Palaeoclimates in Israel: Evidence from Weathering Patterns of Stones in and near Archaeological Sites
Rocks and stones of massive limestone are inhabited by microorganisms that cause typical weathering patterns. The distribution of the lithobiont communities is influenced by environmental conditions. When a rock or stone is covered by soil or put into a wall of a building, the organisms die and deco...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
The University of Chicago Press
1985
|
| In: |
Bulletin of ASOR
Year: 1985, Volume: 259, Pages: 33-43 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
|
| Summary: | Rocks and stones of massive limestone are inhabited by microorganisms that cause typical weathering patterns. The distribution of the lithobiont communities is influenced by environmental conditions. When a rock or stone is covered by soil or put into a wall of a building, the organisms die and decompose, but their weathering pattern may be preserved on the rock surface for thousands of years. Knowing the climatic affinities of the lithobiont communities, one can use fossil patterns on stones and rocks that were buried in the past as a climate recorder. Weathering patterns on stones and rocks by microorganisms near 26 archaeological sites in Israel and fossil patterns buried in these sites were studied. The study concluded that: 1) the period preceding the Neolithic was drier than the present; 2) the climate of the Neolithic was wetter than the present; and 3) since the Chalcolithic period the climate of Israel has been about the same as the present. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 2161-8062 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: American Schools of Oriental Research, Bulletin of ASOR
|
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2307/1356796 |