Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
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Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology
j o u r n a l h o m e p a g e : w w w. e l s e v i e r. c o m / l o c a t e / p a l a e o
Past fuel wood exploitation and natural forest vegetation in the Black Forest, the
Vosges and neighbouring regions in western Central Europe
Thomas Ludemann ⁎
University of Freiburg, Institute of Biology II, Dept. of Geobotany, Schaenzlestrasse 1, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany
a r t i c l e
i n f o
Article history:
Received 26 January 2009
Received in revised form 10 August 2009
Accepted 14 September 2009
Available online 9 October 2009
Keywords:
Anthracology
Black Forest
Charcoal burning
Forest history
Historical mining
Natural vegetation
Vosges
a b s t r a c t
Results and perspectives of charcoal research in Central Europe are highlighted, with special regard to the
dependence of past fuel economy on the tree species composition of the natural forest vegetation. The main
topic is how analyses of archaeological macrocharcoals from sites of historical mining, archaeo-metallurgical
processes and charcoal burning (kiln site anthracology) can provide answers to questions on vegetation
history, geography and ecology at the landscape level. This paper primarily focusses on the spatial
differentiation at the regional scale.
A synoptic overview is given for a diversified pilot area in the western part of Central Europe, with special
regard to the natural diversity of growth conditions, forest vegetation and tree species composition at the
regional scale. It includes results of 876 historical sites in the Black Forest, the Vosges and neighbouring
regions. The material analysed spreads over a time scale of 7000 years from the Neolithic period to Modern
Times. Most samples have been selected from postmedieval charcoal burning in the Black Forest and the
Vosges as well as from medieval mining in the western part of the Black Forest.
Generally, no selection of distinct species for fuel wood use was made in the past. All of the tree taxa to be
expected for the natural conditions were exploited. Moreover, their frequencies also reflect a natural situation.
The tree species of the climax vegetation were mainly used and all other species were quantitatively
unimportant. The individual sample sites show considerable differences in tree taxa composition and frequency,
from which regular spatial patterns of the past tree species distribution have been deduced on local and regional
scales. Linking the results of charcoal analyses with those of recent site ecology and vegetation science, these
patterns can be explained by regional and local differences in the ecological conditions of the exploited forests in
the vicinity of the sites studied. A pronounced dependence of the fuel wood use on the natural site specific
distribution of the tree species is discernible. Moreover, taxa composition and the diameter of the wood used
often indicate the exploitation of close-to-nature non-degraded forest stands in the past. The local natural
availability of wood and the restricted possibilities of wood transport were important criteria for past fuel wood
exploitation.
© 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
For millennia fuel supply and fuel economy of human societies and
especially their (archaeo-)metallurgy and thereby the overall cultural
evolution have been heavily dependent on wood and wood charcoal.
The anthropogenic influence and pressure on the forests have
increased more or less continuously in the course of human history
and in cultural evolution with the increasing population and energy
needs, reaching a maximum in Central Europe at the end of the 18th
century before the use of fossil fuel increased rapidly and became
predominant. Remnants of historical forest exploitation, wood use
and charcoal production are widespread in landscapes all over the
world, especially in mountainous forest regions. Sites of charcoal
⁎ Tel.: +49 761 203 2643; fax: +49 761 203 2696.
E-mail address: [email protected].
URL: http://www.biologie.uni-freiburg.de/geobotanik/ludemann.
0031-0182/$ – see front matter © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2009.09.013
burning (charcoal kiln sites) with their distinct charcoal layers are the
most frequent remnants. They can reach very high densities in the
landscape. In extreme cases more than 150 kiln sites per square
kilometre have been verified, so that the average distance from kiln
site to kiln site comes to less than 90 m. Within the investigation area,
2800 sites of historical charcoal (mainly kiln sites) have been
recorded up to now. Cautiously estimated on the basis of representative field observations and laser scanning plots, within the
investigation area there are at least 10,000 kiln sites, having a very
large potential for anthracological investigations with fine spatial
resolution. The wood charcoal fragments preserved there contain
comprehensive dendrological and dendroecological information.
Therefore kiln site anthracological studies are a major key to high
spatial resolution forest and land use history.
At the University of Freiburg for many years such remnants have
been studied from the point of view of vegetation science, forest
history and vegetation ecology. The focus has been on past wood use
T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
and human impact induced by these activities, with special regard to
the questions of the natural tree species composition and their
anthropogenic alterations over time. Primarily it was attempted to
deduce qualitative and quantitative information on tree species
composition of the historical forest stands and on the changes therein,
considering the periods before modern forest management systems
started to work efficiently and before sufficiently precise written
sources became available.
Key questions are
- Which wood was exploited in the past?
- What did the historical and the primeval forests look like (tree
species spectra, frequencies, structure)?
- In what ways was forest vegetation influenced and changed by
people?
First, charcoal remnants from old mining areas in the Southern Black
Forest were analysed in collaboration with archaeologists and
historians, looking for indications of fuel wood selection, anthropogenic
change and degradation of forests and landscape (Steuer, 1990; Steuer
and Zimmermann, 1990; Ludemann, 1996, 1999a,b,c; Ludemann and
Nelle, 2002). These studies made it more and more evident that the
ecological growth conditions in the vicinity of the sites studied and the
natural distribution of the tree species (composition) depending on
155
these conditions were of great importance for the fuel wood exploited
in the past. Given these correlations and dependences, we are trying to
evaluate site specific indications on the natural frequency of the tree
species at the different forest sites and in the different forest types.
Hence, the tree species spectra exploited have been compared with the
specific growth conditions and the corresponding (potential) natural
forest vegetation in the vicinity of the study sites (after Mueller et al.,
1974; Oberdorfer, 1992; Bohn et al., 2000). Here this comparison is
provided by a synoptic overview for a diversified pilot area, exclusively
taking into account spatial differentiation at the regional scale.
2. Study area, site conditions, forest vegetation
The investigation area extends over the low mountain ranges Black
Forest, Vosges and Jura Mountains (Swabian Alb, Swiss Jura), in the
surroundings of the border triangle of Germany, France and Switzerland in Central Europe (Fig. 1).
This area is characterized by a high diversity of ecological
conditions, so that a large spectrum of the forest site conditions of
Central Europe can be studied within this area. The sites are
differentiated by their horizontal and vertical topographical position
in a west–east-gradient of decreasing oceanity from the Vosges to the
Swabian Alb, containing different relief types and a total altitudinal
Fig. 1. The investigation area in the border triangle of Germany, France and Switzerland. Map based on REKLIP (1995).
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T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
gradient of 1300 m, between 200 and 1500 m a.s.l. Thus we can
compare results from landscapes with steep (Rhenanian system) and
gentle slopes (Danubian system), on the luff and lee sides, and of
different altitudinal belts (lowland, montane, subalpine).
The average annual precipitation of the study area lies between
700 mm, in the Upper Rhine Valley, to more than 2000 mm in the
summit areas of the Vosges. The annual temperature average is
between 3 and 11 °C, according to the different altitudes.
The investigation area lies centrally within the European beech-firforest zone (Bohn et al., 2000; cf., Fig. 2). Consequently, the most
frequent natural plant communities are different types of beech, beechfir and beech-fir-spruce forests, according to soil fertility (Luzulo- and
Galio-Fagetum) and altitudinal position. Considering the landscape
profile from the Vosges to the Swabian Alb (cf., Figs. 1 and 2), the beechfir-(spruce)forest zone is interrupted twice, (1) by the mixed oakhornbeam forest area (Querco-Carpinetum etc.) of the Rhine Valley and
(2) by the spruce-fir forest area of the eastern part of the Black Forest
and the Baar region (Galio-Abietetum, Vaccinio-Abietetum, BazzanioPiceetum). More detailed descriptions of the forest vegetation of
selected sections of the study area are given by Ludemann (1994a,
1996), Ludemann and Britsch (1997), Ludemann and Schottmueller
(2000), Ludemann and Nelle (2002), and Ludemann et al. (2007).
The landscape profile considered in this paper ranges over 130 km
from the Vosges to the Swabian Alb, crossing the landscapes of the
Rhine Valley, the Black Forest and the Baar region.
3. Study sites, materials, methods
3.1. Excavation sites, dating
Anthracological results from sites of historical mining, archaeometallurgical processes and charcoal production were evaluated,
especially from medieval silver mining and postmedieval charcoal
burning (charcoal kiln sites; Fig. 3). Figs. 4 and 5 show the typical
remnants and field structures one can still find today a thousand times
over, especially in mountainous regions. Two characteristics help us to
find the kiln sites in the landscape: (1) the characteristic anthropogenic
ground surface structures, in the form of flat, plain areas of 8 to 12 m
diameter, which were formed to construct the charcoal kilns upon, and
(2) a more or less distinct and deep charcoal soil layer including a
large number of charcoal fragments. Fig. 5 shows examples of the
characteristic present-day field situation. In Fig. 5B the dark colour of
the hiking trail indicates the location of the charcoal layer and of the kiln
site.
Besides charcoal fragments, the sites of mining and archaeometallurgical activities are characterized by slags and ceramics and
other archaeological evidence, that enables us to date and characterize the specific activities from which the charcoal remnants originate.
In addition to archaeological dating, the charcoal remnants were
dated by written sources and by 268 radiocarbon analyses (Fig. 6).
While mining in the investigation areas took place mainly in the
Middle Ages (11th to 14th centuries), the main period of charcoal
burning was later, in the 17th and 18th centuries.
3.2. Sampling, materials
Charcoal samples were taken from each distinct charcoal layer and
subjected to anthracological analysis. Many charcoal samples analysed
originate from archaeological excavations of mining sites (e.g. Steuer
and Zimmermann, 1990; Brunn et al., 1993; Mischker et al., 1993;
Zimmermann, 1993; Spiong, 1996; Goldenberg and Steuer, 1998;
Goldenberg, 1999). In contrast to these sites, the large majority of
charcoal kiln sites were not subjects of archaeological excavations. In
these cases a standardized sampling strategy was used. Charcoal
fragments larger than 0.5 cm3 were collected by hand from at least
five pits within each charcoal layer. The pits were distributed uniformly
over the charcoal soil layer and as far from each other as possible. A strict
spatial pattern of the pits with fixed distances and positions within the
Fig. 2. The natural vegetation of the investigation area (after Bohn et al., 2000). Legend: The main vegetation units are – Montane beech and beech-fir forests in the Vosges (units F84,
F93, F94) – Lowland-colline oak-hornbeam forests with ash and lime etc. in the Upper Rhine Valley (units F35, F50, F52, F53) – Montane beech, beech-fir and beech-fir-spruce forests
in the Southern Black Forest (units F84, F93, F95, F110) – Montane fir-spruce forests in the Baar region (unit D24) – Montane beech (and beech-fir) forests in the Swabian Alb (units
F129(a), F130, F131).
T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
157
Fig. 3. Charcoal production in upright circular kilns, the most common technique of traditional charcoal burning. (A) “Les charbonnieres”. Historical charcoal burning in the Vosges.
From the picture-series “La Rouge Myne de Saint Nicolas de la Croix” by H. Gross, about 1550, in Winkelmann, 1962. (B) Reconstructed charcoal kiln uncovered (fuel wood layer
visible) for experimental archaeological studies of traditional charcoal burning. Black Forest, SW Germany. 5.6.2008.
kiln site, like Hillebrecht (1982) and Davasse (1998, 2000) used, was not
applied because of the different field situation and conditions of the
individual kiln sites, especially the different spatial distribution and
position of the charcoal layers. In many cases the charcoal layer was not
located in the centre of the kiln sites. Often charcoal had accumulated in
the periphery of the sites. In slope positions the layer was often eroded
and transported several metres downhill.
From each pit at least 20 to 25 fragments were collected and put
together to make one mixed charcoal sample of >100 fragments per
layer and kiln site. Various kiln site studies have suggested that
samples of about 100 fragments (60–120) should be analysed to make
conclusions about the main taxa composition (Mueller-Stoll, 1936;
Hillebrecht, 1982; Davasse, 1998, 2000; Bonhote et al., 2002; Ludemann
and Nelle, 2002; Noelken, 2005). In most cases we have very good
material, a lot of charcoal fragments of all sizes and especially many large
fragments.
3.3. Charcoal analysis and anthracological evaluation
Primarily the wood taxa and their qualitative and quantitative
composition in the individual samples were determined. The determination of the wood taxa of the charcoal fragments follows Grosser
(1977) and Schweingruber (1990), looking at transversal, tangential
and radial surfaces of fracture with a stereoscope and an incident-light
microscope. In addition a reference collection of charred known wood
was used. The quantity of each established taxon was determined in
two ways, by both the number of pieces counted and by their weight.
Only the results of the quantitative determination based on the number
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T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
Fig. 4. Remnants of traditional charcoal burning, schematically. Characteristic field structure of two kiln sites at a slope in mountainous regions. Circular level grounds with a
diameter of 8 to 12 m. 1 soil accumulation downhill. 2 charcoal layer. 3 original ground level. 4 soil removal uphill.
Fig. 5. (A) Well observable changes of the slope surface by three kiln sites in the pasture land of Menzenschwand, Black Forest, SW Germany. 30.9.2003. (B) A hiking trail in the Black
Forest crossing an historical charcoal burning site. The charcoal soil layer and the extension of the kiln site are indicated by the dark colour of the trail, by the circular levelled ground
and by the clearly visible removal of soil material uphill. 29.6.1988.
T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
159
Fig. 6. Results of radiocarbon dating of 268 selected samples of the historical charcoal sites investigated anthracologically. Calibrated age: yr BC/AD, plotted with the two-sigmarange of uncertainty for each sample, chronologically from the oldest to the youngest sample. Calibration after Reimer et al., 2004. Analyses by the radiocarbon dating laboratories
Beta Miami, USA, AdW-IfU Heidelberg, Germany, and IfB Hamburg, Germany.
of pieces are presented, as the results established by weight analysis are
quite similar (cf., Table 2).
In addition a standardized diameter analysis has been developed
(Ludemann, 1996, 1999c, 2006, 2008; Ludemann and Nelle, 2002)
whereby the charcoal fragments are sized by the curvature of the tree
rings and by the angle of the rays to each other, using a diameter
stencil. Five diameter size classes were distinguished: smaller than
2 cm, 2 to 3 cm, 3 to 5 cm, 5 to 10 cm, and larger than 10 cm. In this
way a size-class distribution of each sample and each taxon was
obtained. This provides valuable additional information about the
wood used. Furthermore, the method and the interpretations of the
historical samples were verified by studies of recent charcoal burning
and by experimental kilns (Ludemann, 2006, 2008; and Fig. 3B).
In this study the taxa which have been used for charcoal production
and their quantitative composition in the samples have been considered
at the spatial scale, independently of the period of exploitation and
the kind of use. Thus the anthracological results of all sites investigated from the same region were summarized, building 13 regional
Table 1
Sample design. Distribution of the analysed charcoal samples to landscape units/regions.
Region – landscape
unit (no.)
Southern Vosges
Upper Rhine Valley
Southern Black Forest,
West Edge
Southern Black Forest
Baar Region (12)
Swabian Alb (13)
Total study area
Central Region (1)
Southern Region (2)
Eastern Region (3)
Lowland (4)
Colline Region (5)
Mining Area Sulzburg (6)
Mining Area St. Ulrich (7)
Western Region (8)
Western Central Region (9)
Eastern Central Region (10)
Eastern Region (11)
Number
of samples
Number
of analyses
115
38
3
7
2
91
61
83
313
81
93
9
3
899
13,862
4887
323
2419
190
15,902
10,742
13,080
32,041
8932
9455
781
302
112,916
160
T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
Fig. 7. Anthracological results and natural vegetation on a 130 km landscape profile from the Vosges to the Swabian Alb in Central Europe. At the top are the predominant tree taxa of
the natural forest vegetation after Bohn et al. (2000; map modified; cf., Fig. 2); at the bottom the tree taxa compositions of the charcoal samples of historical mining, archaeometallurgy
and charcoal burning sites, according to region/landscape unit. n, number of analyses; x, number of samples; ⁎, average altitude of the sample sites of each region (cf., Table 4).
landscape units (Table 1; Fig. 7). These study units are characterized
and differentiated by distinct site conditions – geographical position,
relief, altitude etc. – and a specific regional natural forest vegetation
(cf., Bohn et al., 2000). The results of charcoal analyses are compared
with the results of vegetation mapping and with the current site
conditions in the vicinity of the study sites at different spatial scales, in
this paper focussing exclusively on the spatial differentiation at the
regional scale.
4. Results and discussion
4.1. General view, single samples, study units
In total 23 wood taxa have been established in the charcoal material
evaluated (112,916 charcoal fragments of 899 samples; cf., Table 2).
Consequently, all of the tree taxa which are expected for the natural
conditions of the investigation area have been exploited in the past.
However, only five charcoal taxa attain frequencies of more than
1%. These are beech, fir, spruce, oak and maple (Fagus, Abies, Picea,
Quercus and Acer). At the same time they are the most important
and predominant tree taxa of the natural forest vegetation of the
investigation area. Most frequent charcoal taxa are Fagus, Abies and
Picea, together reaching nearly 90%. The fourth and fifth positions
are taken by Quercus and Acer, with 5% and 2% respectively. All other
wood taxa determined are quantitatively unimportant, together
representing only 4%.
In summary, the tree taxa composition determined for the
historical fuel wood exploitations in total both qualitatively and
quantitatively reflects a natural situation (cf., Mueller et al., 1974;
Oberdorfer, 1992; Bohn et al., 2000). Details are given in section 4.2.
T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
Table 2
Total taxa composition of 899 charcoal samples of historical mining, archaeometallurgy
and charcoal burning sites of the study area (Landscape profile Vosges – Schwabian
Alb).
Fagus
Abies
Picea
Quercus
Acer
Pinus
Pomoideae
Carpinus
Corylus
Salix
Betula
Fraxinus
Populus
Alnus
Ulmus
Tilia
Prunus
Ilex
Taxus
Wurzel
Viburnum
Viscum
Populus/Salix
Pseudotsuga
Cornus
Total
Beech
Silver Fir
Spruce
Oak
Maple
Pine
Pomoideae
Hornbeam
Hazel
Willow
Birch
English Ash
Poplar
Alder
Elm
Lime
Cherry
Holly
Yew
Root
Elder
Mistletoe
Poplar/Willow
Douglas Fir
Dogwood
Number
%
Weight (g)
%
59,677
22,452
18,005
5607
2135
1057
726
620
504
448
408
400
369
273
100
60
58
6
3
3
1
1
1
1
1
112,916
52.9
19.9
15.9
5.0
1.9
0.9
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.4
0.4
0.4
0.3
0.2
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
100
54425.9
20028.2
16757.5
4248.7
1780.6
1181.5
744.8
502.6
254.5
219.2
327.0
365.8
272.7
196.4
49.6
36.6
19.3
1.5
3.6
0.2
0.5
0.5
0.3
0.3
0.3
101417.4
53.7
19.7
16.5
4.2
1.8
1.2
0.7
0.5
0.3
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.3
0.2
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
< 0.1
100
Number and weight of the charcoal pieces for each taxon determined.
Most wood genera cannot be identified to the species level by light
microscopy. But often only one species of a genus is likely to have
been present. The following species have been recognised (Fagus
sylvatica, Abies alba, Picea abies, Corylus avellana, Taxus baccata, Carpinus betulus, Fraxinus excelsior, Ilex aquifolium and Viscum album),
while other taxa are identified to genus level (Acer, Alnus, Pinus, Betula, Tilia, Salix, Ulmus, Populus, Quercus and Prunus) or other units
(e.g. Pomoideae, which is likely to have been mainly Sorbus
aucuparia).
Looking at the results from the individual charcoal samples,
considerable differences in taxa combination and proportions were
found. From these differences of wood taxa composition an
anthracological classification was developed, building anthracotypes of dominant (>4:1), co-dominant (1:1 to 1:2) and subdominant taxa (1:2 to 1:4). Table 3 shows the different types and
the number of samples which are characterized by the corresponding
composition of distinct dominant, co-dominant and sub-dominant
wood taxa. Furthermore, the average frequency (%) of the individual
taxa in the charcoal samples of each type is given.
The anthracological classification of the individual charcoal
samples shows that most of the established tree taxa appear with
high frequencies in at least one or a few samples, with the exception of
Tilia and Ulmus.
Most of the charcoal samples, 832 of 899 (93%), are dominated by
beech, fir and/or spruce, with nearly all conceivable combinations of
frequencies. Most of the remaining samples, 55 of 67, are characterized
by an important percentage of oak, maple or pine. Only 12 samples
(1%) are dominated by other deciduous tree taxa (Table 3, bottom).
4.2. Spatial patterns of tree taxa composition
The samples of the different anthraco-types are distributed quite
irregularly to the landscape profile considered. The results can be used
to characterize the different regions and landscapes, which are
differentiated for their part by distinct ecological conditions. In this
161
way relations have been distinguished between historical wood taxa
frequencies, site conditions and natural forest vegetation. These
findings are based on the spatial patterns of distribution of the tree
taxa being exploited. There are patterns at different spatial scales,
dependent on the local and regional natural growth conditions of the
exploited forests.
To highlight these spatial patterns, landscape sections were
constructed at different spatial scales, regional to local. Examples
from the investigation area are given by (1) a synoptic regional scale
anthraco-profile of 130 km considering the whole historical charcoal
material evaluated of this area and (2) local scale anthraco-profiles or
-maps of one or a few square kilometres.
The regional distribution and proportion of the most frequent taxa
exploited are seen in the synoptic plot (Fig. 7). Based on the schematic
altitudinal profile across the investigation area, the tree taxa
composition of each region (landscape unit) is recorded at its
geographical position. Substantial differences in the proportions of
Fagus, Abies, Quercus and Picea are evident. The general features of the
distribution of the dominant taxa are:
Fagus and Abies are widespread, replaced by Quercus in the Rhine
Valley and by Picea in the eastern part of the Black Forest and in the
Baar region. Fagus reaches its highest frequencies in the (lower to
upper) montane forest areas in the western parts of the Black Forest as
well as in the Vosges and in the Swabian Alb.
In the Upper Rhine Valley and the lower montane belts at the
eastern edge of the Vosges and the western edge of the Black Forest
oak is important. Picea and Pinus reach their highest values in the
eastern part of the Black Forest.
In addition Table 4 shows the values and distribution patterns of
the less frequent deciduous taxa. Pomoideae (mainly Sorbus aucuparia) and Acer (mainly Acer pseudoplatanus) generally appear in the
montane vegetation belts of the Vosges and the Black Forest, in
agreement with the results of Ludemann (2003) and Noelken (2005).
A large group of taxa accompanies Quercus in the lowest regions of the
Rhine Valley and its close surroundings (Carpinus, Corylus, Alnus,
Fraxinus, Salix, Tilia etc.; cf., Table 4).
Compared to the natural forest vegetation (Bohn et al., 2000) along
the altitudinal profile, the charcoal diagram reveals that the spatial
patterns of fuel wood use seem in good agreement with the natural
tree taxon composition at the regional scale (Figs. 2 and 7). However,
with the Rhine Valley, the eastern edge of the Vosges and the Swabian
Alb, the results are only preliminary based only on a few sites. In
contrast, the regional historical fuel wood exploitations in the Black
Forest and the Vosges are very well represented by hundreds of
historical sample sites and thousands of analyses.
From the point of view of vegetation science, the tree taxa
composition of the charcoal samples and the spatial patterns of past
distribution in the field, deduced from the anthracological results, can
be explained quite well by natural differences in altitude, aspect,
inclination, edaphical conditions etc. in the vicinity of the sites
studied. The natural ecological growth conditions are responsible for
the natural diversity of the tree species composition of the exploited
forests. These relations can be seen both in the general features and in
many details (Fig. 7; Table 4).
Looking at the distribution of Fagus sylvatica and Abies alba, a huge
area can be recognised covering large parts of the Vosges, the Black
Forest and the Swabian Alb with mixed coniferous–deciduous forests
rich in beech and – with the exception of the Swabian Alb –
accompanied by fir. These findings fit perfectly with the results of
vegetation science for the region (Mueller et al., 1974; Oberdorfer,
1992; Bohn et al., 2000).
The high frequencies of conifers – Picea, Abies and Pinus – in the
eastern part of the Black Forest and in the Baar region also mirror the
natural situation, in that the natural conditions of the forest sites in
this area are more suitable for coniferous, especially Picea, than for
deciduous species (forest unit D24, after Bohn et al., 2000).
162
Table 3
Anthracological classification (Anthraco-types of dominant, co-dominant and sub-dominant taxa) and their average taxa composition (%) of 899 charcoal samples of historical mining, archaeometallurgy and charcoal burning sites.
For further explanation, see text.
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Table 4
Tree taxa compositions (%) of the charcoal samples of historical mining, archaeometallurgy and charcoal burning sites, according to region/landscape unit (1–13; cf. Table 1). AA,
average altitude of the sample sites.
The distribution of Abies in the investigation area expresses the
ecological-synsystematic position of fir forests between beech and
spruce forests and between Querco–Fagetea and Vaccinio–Piceetea
forests (Oberdorfer, 1982a,b, 1992), by accompanying both Fagus and
Picea in the samples and in the forests. The regions in the eastern, but
not eastern-most part of the profile are characterized by codominance of Abies and Picea. Indeed, phytosociologically it is the
centre of the southwest German Abietetum area.
Focussing on smaller sections of the landscape, the local scale
information of the historical charcoal sites can be highlighted. Several
examples of local scale results of charcoal assemblages and of the fine
spatial resolution of kiln site anthracology have been given for the
area by Ludemann (1994b, 2002, 2003), Ludemann and Britsch
(1997), Ludemann et al. (2004), and Noelken (2005). These examples
refer to local scale studies, for which the analysed charcoal
assemblages of kiln sites range over small landscape sections of
about one square kilometre or over landscape profiles of a few
kilometres, each covering sample sites of historical charcoal burning
at different ecological site types with different natural forest growth
conditions, e.g. summit plateaus, slopes of different inclination and
exposition, valley floors, edges of bogs or rivers etc. In general these
anthracological results mirror the local ecological conditions in detail.
In many cases they reveal clear relations of ecological site conditions
and natural forest vegetation on the one hand and past fuel wood use
on the other, recorded by corresponding fine-scale patterns of taxa
distribution and frequencies.
4.3. Wood selection, wood transport, forest degradation
Considering the synoptic regional scale evaluation, we can
consider only some general implications, as the processes and effects
of wood selection, wood transport and forest degradation primarily
have a complex fine-scale territorial and temporal dimension.
The fact that the charcoal samples mirror the regional natural tree
taxa composition in general features and in many details speaks, at the
same time, against tree taxa selection, interregional fuel wood
transport and areal forest degradation. The regular spatial patterns of
tree taxa according to the regional site conditions would have been
wiped out if such activities or processes had taken place. No tree taxa
composition was found in the charcoal samples which could not grow
in the vicinity of the sites studied. Moreover, pioneer taxa are
unimportant and the main tree taxa of the regional natural forest
types are always dominant. Only a few samples were characterized by a
higher percentage of pioneer species or of other naturally rare tree taxa,
i.e. secondary tree taxa; not dominant in the regional natural forest
vegetation (cf., Mueller et al., 1974; Oberdorfer, 1992; Bohn et al., 2000).
However, the temporal and spatial resolution of the huge evaluated data
set is still limited, for the analysed material mainly originates from
medieval and postmedieval sites in remote, late-settled areas (Black
Forest, Vosges), while the results for the old-settled landscapes
(Rhine Valley, Baar, Swabian Alb) and the older periods (< 1000 AD)
are based only on a few sites and need to be further investigated.
5. Conclusions
A pronounced dependence of past fuel wood economy and
especially charcoal production on the local natural wood supply can
be postulated as being the rule in late-settled mountainous areas during
the Middle Ages, continuing well into the 18th or 19th centuries.
Indications for selection of single tree taxa or for forest degradation
could not be found in these fuel wood anthracological studies. The
natural offering of wood and the restricted possibilities of wood
transport in remote forest areas evidently were the important criteria
for many fuel wood exploitations in the past.
The dependence of wood exploitation on the natural wood
resources on the one hand and the large numbers and wide distribution
of sites with analysable charcoal on the other provide a unique chance
to obtain exact information on the natural forest vegetation of large
regions and the changes therein. Additional indications of the natural
tree species composition can be deduced by fuel wood anthracological
studies. Anthracological analyses of archaeological macrocharcoals
could contribute to a more comprehensive knowledge of vegetation
history, geography and ecology. They contain a large potential for
studies of past environmental change, especially when undertaken
regularly as a standard method for archaeological excavations.
Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the German Research Foundation
(DFG; graduate college GRK No. 692 „Gegenwartsbezogene Landschaftsgenese“), the German Federal Research Ministry (BMBF; grant
no. 0339768) and the Volkswagen-Foundation, Hannover, Germany
(AZ II/67783 and II/71537). I am grateful to the editor, Freddy
Damblon, to Felix Bittmann and to the second (anonymous) reviewer
for many helpful comments on the manuscript. Moreover, I thank
Randy Cassada (University of Freiburg) for linguistic editing.
T. Ludemann / Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 291 (2010) 154–165
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