Environment, land use, and archaeology in the north-central German Lower Mountain Range during the Younger and Late Neolithic: the sediment profile of Körbecker Bruch (Warburger Börde, eastern Westphalia)

Abstract Palynological, macroremain, and sedimentological analyses of a well-dated, high-resolution sediment profile from the Körbecker Bruch have enabled a detailed reconstruction of the land-use history in a fertile loess landscape during the Younger and the Late Neolithic. The results indicate that already around 4700 cal. BCE, agriculture, animal husbandry, and slash-and-burn techniques, as elements of the subsistence economy, had significantly shaped the landscape. Following a phase of reduced human activity (ca. 4620–3950 cal. BCE), a renewed intensification of land use began around 3950 cal. BCE, coinciding with the expansion of Michelsberg settlements. In the Late Neolithic, especially during the Early Wartberg phase (around 3300 cal. BCE), land development peaked before experiencing a marked decline around 3070 cal. BCE. The varying intensities of land use, as evidenced by palynological studies, reflect societal and cultural developments with remarkable clarity – not only within the Warburg, but across the wider northern Hesse and eastern Westphalia region and, in part throughout Central Europe.