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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Geomorphological evolution of the River Loukkos estuary around the Phoenician city of Lixus on the Atlantic Littoral of Morocco

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The ancient city of Lixus, today situated on a hill on the right bank of the River Loukkos, 4km from the coast, was founded on the shore of a brackish lagoon that was sheltered from Atlantic storms. This geographical context provided the city with one of the best Phoenician harbors and abundant fishing resources, and allowed access to the Gharb cattle farming resources and cereal production systems. In this study, the historical evolution of the Loukkos estuarine environment is reconstructed through geomorphological and sedimentological analyses, combined with cartographic, archaeological, and geographical data. The outcomes reveal the progressive infilling of the estuarine lagoon of Lixus and its transformation into the current estuary and floodplain. The recent history of this estuary records four successive stages: (1) an initial stage associated with the maximum Holocene marine transgression (5500 to 5320 cal. yr B.P.) that reached the interior of the estuary; (2) a sheltered brackish tidal lagoon stage in Phoenician and Roman times; (3) a period of progressive infilling of the estuarine lagoon, from late Roman times to the Middle Ages (11th to15th centuries); (4) a period of rapid expansion of intertidal marshes (17th to 19th centuries) that saw the formation of the modern estuarine plain and meandering channel system (20th century). © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.