Mapping Sediment Accumulation Rate by using Volume magnetic Susceptibility Core Correlation in a contaminated Bay (Lake Geneva, Switzerland)

The Bay of Vidy is the most contaminated area of Lake Geneva: contamination is caused by the effluent of the sewage treatment plant (STP) of the City of Lausanne. The implementation of a chemical stage in the treatment plant to remove phosphorus using FeC13 in 1971 is indirectly recorded in the lake sediments by a strong and sharp increase in the volume magnetic susceptibility (VMS) signal. A total of 43 sediment cores have been retrieved and measured for VMS. The synchronism of the VMS signal increase and its relation to the implementation of the P-removal stage in the STP has been shown in seven 137Cs-dated sediment cores. The VMS signal has been used to date by stratigraphie correlation …

Brooches in Motion - tracing shape evolution in La Tène brooches by geometric morphometrics

International audience

History and environmental impact of mining activity in Celtic Aeduan territory recorded in a peat-bog (Morvan – France)

International audience; The present study aims to document early mining and smelting activities by means of geochemical and pollen analyses performed in a peat-bog core collected around the Bibracte oppidum (Morvan, France), the largest settlement of the great Aeduan Celtic tribe (ca 180 BC -25 AD). The anthropogenic Pb profile indicates local mining operations starting from the Late Bronze Age, ca cal. 1400-1300 BC. Lead inputs peaked at the height of Aeduan civilization, and then decreased after the Roman conquest of Gaul, when the site was abandoned. Other phases of mining are recognised from the 11th century to Modern Times. They have all led to modifications in plant cover, probably re…

Inverse modeling of past lead atmospheric deposition in South Greenland

The aim of this study is to model atmospheric lead fluxes in two different paleoenvironmental records located in southern Greenland. Fifty five sediment samples collected from the Lake Igaliku sedimentary sequence were analyzed for lead and aluminum concentrations, and lead isotopic compositions. The second archive consists in a previously published dataset, obtained from a minerogenic peat deposit, located at Tasiusaq, 16 km northwest from Lake Igaliku. A flux model fitted to both dataset produces similar results, allowing past anthropogenic atmospheric deposition to be reconstructed. This original method can be easily adapted for other studies where natural inputs dominate over discrete a…

Les stèles ornées de Mongolie et Sibérie

International audience

High-resolution clay mineralogy as a proxy for orbital tuning: example of the Hauterivian-Barremian transition in the Betic Cordillera (SE Spain).

11 pages; International audience; The response of clay mineral assemblages to potential orbital forcing is tested in Mesozoic hemipelagic marl- limestone rhythmites of the Río Argos section (Betic Cordillera, Southeastern Spain). Along the section, marls are pervasively enriched in kaolinite and illite, whereas limestones are enriched in smectite-rich illite/smectite mixed-layers, suggesting that marl-limestone alternations are produced by cyclic high-frequency fluctuations of continental runoff. Spectral analyses show that clay mineral assemblages evolve accordingly to precession, obliquity and eccentricity cycles. Durations of ammonite zones are assessed at 535 kyr for the Late Hauterivia…

Lead isotopic fingerprint in human scalp hair: The case study of Iglesias mining district (Sardinia, Italy)

The Sulcis-Iglesiente district (SW Sardinia, Italy) has been, until recently, one of the most important Italian polymetallic mining areas for the extraction of lead. Epidemiological studies conducted over several decades have indicated this site at high risk of environmental crisis with possible adverse effects on the public health. In the present paper we discuss Pb isotope signatures in human scalp hair and road dust collected from the Sulcis-Iglesiente area in order to trace the exposure of populations to potential Pb sources. A total of 23 determinations (20 on hair samples and 3 on road dust samples) of lead isotope ratios (206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/206Pb) were carried out. The obtained re…

Documenting carved stones by 3D modelling – Example of Mongolian deer stones

Rock art studies are facing major technical challenges for extensive documentation. Nowadays, recording is essentially obtained from time-consuming tracing and rubbing, techniques that also require a high level of expertise. Recent advances in 3D modelling of natural objects and computational treatment of the modelled surfaces may provide an alternative, and reduce the current documentation bottleneck. The aim of this study is to examine the extent to which such treatments can be applied. The case study presented here concerns the famous deer stones erected by ancient Mongolian nomad populations. The 3D acquisition workflow is based on structure-from-motion, a versatile photogrammetric tech…

Testing a portable laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy system on geological samples.

9 pages; International audience; This paper illustrates the potentialities of a home-made portable LIBS (laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy) instrument in Earth sciences, more particularly in geochemically recognizing (i) tephra layers in lacustrine sediments and (ii) fossilization processes in ammonites. Abundances for selected lines of Al, Ca, Fe, Ti, Ba and Na were determined in lacustrine chalk sediments of the Jura, where the Laacher See Tephra (LST) layer is recorded. A statistical treatment of elemental maps produced from the section of a sedimentary column containing the LST event allows instrumental conditions to be optimized. Accumulating spectra from close shot positions gives …

Morphometry of Middle Bronze Age palstaves by discrete cosine transform.

9 pages; International audience; The Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) is a Fourier-related transform widely used in signal processing and well suited to the analysis of open outlines. This method was applied here to evaluate the discrimination power of the inner lateral rib for two palstave populations dating from the Middle Bronze Age, excavated in northwest France. A corpus of almost 400 palstaves (bronze axes) of the Breton and Norman types was processed, and compared to specimens found at Sermizelles in Burgundy. The procedure is robust and produces a discrimination in good agreement with the traditional typology. Besides the definition of a ‘standard' shape for each population, the morp…

Anza palaeoichnological site, Late Cretaceous, Morocco. Part III: Comparison between traditional and photogrammetric records

11 pages; International audience; The present study evaluates a methodological workflow that could identify dinosaur tracks and trackways more comprehensively at outcrop scale. The approach described here is based both on 3D modelling by photogrammetry at different resolutions, and on suitably processed digital elevation models (DEMs). The ichnosite of Anza, Morocco, was chosen to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed pipeline, because 323 dinosaur and pterosaur tracks discovered there have already been published. One subsector containing 89 tracks, identified in the two companion works that followed a traditional approach, was selected and divided into four subzones. By combining diff…

Apparent discrepancy in contamination history of a sub-tropical estuary evaluated through 210Pb profile and chronostratigraphical markers.

Abstract Zn and Cd concentrations, stable lead isotopes and 210 Pb-derived chronology were determined in a sediment core sampled at Sepetiba Bay (South-eastern Brazil). During the last decades, the bay’s watershed has been modified by the increase of industrial activities and human interventions. In particular, Zn and Cd ore treatment plants were built near the coast in 1960 and 1970, respectively, and water has been diverted from the adjacent Paraiba do Sul River watershed since 1950. The core collected at shallow depth near the industrial area exhibits four successive events: (i) at 50 cm depth, a change in the 206 Pb/ 207 Pb ratio from about 1.162 to more than 1.18 might be the result of…

Cinq millénaires de métallurgie en montagne basque. Les apports d'une démarche intégrée alliant palynologie et géochimie isotopique du plomb

Five thousand years of metallurgy in the basque mountains : the contributions of an integrated process mixing palynology and the isotopic chemistry of lead. An interdisciplinary research combining palyno- logy and lead isotopic geochemistry was performed in a peat bog of the Basque Country, in an area recognized as being an old metallurgical centre. These various analyses make it possible to reconstitute mining and metallurgical activities and to appreciate the impact on forest during last five millennia. Several phases are attested between late Neolithic and modern times (Middle Bronze age, Late Bronze age, Antiquity and finally modern time). Most of these phases are clearly related to for…

A Laboratory Dust Generator Applying Vibration to Soil Sample: Mineralogical Study and Compositional Analyses

International audience; A laboratory study was carried out using a vibrating system (SyGAVib) to produce aerosols from four soils collected in the central Tunisian region around Sfax. The aim of this device is to mimic dust emission by natural wind erosion. Using compositional analysis, the dust produced was compared to (i) dust generated in a wind tunnel by the same soils, (ii) fine sieved and (iii) original bulk soils, and (iv) naturally occurring aerosol samples collected in the same area. The relative quartz content strongly decreases from bulk to fine soils, and again from fine soils to both wind tunnel and vibration‐generated aerosols. Compositional data analysis (CoDA) clearly shows …

Anthropogenic lead distribution in soils under arable land and permanent grassland estimated by Pb isotopic compositions

International audience; The role of land use on fate of metals in soils is poorly understood. In this work, we studied the incorporation of lead in two neighboring soils with comparable pedogenesis but under long-term different agricultural management. Distributions of anthropogenic Pb were assessed from concentrations and isotopic compositions determined on bulk horizon samples, systematical 5–10 cm increment samples, and on 24-h EDTA extracts. Minor amounts of anthropogenic lead were detected until 1-m depth under permanent grassland, linked to high earthworm activity. In arable land, exogenous Pb predominantly accumulated at depths <60 cm. Although the proximity between the two sites ens…

DACORD - Computer-Assisted Drawing of Archaeological Pottery (the CADAPtable system)

International audience

Métallurgie et histoire de l'environnement au cours des cinq derniers millénaires en pays basque nord (vallée de Baigorri, Pyrénées Atlantiques, France) : résultats préliminaires d'une approche interdisciplinaire

National audience; Une recherche interdisciplinaire associant la palynologie et la géochimie a été réalisée dans une tourbière du Pays Basque, dans un secteur reconnu par l'archéologie comme étant un ancien centre minier. Ces différentes analyses ont permis de reconstituer des activités minières et métallurgiques et d'en évaluer l'impact sur la forêt au cours des cinq derniers millénaires.

Computer-assisted orientation and drawing of archaeological pottery.

Archaeologists spend considerable time orienting and drawing ceramic fragments by hand for documentation, to infer their manufacture, the nature of the discovery site and its chronology, and to develop hypotheses about commercial and cultural exchanges, social organisation, resource exploitation, and taphonomic processes. This study presents a survey of existing solutions to the time-consuming problem of orienting and drawing pottery fragments. Orientation is based on the 3D geometry of pottery models, which can now be acquired in minutes with low-cost 3D scanners. Several methods are presented: they are based on normal vectors, or circle fittings, or profile fittings. All these methods see…

Paléométallurgie dans le Morvan : l'apport des analyses polliniques et géochimiques

National audience

Lichens Used as Monitors of Atmospheric Pollution Around Agadir (Southwestern Morocco)—A Case Study Predating Lead-Free Gasoline

More than 30 epiphytic lichens, collected in Agadir (Morroco) and along a 150-km transect from the Atlantic Ocean eastward, were analyzed for their metal content and lead isotopic composition. This dataset was used to evaluate atmospheric metal contamination and the impact of the city on the surrounding area. The concentrations of Cu, Pb, and Zn (average ± 1 SD) were 20.9 ± 15.2 μg g−1, 13.8 ± 9.0 μg g−1, and 56.6 ± 26.6 μg g−1, respectively, with the highest values observed in lichens collected within the urban area. The 206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/207Pb ratios in the lichens varied from 1.146 to 1.186 and from 2.423 to 2.460, respectively. Alkyllead-gasoline sold in Morocco by the major petrol …

Machine learning for rapid mapping of archaeological structures made of dry stones – Example of burial monuments from the Khirgisuur culture, Mongolia –

11 pages; International audience; The present study proposes a workflow to extract from orthomosaics the enormous amount of dry stones used by past societies to construct funeral complexes in the Mongolian steppes. Several different machine learning algorithms for binary pixel classification (i.e. stone vs non-stone) were evaluated. Input features were extracted from high-resolution orthomosaics and digital elevation models (both derived from aerial imaging). Comparative analysis used two colour spaces (RGB and HSV), texture features (contrast, homogeneity and entropy raster maps), and the topographic position index, combined with nine supervised learning algorithms (nearest centroid, naive…

Ancient mining near the Bibracte oppidum and its impact on ecosystems: a multidisciplinary approach

International audience

Les exploitations minières en pays éduen

International audience

Sur les traces d'Erik le Rouge (film et conférence)

International audience

Les Éduens producteurs et pollueurs

National audience

La métallurgie du fer au Pays Basque durant l'Antiquité. Etat des connaissances dans la vallée de Baigorri (Pyrénées-Atlantiques)

A study of the ancient metallurgy of iron was committed in the Basque Country, in the Baigorri valley, a rich sector whose resources were exploited before Antiquity and sometimes until the century XXth. The prospecting and the investigations undertaken revealed the existence of two mining and metallurgical districts. Their chronology is attested between the end of the Iron age and the century IVth p.C. The mines, the coal-scuttles and the métallurgie sites of the two centres of production were identified, while four workshops of reduction were the subject of a particular archaeological study. These results were confronted with the environmental data resulting from the palynological and geoc…

Unearthing the past. French peat bog reveals thousands of years of mining pollution

article écrit par M. Peplow paru dans les News de Nature (janv. 2004) résumant l’article Monna et al., 2004

La collection historique d’échantillons de sols de l’essai patrimonial des ‘42 parcelles’ (INRAE, Versailles) : une machine à remonter le temps...

Following three previous papers (van Oort et al., 2016, 2017, 2020) dealing with current soil characteristics and geochemical budgets in surface horizons, as well as the impacts of fertilization in subsurface horizons in soils of INRAE’s long term bare fallow experiment (the 42-plots trial), we now present some chronological aspects of soil evolution at the soil’s surface since 1928. For that, we analyzed several series of about 15 samples from the historical sample archive for 10 representative treatments: fertilizers with acidifying effects (ammonium sulphate, ammonium phosphate), fertilizers with dispersive effects (sodium nitrate, sylvinite, and potassium chloride), superphosphate, amen…

An Inverse Modeling Approach to Investigate Past Lead Atmospheric Deposition in Southern Greenland

International audience

Reply on Comment by Longinelli (2013) on a revised phosphate-water fractionation equation.

Longinelli (2013) contests the new phosphate–water oxygenisotopefractionation equationpresentedforfishteethin Puceatetal. (2010), and more specifically the pooling of the data of Puceatet al. (2010) with those of Longinelli and Nuti (1973b),performedto better constrain the regression parameters of the fractionationequation.Firstly, Longinelli (2013) criticizes that only 17 of the 24 datareported in Longinelli and Nuti (1973b) appear in Fig. 3. Doubtwas cast on whether the fish data of Longinelli and Nuti (1973b)were mixed with those of marine molluscs from Longinelli andNuti (1973a). Only oxygen isotope ratios of fish (Longinelli andNuti, 1973b) have been taken into account in Puceat et al. (20…

Impact of trace metals from past mining on the aquatic ecosystem: a multi-proxy approach in the Morvan (France).

10 pages; International audience; This study seeks to determine to what extent trace metals resulting from past mining activities are transferred to the aquatic ecosystem, and whether such trace metals still exert deleterious effects on biota. Concentrations of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn were measured in streambed sediments, transplanted bryophytes and wild brown trout. This study was conducted at two scales: (i) the entire Morvan Regional Nature Park and (ii) three small watersheds selected for their degree of contamination, based on the presence or absence of past mining sites. The overall quality of streambed sediments was assessed using Sediment Quality Indices (SQIs). According to these standar…

Application de la photogrammétrie à la documentation de l’art rupestre, des chantiers de fouilles et du bâti

During his archaeological missions the Museum of Prehistoric Anthropology tested the 3D modelling of several typesof objects. His team chose the ‘Structure-from-Motion’ (SfM) method which works according the basic principle of stereoscopicphotogrammetry, namely that 3D structure can be resolved from two or more overlapping, offset images. Most of other methodscapable of surveying, at high resolution, often complex objects and landforms are very expensive and have a difficult portability.Using only a consumer-grade digital camera and a scale on the ground, the user moves through the environment, acquiringphotographs of the area of interest from as many locations and perspectives as possible.…

Minéralogie de la mine du Prabis (Villapourçon, Nièvre, France)

Noise identification and sampling frequency determination for precise Pb isotopic measurements by quadrupole-based Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Analytical precision of the isotope ratios measured by quadrupole-based ICP-MS is drastically controlled by the low- frequency noises which originate from nebulisation and vaporisation processes, and from sample introduction systems. The unde- sirable influence of these latter can be however reduced by choosing efficiently the operating parameters. In the present study , the choice of the stabilisation time necessary in peak jump mode, and the one of the number of sweeps are discussed in the light of noise power spectra obtained with various speeds of the peristaltic pump used as sample introduction system. Obviously, the settings proposed are probably efficient only on our own ICP-MS, but …

Origin of atmospheric lead in Johannesburg, South Africa

International audience; The origin of lead in the atmosphere of Johannesburg, South Africa was investigated on the basis of elemental and lead isotopic analyses of coals, mine dumps, gasoline, and about 30 epiphytic lichen samples. Lead predominantly comes from automotive exhausts in urban and suburban areas, as leaded antiknock additives were still in use in South Africa at the time of the study. Although dust emissions from the numerous mine-tailing dumps were expected to contribute significantly to the heavy metal budget, the southern townships that are surrounded by the dumps (such as Soweto and other historically Black residential areas) do not appear to be more than partially influenc…

Quel statut pour les espaces de montage durant l'âge du Bronze?

International audience

Applications de la photogrammétrie à la documentation de l'art rupestre, des chantiers de fouilles et du bâti

Paléométallurgie dans le Morvan : l’apport des analyses polliniques et géochimiques

Palaeometallurgical activities in the Morvan: the contribution of pollen and geochemical analyses Palaeoenvironmental research was carried out on three peat cores collected in the Morvan mid-level mountain (burgundy, France), documenting early palaeometallurgical activities from the 2nd millennium bc. Pollen and geochemical analyses show contemporaneous clearings of forests in close connection with metallic contaminations. the comparison between each of the three sites shows that this kind of study in such an environment documents a local impact of paleometallurgy. studying many sequences allows the reconstruction of the regional history of the Morvan Mountain. thus, the Morvan could have b…

Tracking archaeological and historical mines using mineral prospectivity mapping.

13 pages; International audience; The present study proposes a technological transfer from modern mining prospection to the field of archaeology, providing a methodology to facilitate the discovery of ancient mining sites. This method takes advantage of the thousands of geochemical analyses of streambed sediments, performed by national geological surveys to inventory mineral substances. In order to delineate geochemical anomalies, the datasets are treated following two different approaches: Exploratory Data Analysis and a fractal-based method often recognised as more powerful. Mineral prospectivity maps are then obtained by combining the results with a geographical information system. The s…

Deep learning to detect built cultural heritage from satellite imagery. - Spatial distribution and size of vernacular houses in Sumba, Indonesia -

Abstract In Sumba Island – Indonesia, the implantation of vernacular houses, inside and outside traditional villages, is considered to be an efficient proxy for the on-going complex cultural transformations resulting from globalization. This study presents an easily reproducible workflow allowing buildings to be automatically detected from satellite imagery, demonstrating how modern computer vision methods based on deep learning can help in this task, which would be far too time-consuming when undertaken by hand. Eight deep learning architectures based on convolutional neural networks were compared in terms of ability to identify and locate precisely traditional houses from satellite images…

Environmental impact of early palaeometallurgy: pollen and geochemical analysis

International audience

An orbital floating time scale of the Hauterivian/Barremian GSSP from a magnetic susceptibility signal (Río Argos, Spain).

10 pages; International audience; An orbital floating time scale of the HauterivianeBarremian transition (Early Cretaceous) is proposed using high-resolution magnetic susceptibility measurements. Orbital tuning was performed on the Río Argos section (southeast Spain), the candidate for a Global boundary Stratotype Section and Point (GSSP) for the HauterivianeBarremian transition. Spectral analyses of MS variations, coupled with the frequency ratio method, allow the recognition of precession, obliquity and eccentricity frequency bands. Orbitallytuned magnetic susceptibility provides minimum durations for ammonite biozones. The durations of well-constrained ammonite zones are assessed at 0.78…

Wild brown trout affected by historical mining in the Cévennes national park, France.

8 pages; International audience; In the protected area of the Cévennes National Park (Southern France), 114 wild brown trout (Salmo trutta fario) were captured at six locations affected to different extents by historical mining and metallurgy dating from the Iron Age to Modern Times. Cadmium and lead in trout livers and muscles reflect high sediment contamination, although an age-related effect was also detected for hepatic metal concentrations. Lead isotope signatures confirm exposure to drainage from mining and metallurgical waste. Developmental instability, assessed by fluctuating asymmetry, is significantly correlated with cadmium and lead concentrations in trout tissues, suggesting th…

Revised phosphate-water fractionation equation reassessing paleotemperatures derived from biogenic apatite.

8 pages; International audience; Oxygen isotopes of biogenic apatite have been widely used to reassess anomalous temperatures inferred from oxygen isotope ratios of ancient biogenic calcite, more prone to diagenetic alteration. However, recent studies have highlighted that oxygen isotope ratios of biogenic apatite differ dependent on used analytical techniques. This questions the applicability of the phosphate–water fractionation equations established over 25 years ago using earlier analytical techniques to more recently acquired data. In this work we present a new phosphate–water oxygen isotope fractionation equation based on oxygen isotopes determined on fish raised in aquariums at contro…

A history of mining activity in Celtic Aeduan territory, and its environmental impact (Morvan-France)

International audience

The first 40Ar-39Ar date from Oxfordian ammonite-calibrated volcanic layers (bentonites) as a tie-point for the Late Jurassic.

AbstractEight volcanic ash layers, linked to large explosive events caused by subduction-related volcanism from the Vardar Ocean back-arc, interbedded with marine limestones and cherts, have been identified in the Rosso Ammonitico Veronese Formation (northeastern Italy). The thickest ash layer, attributed to the Gregoryceras transversarium ammonite Biozone (Oxfordian Stage), yields a precise and reliable 40Ar–39Ar date of 156.1 ± 0.89 Ma, which is in better agreement with GTS2004 boundaries than with the current GTS2012. This first biostratigraphically well-constrained Oxfordian date is proposed as a new radiometric tie-point to improve the Geologic Time Scale for the Late Jurassic, where a…

Impact des sites miniers abandonnés sur les écosystèmes aquatiques et terrestres : de la veille sanitaire des rapaces du Parc national des Cévennes à la géochimie environnementale

National audience

Quels statuts pour les espaces de montagne durant l'âge du Bronze ?

International audience

A 2500 year record of natural and anthropogenic soil erosion in South Greenland

International audience; The environmental impact of the Norse landnám in Greenland has been studied extensively. But to date, no study has quantified the soil erosion that Norse agricultural practices are believed to have caused. To resolve this problem, a high resolution sedimentary record from Lake Igaliku in South Greenland is used to quantitatively reconstruct 2500 years of soil erosion driven by climate and historical land use. An accurate chronology allows for the estimation of detritic fluxes and their uncertainties. Land clearance and the introduction of grazing livestock by the Norse around 1010 AD caused an acceleration of soil erosion up to 8 mm/century in 1180 AD which is two-fo…

Modeling of 137Cs migration in soils using an 80-year soil archive: role of fertilizers and agricultural amendments

An 80-year soil archive, the 42-plot experimental design at the INRA in Versailles (France), is used here to study long-term contamination by 137Cs atmospheric deposition and the fate of this radioisotope when associated with various agricultural practices: fallow land, KCl, NH4(NO3), superphosphate fertilizers, horse manure and lime amendments. The pertinence of a simple box model, where radiocaesium is supposed to move downward by convectional mechanisms, is checked using samples from control plots which had been neither amended, nor cultivated since 1928. This simple model presents the advantage of depending on only two parameters: α, a proportional factor allowing the historical atmosph…

Historical mining and smelting in the Vosges Mountains (France) recorded in two ombrotrophic peat bogs

Two peat sequences were sampled in the vicinity of the main mining districts of the Vosges Mountains: Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines and Plancher-les-Mines. Lead isotopic compositions and excess lead fluxes were calculated for each of these radiocarbon-dated sequences. Geochemical records are in very good agreement with the mining history of the area, well known over the last millennium. Except for an anomaly corresponding to the Middle Bronze Age which has not yet been resolved, there is no clear geochemical evidence of local metal production in the Vosges before the 10th century as excess lead deposition archived between 500 BC and 500 AD is attributed to long-range transport of polluted particul…

Productions en série vers 1500 avant notre ère. Des règles de fabrication au Bronze moyen entre la Manche et les Alpes à la lumière d’une étude morphométrique.

Some European Bronze Age objects were produced by what has been described as serial metalworking. One particularexample is the Middle Bronze Age palstave, massively produced and used in Western Europe during the mid-second millennium BC.These artefacts were often voluntarily buried together in hoards, meaning they were removed from the production network, thus avoidingany recycling. They are found intact, either as rough castings or ready for use. These homogeneous objects are grouped in sets of severalitems, or in tens, or even in hundreds. Such discoveries have immediately led to numerous questions as to the possible interpretation ofthis behaviour. It is clear that prehistoric craftsmen …

In situ Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy as a tool to discriminate volcanic rocks and magmatic series, Iceland.

7 pages; International audience; This study evaluates the potentialities of a lab-made pLIBS (portable Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) to sort volcanic rocks belonging to various magmatic series. An in-situ chemical analysis of 19 atomic lines, including Al, Ba, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Na, Si, Sr and Ti, from 21 sampled rocks was performed during a field exploration in Iceland. Iceland was chosen both for the various typologies of volcanic rocks and the rugged conditions in the field in order to test the sturdiness of the pLIPS. Elemental compositions were also measured using laboratory ICP-AES measurements on the same samples. Based on these latter results, which can be used to ident…

Metals and metalloids in hair samples of children living near the abandoned mine sites of Sulcis-Inglesiente (Sardinia, Italy)

International audience; The Sulcis-Iglesiente district (SW Sardinia, Italy) is one of the oldest and most important polymetallic mining areas in Italy. Large outcrops of sulfide and oxide ores, as well as the products of the long-lasting mining activity, are present throughout the district releasing significant quantities of metals and metalloids into the surrounding environment. Here are reported concentrations of 21 elements determined in scalp hair samples from children (aged 11-13 years) living in different geochemical environments of southwestern Sardinia: Iglesias, hosting several abandoned mines, and the island of Sant׳Antioco, not affected by significant base metal mineralization ev…

Modeling lead input and output in soils using lead isotopic geochemistry

The aim of this study is to model downward migration of lead from the plow layer of an experimental site located in Versailles (about 15 km southwest of Paris, France). Since 1928, samples have been collected annually from the topsoil of three control plots maintained in bare fallow. Thirty samples from 10 different years were analyzed for their lead and scandium contents and lead isotopic compositions. The fluxes are simple because of the well-controlled experimental conditions in Versailles: only one output flux, described as a first-order differential function of the anthropogenic lead pool, was taken into account; the inputs were exclusively ascribed to atmospheric deposition. The combi…

Geochemical records of limestone façades exposed to urban atmospheric contamination as monitoring tools?

International audience; Magnetic susceptibility, surface rock soiling, elemental composition and lead isotope ratios were measured in surface stone samples collected at different heights of a late 19th century building in Dijon, France. We targeted four limestone facades that differ in orientation and proximity to car traffic. It seems that zinc, copper, sulphur and cadmium are present as diffuse pollutants in urban atmosphere, at least at the scale of the building studied. In contrast, lead and arsenic exhibit point sources: automotive traffic and past coal-burning fly-ash emissions; both coherent with lead isotopic composition measurements. Parameter variations primarily result from expos…

Le projet "identification et impact des sites miniers abandonnés sur les écosystèmes aquatiques et terrestres actuels"

Impact of historical mining assessed in soils by kinetic extraction and lead isotopic ratios.

12 pages; International audience; The aim of this study is to estimate the long-term behaviour of trace metals, in two soils differently impacted by past mining. Topsoils from two 1 km(2) zones in the forested Morvan massif (France) were sampled to assess the spatial distribution of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn. The first zone had been contaminated by historical mining. As expected, it exhibits higher trace-metal levels and greater spatial heterogeneity than the second non-contaminated zone, supposed to represent the local background. One soil profile from each zone was investigated in detail to estimate metal behaviour, and hence, bioavailability. Kinetic extractions were performed using EDTA on thre…

Documenting carved stones from 3D models. Part II - Ambient occlusion to reveal carved parts.

10 pages; International audience; Revealing carved parts in rock art is of primary importance and remains a major challenge for archaeological documentation. Computational geometry applied to 3D imaging provides a unique opportunity to document rock art. This study evaluates five algorithms and derivatives used to compute ambient occlusion and sky visibility on 3D models of Mongolian stelae, also known as deer stones. By contrast with the previous companion work, models are processed directly in 3D, without preliminary projection. Volumetric obscurance gives the best results for the identification of carved figures. The effects of model resolution and parameters specific to ambient occlusio…

En direct de l’essai patrimonial des 42 parcelles d’INRAE à Versailles : impacts de fertilisations centenaires en profondeur du NEOLUVISOL de lœss

International audience; Après l’étude d’évolutions pédologiques et géochimiques dans l’horizon de surface (van Oort et al., 2016, 2017a), ce nouveau volet du projet de valorisation du dispositif des 42 parcelles de l’Inra de Versailles présente les effets d’apports continus de matières fertilisantes à l’échelle du solum, pour une dizaine de traitements : ammoniacaux, engrais-Na et/ou K, phosphatés, CaCO$_3$, fumier et témoins. Pour chaque traitement, les profils de teneur en éléments (0-120 cm) ont été comparés avec le bilan 1929-2014 en surface (0-25 cm), afin de raisonner la pertinence d’études des impacts d’activités anthropiques, restreintes à l’horizon de surface. En l’absence de végét…

La lecture des archives naturelles : une histoire de la métallurgie autour de Bibracte

National audience; La confirmation archéologique de l’importante activité métallurgique dans la ville celtique, située au cœur d’une région riche en minerais, a conduit les archéologues à s’interroger sur le rôle de l’exploitation métallurgique dans l’installation et laprospérité du site de Bibracte, à la fin de l’âge du Fer.

Lichen used to assess nickel atmospheric dispersion, an example of New Caledonia Asbestos and best practices View project Atmospheric signature in marine sediments View project Camille Pasquet Lichen used to assess nickel atmospheric dispersion, an example of New Caledonia

International audience; Fifteen epiphytic lichens, collected near an active nickel mine and along an East-West transect across New Caledonia island (South-West Pacific), were analyzed for their metal contents. The purpose is to evaluate atmospheric metal contamination and the impact of mining exploitation on the surroundings. The structure of the compositional dataset was explored using a covariance biplot. The score of the first principal component was used as a generic indicator to locally evaluate the degree of contamination. This study demonstrates that Ni, Co and Cr are highly concentrated in lichens near mining exploitation.

Prospections autour de Bibracte. Paléoenvironnement du Mont-Beuvray

Rapport annuel d'activité 2006 BIBRACTE Centre archéologique européen Rapport annuel d'activité 2006 Société anonyme d'économie mixte nationale

History and Environmental Impact of Mining Activity in Celtic Aeduan Territory Recorded in a Peat Bog (Morvan, France)

The present study aims to document historical mining and smelting activities by means of geochemical and pollen analyses performed in a peat bog core collected around the Bibracte oppidum (Morvan, France), the largest settlement of the great Aeduan Celtic tribe (ca. 180 B.C. to 25 A.D.). The anthropogenic Pb profile indicates local mining operations starting from the Late Bronze Age, ca. cal. 1300 B.C. Lead inputs peaked at the height of Aeduan civilization and then decreased after the Roman conquest of Gaul, when the site was abandoned. Other phases of mining are recognized from the 11th century to modern times. They have all led to modifications in plant cover, probably related in part to…

Quel statut pour les espaces de montagne durant l'âge du Bronze ? Regards croisés sur les approches société-environnement dans les Pyrénées occidentales

After having been neglected for some time, mountain environments have now become an important research area for the study of anthropogenic impact on the environment and the interactions of societies with their environments. The recent development of several interdisciplinary programs in the Alps and in the Pyrenees reveals the interest and the scientific questions associated with these domains. In the Pyrenees, the work undertaken in the Basque Country illustrates the utility of the development of multidisciplinary research on a large scale, which is both diachronic and has a high resolution chronology. Combining environmental and archaeological data, allows us to present an image of popula…

Palaeoecological and geochemical evidences of early metallurgy in Burgundy (Morvan and Nivernais - France)

Influence of anthropogenic activity on the lead isotope signature of Thau Lake sediments (southern France): origin and temporal evolution

Lead concentrations and isotopic compositions were determined on both bulk sediments deposited in the Thau lake in southern France during the last 200 years, and leachates derived from a series of sequential leachings of the sediments, making it possible to identify the sources, natural (i.e. indigenous lithologic) or anthropogenic, and to quantify the different inputs of Pb. Two distinct inputs of Pb could be distinguished. One of these corresponds to the terrigenous material entering the basin, representative of the local natural Pb ‘background’. Its supply remained steady most of the time with 206Pb/207Pb ratios of 1.200±0.003, except at the time of heavy storms producing voluminous and …

Climatic ups and downs in a disturbed Jurassic world.

4 pages; International audience; The tropical, warm, and equable climate of the Jurassic world is regularly challenged by geoscientists, especially since oxygen isotopes ( 18O) of fossil hardparts have been used to reconstruct the paleotemperature history of seawater. By applying the innovative “SiZer” (significant zero crossings of the derivatives) statistical approach to a newly compiled 18O database for the Jurassic, we demonstrate the occurrence of major and multiscale 18O changes mainly related to climate disturbances. For the first time, two long-term anomalies in 18O are identified during the Toarcian and the Late Jurassic, in conjunction with intensive volcanism in large igneous pro…

Contextualization of archaeological information using augmented photospheres, viewed with head-mounted displays.

Photospheres, or 360&deg

Morphometrics of Second Iron Age ceramics - strengths, weaknesses, and comparison with traditional typology.

12 pages; International audience; Although the potential of geometric morphometrics for the study of archaeological artefacts is recognised, quantitative evaluations of the concordance between such methods and traditional typology are rare. The present work seeks to fill this gap, using as a case study a corpus of 154 complete ceramic vessels from the Bibracte oppidum (France), the capital of the Celtic tribe Aedui from the Second Iron Age. Two outline-based approaches were selected: the Elliptic Fourier Analysis and the Discrete Cosine Transform. They were combined with numerous methods of standardisation/normalisation. Although standardisations may use either perimeter or surface, the res…

Images of camels on a mammoth tusk from West Siberia

International audience; This study introduces the engravings on a mammoth tusk from the lower reaches of the Tom River in WestSiberia. The tusk was found in 1988 during construction works and was later transferred to the Tomsk StateUniversity, but it remained almost unknown to specialists until now. Radiocarbon dating by AMS reported theage of the tusk as 13,100–13,005 Сal BP (95% confidence level). The surface of the tusk is engraved with imagesof two-humped camels arranged in two pairs. In addition, arrows and wounds within the contours of the animalscan be seen. The comparative analysis of the stylistic features of the camel figures shows that they correspond tothe age of the tusk itself, …

Morphometry of Middle Bronze Age palstaves. Part II - spatial distribution of shapes in two typological groups, implications for production and exportation.

10 pages; International audience; For archaeologists, metallic artifacts are key materials to assess Middle Bronze Age production areas and cultural exchanges. Here, a set of 629 bronze palstaves excavated in northern France, belonging to Breton and Norman typological groups, was treated by (open) outline-based morphometrics with orthogonal polynomial regression. Using robust statistics developed for outlier detection, these Norman and Breton palstave outlines can be divided into two groups: those for which the shape fluctuates close to the standard shape, called "congruent" axes, and those which are far enough from this standard to be considered as "non-congruent", although they possess mo…

Quantifying cereal-reaping microwear on flint tools : an experimental approach

International audience; From the earliest Neolithic in the Near East to the last Chalcolithic cultures in Western Europe, certain flint tools have been used as sickles to harvest cereals. Such harvesting tools can be identified through use-wear analyses, because cutting herbaceous plants produces specific wear-traces on the working edge of flint blades. The aim of this work is to explore harvesting-driven microwear variability and, more particularly, intensity of use as a governing factor. To achieve this objective, an experiment was designed consisting in the production of flint replicas to be used as harvesting tools, in various controlled conditions. A simple, cost-effective method of qu…

Contribution of isotopic geochemistry to the origin of lead in the atmosphere of Sicily.

Air quality can be assessed using mineral and biological indicators: airborne particulate matter, mosses, lichens, and pine needles. However, the origin of the pollutant is usually difficult to determine on the sole basis of concentrations, particularly when many sources are involved. In this study, we report some examples of application of lead isotopic geochemistry on airborne particulate matter, lichens and pine needles as a mean to decipher sources of lead pollution in Sicily. Furthermore, we evaluate the use of Pb/Sc and Pb/Br ratios to enhance the discriminating power of the isotopic method. Besides the methodological aspect, this work aims to provide, at least for lead, a summary of …

Evolution de la végétation du massif du Morvan : résultats des premières analyses polliniques et mise en évidence de l'impact des activités paléométallurgiques

L'oppidum de Bibracte (Mont Beuvray, France). Bilan de 10 années de recherches (1996-2005)

International audience

Environmental impact of early Basque mining and smelting recorded in a high ash minerogenic peat deposit.

International audience; More than four metres of core, covering almost 5000 years of deposition, were collected in a high ash minerogenic peat deposit located in the High Aldudes valley (Basque country), an area well known for its mineral abundance, exploited from Roman Times at least.Although minerogenic peatlands are not generally considered as the best archives to reconstruct past atmospheric metal deposition history, lead isotopic geochemistry demonstrates the integrity of the Pb record at least within the three upper meters; that is to say over the last four millennia.Zn, Cd and Cumay have been widely redistributed either by biological cycling, advective groundwater movements, or diffu…

Arsenic et vieilles parcelles

Evolution de l’environnement et de l’exploitation minière en Morvan. Palynologie, géochimie et prospections (intervention 557, chantier 303).

Contribution to the Holocene North Atlantic wind activity reconstruction from Lake Igaliku, South Greenland

International audience

Le programme « Identification et impact des sites miniers abandonnés sur les écosystèmes aquatiques et terrestres actuels ». Bilan au sein du Parc naturel régional du Morvan

National audience

Impact of sedimentology and diagenesis on the petrophysical properties of a tight oolitic carbonate reservoir. The case of the Oolithe Blanche Formation (Bathonian, Paris Basin, France).

18 pages; International audience; The Oolithe Blanche Formation was studied in three quarries, located at the south-eastern edge of the Paris Basin (France). Heterogeneities in reservoir properties were assessed through a sedimentological, diagenetic and petrophysical study. The relationships between depositional settings, diagenesis and petrophysical properties were analysed using detailed petrographic studies, image analysis, Nano CTscans and petrophysical measurements. The carbonate reservoir pore network is mainly controlled by intraparticle microporosity which ensures the connectivity with interparticle meso- and macroporosity. Early cementation vs. early compaction processes (mainly g…

Quantifying Cereal-Reaping Microwear On Flint Tools: An Experimental Approach

From the earliest Neolithic in the Near East to the last Chalcolithic cultures in Western Europe, certain flint tools have been used as sickles to harvest cereals. Such harvesting tools can be identified through use-wear analyses, because cutting herbaceous plants produces specific wear-traces on the working edge of flint blades. The aim of this work is to explore harvesting-driven microwear variability and, more particularly, intensity of use as a governing factor. To achieve this objective, an experiment was designed consisting in the production of flint replicas to be used as harvesting tools, in various controlled conditions. A simple, cost-effective method of quantifying wear-traces by…

Rythmes et mobilité d'occupation du massif du Morvan du second âge du Fer au haut Moyen Âge. Spatialisation et croisement des données archéologiques et paléoenvironnementales

Characterisation and distribution of deposited trace elements transported over long and intermediate distances in north-eastern France using Sphagnum peatlands as a sentinel ecosystem

Abstract Trace elements in the form of particulate matter can be transported downwind from their emission sources and may have negative effects on human health and ecosystems. The transport of trace elements is often studied by monitoring their accumulation in mosses. The aim of this study was to characterise and describe the distribution of deposited trace elements transported over long and intermediate distances in north-eastern France, a location far from the main emission sources. We analysed the trace element accumulation in Sphagnum capillifolium in 54 ombrotrophic peatlands distributed in six regions of France (Alps, Jura, Massif Central, Morvan, Rhone corridor and Vosges). The conce…

Du plomb chez les Gaulois du Morvan

Inorganic geochemistry of roadway dust from the metropolitan area of Palermo, Italy

Inorganic matter from roadway dust collected in the urban area of Palermo, Italy, was analysed to identify the chemical elements introduced into the environment as a result of human activities. Metals of environmental concern exhibit very high enrichment factors, which in some cases exceed 100. Metal size distribution indicates that Pd, Pt, Au, Sb, Zn, S, Ni, V, Mo and Cr substantially accumulate in the finest particles, whereas Pb, Br, As, Cu, Ag and Ba are almost independent of the size fraction. SEM/EDS analyses revealed that some individual particles contain clusters of foreign particles (<10 μm) made up of Fe-Ni, Cr-Ni or Fe alone, typical of the abrasion of stainless steel. Others are…

Étude paléoenvironnentale des tourbières autour du Mont Beuvray. Premiers résultats

International audience

Perturbation vectors to evaluate air quality using lichens and bromeliads: a Brazilian case study.

10 pages; International audience; Samples of one lichen species, Parmotrema crinitum, and one bromeliad species, Tillandsia usneoides, were collected in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at four sites differently affected by anthropogenic pollution. The concentrations of aluminum, cadmium, copper, iron, lanthanum, lead, sulfur, titanium, zinc, and zirconium were determined by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy. The environmental diagnosis was established by examining compositional changes via perturbation vectors, an underused family of methods designed to circumvent the problem of closure in any compositional dataset. The perturbation vectors between the reference s…

Evolution of neodymium isotopic signature of seawater during the Late Cretaceous: implications for intermediate and deep circulation.

20 pages; International audience; Neodymium isotopic compositions (εNd) have been largely used for the last fifty years as a tracer of past ocean circulation, and more intensively during the last decade to investigate ocean circulation during the Cretaceous period. Despite a growing set of data, circulation patterns still remain unclear during this period. In particular, the identification of the deep-water masses and their spatial extension within the different oceanic basins are poorly constrained. In this study we present new deep-water εNd data inferred from the Nd isotope composition of fish remains and Fe–Mn oxyhydroxide coatings on foraminifera tests, along with new εNd data of resid…

Potential Interactions between Climate and Prehistoric Populations in Southern Morocco: Insights from Archaeological and Paleoclimatic Evidence

Southern Morocco contains a rich archaeological record: engraving, painted rocks, and funerary monuments. This pre-historic and proto-historical heritage offers valuable information about the environmental context of pre-historic settlements. However, the Southern Moroccan archaeological record suffers from dating scarcity. And hence, the difficulty in establishing a reliable chronology. Most of the archaeological sites date from 7000 to 1000 years BP and are marked by a transition period from a humid to dry climate during the late Holocene. The relatively drier conditions likely resulted in adopting a new lifestyle characterized by cattle ranching, agriculture, and animal domestication. Ho…