Holocene palaeoecological changes recorded in mollusc-bearing cave sediments, the Cave above the Słupska Gate (southern Poland)

The Cave above the Słupska Gate (southern Poland) contains about 2m depth of mollusc-bearing deposits. Radiocarbon and archaeological dating indicate that these deposits accumulated during the Holocene (Preboreal to Subatlantic), although the earliest layers may date from the end of the Pleistocene. Eight layers of silts, sands and loess-like deposits were distinguished at the site. Seven of them contained identifiable snail shells, sometimes in large numbers, and sparse remains of vertebrates and archaeological artefacts. The molluscan assemblages retrieved from the cave contain over 40 taxa and 1,200 specimens. The balance of species distributed among 11 zoogeographical groups enabled us to identify four assemblages which differ in their ecological structure and in the composition of the fauna. The oldest fauna (Late Glacial/Preboreal and/or Preboreal) with many shade-loving species is typical of a cool climate. Episodes of drying are evidenced by the loess-like deposits and the occurrence of open-country snails such as the glacial relic Vallonia tenuilabris. This species disappeared in the younger part of the Early Holocene, which is the most distinctive feature of the Słupsko Hill sequence. The Middle Holocene climatic optimum is characterised by abundantand diverse fauna which is typical of mixed and deciduous forests with distinct oceanic influences. The critical Discus ruderatus and Discus rotundatus succession reflects the general trends in European malacofaunas. The Late Holocene record may bear some hiatuses, but the shift away from a complete forest fauna is evident

Holocene palaeoecological changes recorded in mollusc-bearing cave sediments, the Cave above the Słupska Gate (southern Poland)

The Cave above the Słupska Gate (southern Poland) contains about 2m depth of mollusc-bearing deposits. Radiocarbon and archaeological dating indicate that these deposits accumulated during the Holocene (Preboreal to Subatlantic), although the earliest layers may date from the end of the Pleistocene. Eight layers of silts, sands and loess-like deposits were distinguished at the site. Seven of them contained identifiable snail shells, sometimes in large numbers, and sparse remains of vertebrates and archaeological artefacts. The molluscan assemblages retrieved from the cave contain over 40 taxa and 1,200 specimens. The balance of species distributed among 11 zoogeographical groups enabled us to identify four assemblages which differ in their ecological structure and in the composition of the fauna. The oldest fauna (Late Glacial/Preboreal and/or Preboreal) with many shade-loving species is typical of a cool climate. Episodes of drying are evidenced by the loess-like deposits and the occurrence of open-country snails such as the glacial relic Vallonia tenuilabris. This species disappeared in the younger part of the Early Holocene, which is the most distinctive feature of the Słupsko Hill sequence. The Middle Holocene climatic optimum is characterised by abundantand diverse fauna which is typical of mixed and deciduous forests with distinct oceanic influences. The criticalDiscus ruderatus and Discus rotundatus succession reflects the general trends in European malacofaunas. The Late Holocene record may bear some hiatuses, but the shift away from a complete forest fauna is evident

Turkish urban names exemplified by the town of Eskişehir

The paper presents a selected lexical material concerning urbonyms of the city of Eskişehir in Turkey. Examples of names of all the districts (77), selected communication highways (941) as well as commercial and service centres (775) are analysed. The work uses the material collected in the course of the author's fieldwork and from cartographic sources. In each of the three groups of urbonyms a division into types of the name structures as well as the semantic and grammatical distinction of components of those names were made. For each urbonym a translation into Spanish was suggested. Within each of the groups a classification into names stemming from proper names and from common names was introduced. The concluding remarks contain the interpretation of the data as well as an outline of the naming tendencies within the Turkish urban toponymy

Ältere niederländische und polnische Bibelübersetzungen

The article is an attempt at a chronological presentation of the most important old and complete translations of the Bible by the time and including the Protestant Reformation in both compared languages. As for the Dutch language, eight Biblical translations have been analysed with Protestant translations prevailing (5). On the other hand, Polish is represented by five old translations of the Scriptures with a slight advantage of Protestant translations (3) over Catholic ones (2). Translations of the Bible largely affected the language and the style of the Scriptures. It is worth emphasizing that they were most influenced by the Protestant Staatenbijbel (1637) in the then Netherlands and by the Jakub Wujek Bible (1599) in Poland

Fracture toughness of the molten zone of resistance spot weld

International audienceA methodology for measuring the fracture toughness at crack initiation and the crack extension resistance of the molten zone of resistance spot welds under Mode I loading has been developed. The cross tensile test of U-shaped specimens was modified by crack growth monitoring and stress intensity factor determination. The resulting values of fracture toughness at crack initiation are independent of the nugget diameter and of the base material mechanical properties. The crack extension resistance seems to depend on base material mechanical properties and nugget diameter. Mixed cleavage + ductile mode associated to medium values of fracture toughness (54-90 MPa m 0.5 ) suggested a ductile to brittle transition behaviour. The relatively low fracture toughness (55-59 MPa m 0.5 ) associated to full interfacial ductile failure was quantitatively related to the high number density of small particles in the molten zone. This study opens the possibility to apply the local approach to fracture under monotonic loading to interfacial failure of resistance spot welds

Ślad osadnictwa z wczesnej epoki brązu w Schronisku w Udorzu II (Udórz, gm. Żarnowiec, woj. śląskie)

The Rockshelter in Udórz II (Udórz, Żarnowiec Commune, Śląskie Voivodeship) lies at the northern end of the Udorka valley (fig. 1) in the Ryczów Upland (central portion of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland). In 2012 an interdisciplinary programme of trial trenching was carried out at the shelter site (fig. 2) as one of the stages of a project designed to record evidence of prehistoric occupation in the Udorka valley and to examine its palaeoenvironmental context. Sedimentary fill of this site comprise four strata of different lithology (fig. 3). The lowermost layer 4 is a sediment which was created by frost weathering in cold climatic conditions during the Pleistocene. Layer 3 consists of a light brown silty sand with a high content of sharp-edged debris, deposited during the Last Glacial Maximum. Layer 2 can be related to the Late Pleistocene and most of the Holocene. It is composed of grey-brown silty sand with a high content of sharp-edged limestone debris. In contrast, layer 1 is a dark grey-brown silty sand with small amounts of rounded limestone debris, which was formed in the warm climatic conditions of the Late Holocene. Flintwork and potsherds were recorded at the interface of layers 1 and 2, and in the roof of layer 2. Analysis of distribution patterns reveals that these finds were concentrated around a hearth, traces of which were recorded at the south-west part of the trial trench (fig. 4). The small flintwork assemblage is not very distinctive and shows evidence of having been burnt (fig. 6: 1–3). Most of it forms a similar scatter to the pottery. The ceramic sherds represent the remains of at least three vessels, probably including a bowl; decoration in the form of cord impressions was noted on this pottery (fig. 5: 4–12). Based on typological, chronological and comparative studies this assemblage was attributed to the early period of development of the Mierzanowice culture, dated to 2200–2050 BC. The fragmentary remains of a camp recorded at the Rockshelter in Udórz II suggest that as well as larger caves, late Neolithic and early Bronze Age communities also readily adapted smaller ones for use as short-term occupation sites, avoiding those where no daylight penetrated. This model of temporary or seasonal camps is consistent with current archaeological findings. Analysis of early Bronze Age materials from Małopolska (Little Poland) indicates that late Neolithic and early Bronze Age communities did not inhabit the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland on a permanent basis, only making forays into this area in search of flint and probably also rare plants and fruit.Artykuł omawia wyniki interdyscyplinarnych badań sondażowych prowadzonych w 2012 roku na jaskiniowym stanowisku kultury mierzanowickiej w Udorzu, położonym na lewym brzegu doliny Udorki w południowo-wschodniej części Wyżyny Ryczowskiej (środkowa część Wyżyny Krakowsko-Częstochowskiej)

Ancestors of domestic cats in Neolithic Central Europe : isotopic evidence of a synanthropic diet

Cat remains from Poland dated to 4,200 to 2,300 y BCE are currently the earliest evidence for the migration of the Near Eastern cat (NE cat), the ancestor of domestic cats, into Central Europe. This early immigration preceded the known establishment of housecat populations in the region by around 3,000 y. One hypothesis assumed that NE cats followed the migration of early farmers as synanthropes. In this study, we analyze the stable isotopes in six samples of Late Neolithic NE cat bones and further 34 of the associated fauna, including the European wildcat. We approximate the diet and trophic ecology of Late Neolithic felids in a broad context of contemporary wild and domestic animals and humans. In addition, we compared the ecology of Late Neolithic NE cats with the earliest domestic cats known from the territory of Poland, dating to the Roman Period. Our results reveal that human agricultural activity during the Late Neolithic had already impacted the isotopic signature of rodents in the ecosystem. These synanthropic pests constituted a significant proportion of the NE cat’s diet. Our interpretation is that Late Neolithic NE cats were opportunistic synanthropes, most probably free-living individuals (i.e., not directly relying on a human food supply). We explore niche partitioning between studied NE cats and the contemporary native European wildcats. We find only minor differences between the isotopic ecology of both these taxa. We conclude that, after the appearance of the NE cat, both felid taxa shared the ecological niches