-220.FieldM.H.,
B.
HuntleyandH.Muller.1994.
Eemian
climaticfluctuationsobservedinaEuropeanpollenrecord.
Nature
371:779-783.GreenlandIce-coreProject
Members
(GRIP).1993.Climateinstabilityduringthelastinterglacialperiodrecordedinthe
GRIP
icecore.
Nature
364:203-207.
Kukla
G.1.1977.Pleistoceneland-seacorrelations.
Europe.
Earth-ScienceReviews
13:307-374.Schmidtgen,O.andW.
Wagner
1929.EinealtpalaolithischeJagdstellebeiWallertheiminRheinhessen.
NotizblattdesVereins
fur
Erdkunde
un
derHessischenGeologischenLandesanstaltzuDarmstadt
11:1-31.Soergel,W.1925.Die
Gliederung
undabsoluteZeitrechnungdesEiszeitalters(Berlin).WoillardG.M.andW.G.Mook.1982.Carbon-14DatesatGrandPile:Correlation
of
LandandSeachronologies.
Science
215:159-161.48
WALLERTHEIMWORKSHOPII
Tubingen,
March
23-25,1997
Figure1.Wallertheim.Thelocation
of
the
village
of allerthe
imandamap
of
the
oldbrickyard.
o
Scale11000
SOm
~
-
•I
0 )
49
Legend
1991-94-ExcavationBrickfoundations
-.....
Fence
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