Amazonian Dark Earths in the context of pre-Columbian settlements
Main Article Content
Keywords
Amazon, anthropogenic soils, pre-Columbian settlement, Amazonian Dark Earths, terra preta
Abstract
Important information about pre-Columbian Amazonian settlement and economy provide Amazonian Dark Earths (ADE), black or brown soils characterized by the presence of charcoal in high concentrations, with highly elevated nutrients and organic matter and higher pH level. Usually ADE are related to large concentrations of ceramics, stone artifacts and animal remains. The main factor for the initiation of ADE formation was the long-lasted, fully sedentary pre-Columbian settlement. Its size and a form can be correlated with traces of historical human habitation. Thus, these sites can reflect the social organization of a specific group. Therefore, ADE studies can bring much valuable information concerning pre-Columbian settlement in Amazonia.
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References
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Denevan W. M., 2001. Cultivated Landscapes of Native Amazonia and the Andes. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Eden M.J., 1993. Swidden Cultivation in Forest and Savanna in Lowland Southwest Papua New Guinea. Human Ecology, 21, 2, 145-166.
Eden M.J., Bray W., Herrera L. & McEwan C., 1984. Archaeology Terra Preta Soils and Their Archaeological Context in the Caqueta Basin of Southeast Colombia. American Antiquity, 49, 1, 125-140.
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Hecht S.B., 2003. Indigenous Soil Management and the Creation of Amazonian Dark Earths: Implications of Kayapo Practices, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 355-372.
Heckenberger M.J., 2009. Zaginione miasta Amazonii. Świat Nauki, 11,44-52.
Heckenberger M.J., Petersen J.B. & Neves E.G., 1999. Village size and permanence in Amazonia: Two archaeological examples from Brazil. Latin American Antiquity, 10, 4, 353-376.
Jolly C.J. & Plog F., 1987, The Emergence of Food Production, [in:] Ember C.R., Ember M.R., Peregrine P.N. & Hoppa R.D., Physical anthropology and archaeology, 4th ed., New York, 368-446.
Kampf N., Woods W.I., Sombroek W., Kern D.C. & Cunha T.J.F., 2003. Classification of Amazonian Dark Earths and other Ancient Anthropic Soils, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C, Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 77-104.
Kern D.C., D'Aquino G., Rodrigues T.E., Frazao F.J.L., Sombroek W., Myers T.P. & Neves E.G., 2003. Distribution of Amazonian Dark Earths in the Brazilian Amazon Dark Earths in the Brazilian Amazon, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 51-76.
Kern D.C., Lima da Costa M., Lima F. & Francisco Juv, 2004. Evolution of the Scientific Knowledge Regarding Archaeological Black Earths of Amazonia, [in:] Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Explorations in Space and Time, Springer, Berlin - Heidelberg, 19-28.
Lathrap D.W., 1970. The Upper Amazon. Praeger Publishers, New York.
Lehmann J., Kern D.C., German L., McCann J., Martins G.C. & Moreira A., 2003. Soil Fertility and Production Potential, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 105-124.
Mann Ch.C., 2007. 1491: Ameryka przed Kolumbem. Dom Wydawniczy Rebis, Poznań.
Marris E., 2006. Black is the new green. Nature, 442, 624-626.
Meggers B.J., 1954. Environmental Limitation on the Development of Culture. American Anthropologist, New Series, 56, 5, 1, 801-824.
Meggers B.J., 1971. Amazonia: Man and Culture in a Counterfeit Paradise. Aldine - Atherton, Chicago - New York.
Miller R.P. & Nair P.K.R., 2003. Archaeobotanical Methods for the Study of Amazonian Dark Earths, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 205-226.
Miller R.P. & Nair P.K.R., 2006. Indigenous agroforestry systems in Amazonia: from prehistory to today. Agroforestry Systems, 66, 151-164.
Myers T.P., Denevan W.M., WinklerPrins A. & Porro A., 2003, Historical Perspectives on Amazonian Dark Earths, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 16-29.
Neves E.G., Petersen J.B., Bartone R.N. & da Silva C.A., 2003. Historical and Socio-cultural Origins of Amazonian Dark Earths, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 30-50.
Oliver J.R., 2001. The Archaeology of Forest Foraging and Agricultural Production in Amazonia, [in:] McEwan C., Barreto C. & Neves E.G. (eds), Unknown Amazon. Culture in Nature in Ancient Brazil, The British Museum Press, London, 50-85.
Petersen J.B., Neves E.G. & Heckenberger M.J., 2001. Gift from the Past: Terra Preta and the Prehistoric Amerindian Occupation in Amazonia, [in:] McEwan C., Barreto C. & Neves E.G. (eds), Unknown Amazon. Culture in Nature in Ancient Brazil, The British Museum Press, London, 86-107.
Rebellato L., Woods W.I. & Neves E. C., 2009. Pre-Columbian Settlement Dynamics in the Central Amazon, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 15-32.
Roosevelt A.C., 1980. Parmana. Prehistoric Maize and Manioc Subsistence along the Amazon and Orinoco. Academic Press, New York.
Roosevelt A.C., 1991. Moundbuilders of the Amazon. Geohysical Archaeology on Marajo Island, Brazil. Academic Press, New York.
Schaan D.P., Kern D.C. & Frazao F.J.L., 2009. An Assessment of the Cultural Practices Behind the Formation (or Not) of Amazonian Dark Earths in Marajo Island Archaeological Site, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 127-142.
Schmidt M.J. & Heckenberger M.J., 2009. Amerindian Anthrosols: Amazonian Dark Earth Formation in the Upper Xingu. [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 163-192.
Sombroek W., 1966. Amazon Soils. A Reconnaissance of the Soils of the Brazilian Amazon Region. Centre for Agricultural Publications and Documentations, Wageningen.
Sombroek W., Kern D., Rodrigues T., da Silva CM., Cunha J.T., Woods W.I. & Glaser B., 2002. Terra preta and terra mulata: pre-Columbian Amazon kitchen middens and agricultural fields, their sustainability and their replication. 17h World Congress of Soil Science, Bangkok, Thailand.
Sombroek W., Ruivo M.L., Fearnside Ph.M., Glaser B. & Lehmann J., 2003. Amazonian Dark Earths as Carbon Stores and Sinks, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 125-140.
Thayn J., Price K., Woods W.I., 2009. Locating Amazonian Dark Earths (ADE) Using Satellite Remote Sensing - A Possible Approach, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 279-298.
WinklerPrins A.M., 2009. Sweep and Char and the Creation of Amazonian Dark Earths in Homegardens. [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 205-212.
Woods W.I., 1995. Comments on the Black Earths of Amazonia. Papers and Proceedings of the Applied Geography Conferences,18, Applied Geography Conferences, 159-165.
Woods W.I., 2003. Development of Anthrosol Research, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 3-15.
Woods W.I. & Denevan W.M., 2009, Amazonian Dark Earths: The First Century of Reports, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 1-14.
Wust I. & Barreto C., 1999. The Ring Villages of Central Brazil: A Challenge for Amazonian Archaeology. Latin American Antiquity, 10, 1, 3-23.
Denevan W.M., 1996. A Bluff Model of Riverine Settlement in Prehistoric Amazonia. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 86, 4, 654-681
Denevan W. M., 2001. Cultivated Landscapes of Native Amazonia and the Andes. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Eden M.J., 1993. Swidden Cultivation in Forest and Savanna in Lowland Southwest Papua New Guinea. Human Ecology, 21, 2, 145-166.
Eden M.J., Bray W., Herrera L. & McEwan C., 1984. Archaeology Terra Preta Soils and Their Archaeological Context in the Caqueta Basin of Southeast Colombia. American Antiquity, 49, 1, 125-140.
Erickson C.L., 2003. Historical Ecology and Future Explorations, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands: 455-500.
Fraser J., Cardso T., Junqueira A., Falcao N.P.S. & Clemnt C.R., 2009. Historical Ecology and Dark Earths in Whitewater and Blackwater Landscapes: comparing the middle Madeira and Lower Negro Rivers, [in:] Woods W.L.Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A., Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 229-264.
Glaser B., Zech W. & Woods W.I., 2004. History, Current Knowledge and Future Perspectives of Geoecological Research Concerning the Origin of Amazonian Anthropogenic Dark Earths (Terra Preta). [in:] Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Explorations in Space and Time, Springer, Berlin - Heidelberg, 10-17.
Hecht S.B., 2003. Indigenous Soil Management and the Creation of Amazonian Dark Earths: Implications of Kayapo Practices, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 355-372.
Heckenberger M.J., 2009. Zaginione miasta Amazonii. Świat Nauki, 11,44-52.
Heckenberger M.J., Petersen J.B. & Neves E.G., 1999. Village size and permanence in Amazonia: Two archaeological examples from Brazil. Latin American Antiquity, 10, 4, 353-376.
Jolly C.J. & Plog F., 1987, The Emergence of Food Production, [in:] Ember C.R., Ember M.R., Peregrine P.N. & Hoppa R.D., Physical anthropology and archaeology, 4th ed., New York, 368-446.
Kampf N., Woods W.I., Sombroek W., Kern D.C. & Cunha T.J.F., 2003. Classification of Amazonian Dark Earths and other Ancient Anthropic Soils, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C, Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 77-104.
Kern D.C., D'Aquino G., Rodrigues T.E., Frazao F.J.L., Sombroek W., Myers T.P. & Neves E.G., 2003. Distribution of Amazonian Dark Earths in the Brazilian Amazon Dark Earths in the Brazilian Amazon, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 51-76.
Kern D.C., Lima da Costa M., Lima F. & Francisco Juv, 2004. Evolution of the Scientific Knowledge Regarding Archaeological Black Earths of Amazonia, [in:] Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Explorations in Space and Time, Springer, Berlin - Heidelberg, 19-28.
Lathrap D.W., 1970. The Upper Amazon. Praeger Publishers, New York.
Lehmann J., Kern D.C., German L., McCann J., Martins G.C. & Moreira A., 2003. Soil Fertility and Production Potential, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 105-124.
Mann Ch.C., 2007. 1491: Ameryka przed Kolumbem. Dom Wydawniczy Rebis, Poznań.
Marris E., 2006. Black is the new green. Nature, 442, 624-626.
Meggers B.J., 1954. Environmental Limitation on the Development of Culture. American Anthropologist, New Series, 56, 5, 1, 801-824.
Meggers B.J., 1971. Amazonia: Man and Culture in a Counterfeit Paradise. Aldine - Atherton, Chicago - New York.
Miller R.P. & Nair P.K.R., 2003. Archaeobotanical Methods for the Study of Amazonian Dark Earths, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 205-226.
Miller R.P. & Nair P.K.R., 2006. Indigenous agroforestry systems in Amazonia: from prehistory to today. Agroforestry Systems, 66, 151-164.
Myers T.P., Denevan W.M., WinklerPrins A. & Porro A., 2003, Historical Perspectives on Amazonian Dark Earths, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 16-29.
Neves E.G., Petersen J.B., Bartone R.N. & da Silva C.A., 2003. Historical and Socio-cultural Origins of Amazonian Dark Earths, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 30-50.
Oliver J.R., 2001. The Archaeology of Forest Foraging and Agricultural Production in Amazonia, [in:] McEwan C., Barreto C. & Neves E.G. (eds), Unknown Amazon. Culture in Nature in Ancient Brazil, The British Museum Press, London, 50-85.
Petersen J.B., Neves E.G. & Heckenberger M.J., 2001. Gift from the Past: Terra Preta and the Prehistoric Amerindian Occupation in Amazonia, [in:] McEwan C., Barreto C. & Neves E.G. (eds), Unknown Amazon. Culture in Nature in Ancient Brazil, The British Museum Press, London, 86-107.
Rebellato L., Woods W.I. & Neves E. C., 2009. Pre-Columbian Settlement Dynamics in the Central Amazon, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 15-32.
Roosevelt A.C., 1980. Parmana. Prehistoric Maize and Manioc Subsistence along the Amazon and Orinoco. Academic Press, New York.
Roosevelt A.C., 1991. Moundbuilders of the Amazon. Geohysical Archaeology on Marajo Island, Brazil. Academic Press, New York.
Schaan D.P., Kern D.C. & Frazao F.J.L., 2009. An Assessment of the Cultural Practices Behind the Formation (or Not) of Amazonian Dark Earths in Marajo Island Archaeological Site, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 127-142.
Schmidt M.J. & Heckenberger M.J., 2009. Amerindian Anthrosols: Amazonian Dark Earth Formation in the Upper Xingu. [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 163-192.
Sombroek W., 1966. Amazon Soils. A Reconnaissance of the Soils of the Brazilian Amazon Region. Centre for Agricultural Publications and Documentations, Wageningen.
Sombroek W., Kern D., Rodrigues T., da Silva CM., Cunha J.T., Woods W.I. & Glaser B., 2002. Terra preta and terra mulata: pre-Columbian Amazon kitchen middens and agricultural fields, their sustainability and their replication. 17h World Congress of Soil Science, Bangkok, Thailand.
Sombroek W., Ruivo M.L., Fearnside Ph.M., Glaser B. & Lehmann J., 2003. Amazonian Dark Earths as Carbon Stores and Sinks, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 125-140.
Thayn J., Price K., Woods W.I., 2009. Locating Amazonian Dark Earths (ADE) Using Satellite Remote Sensing - A Possible Approach, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 279-298.
WinklerPrins A.M., 2009. Sweep and Char and the Creation of Amazonian Dark Earths in Homegardens. [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 205-212.
Woods W.I., 1995. Comments on the Black Earths of Amazonia. Papers and Proceedings of the Applied Geography Conferences,18, Applied Geography Conferences, 159-165.
Woods W.I., 2003. Development of Anthrosol Research, [in:] Lehmann J., Kern D.C., Glaser B. & Woods W.I. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Origin, Properties, Management, Kluwer Academic Publisher, The Netherlands, 3-15.
Woods W.I. & Denevan W.M., 2009, Amazonian Dark Earths: The First Century of Reports, [in:] Woods W.I., Teixeira W.G., Lehmann J., Steiner C., WinklerPrins A. & Rebellato L. (eds), Amazonian Dark Earths: Wim Sombroek's Vision, Springer, Berlin, 1-14.
Wust I. & Barreto C., 1999. The Ring Villages of Central Brazil: A Challenge for Amazonian Archaeology. Latin American Antiquity, 10, 1, 3-23.
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Jun 18, 2014
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Golińska, B. (2014). Amazonian Dark Earths in the context of pre-Columbian settlements. Geology, Geophysics and Environment, 40(2), 219. https://doi.org/10.7494/geol.2014.39.2.219
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