Identifying and dating remains of pond dams in river valleys (Southern Poland)

• Main Author: Rutkiewicz, Paweł
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbon dating; Charcoal; Dam engineering; Dams; Data sheets; Middle Ages; Modernization; Murals; Organic matter; Ponds; Radiometric dating; Smelting; Valleys
• ISSN: 0094-243X; 1551-7616
• DOI: 10.1063/1.5138040

The main aim of this study was to identify and determine the age of the former pond dams in river valleys, using GIS tools and radiocarbon dating of organic matter from the dams and then to compare the results with historical sources. Additional goals were to examine the internal structure and morphometry of selected dams. As a first step we studied historic maps. Next, data sheets from aerial laser scanning were obtained. When we had identified the locations of dams damming the bottoms of the valleys, field verification was undertaken and the study sites were designated. During the field studies, each dam was expose. Samples for radiocarbon dating were taken from layers that contained organic matter. Radiocarbon dates of charcoal found in the dams indicate the origin of these structures, in three cases from the Middle Ages, in one case from the Roman period and in one case from the modern period. The radiocarbon dates obtained correspond well with historical data. In some cases radiocarbon dates can serve as indications that the smelting plant may have been established earlier than historical sources suggest. The variability of the layers visible in the dam profiles indicates the modernisation or destruction of these structures.