Holocene Landscapes Through Time in the Fertile Crescent

This Subartu volume addresses environmental transformations in Syria and southern Turkey through a variety of methods. Former environments and societies are reevaluated by, for example, studying charcoals from Damascus Province to understand Pleistocene-Holocene cereal distribution or through anthracological investigations in northern Syria/southern Turkey to determine human-climate impact on the environment. Other research discussed herein covers anthracology at Qatna and archaeobotany's implementation to determine the role of dung as fuel. An integrated approach to geoarchaeology is also included to reconstruct former environmental conditions in Syria - ranging from geomorphological, pedological, and sedimentological research, to micromorphology, remote sensing, OSL dating and the investigation of archaeobotanical remains from studied profiles. Sites discussed in this context include Tell Mozan, Tell Leilan, Tell Hamidi, and Tell Brak. Finally, this book includes settlement pattern studies undertaken in the Upper Khabur, which reveal land-use and resource exploitation patterns, and what environmental factors influenced Early Bronze Age settlement distribution. Katleen Deckers holds a Margarethe-von-Wrangell Habilitation Fellowship at the University of Tubingen. She specialises in anthracology and geoarchaeology and has collaborated on many projects in the Near East.