期刊名称：Interdisciplinaria Archaeologica : Natural Sciences in Archaeology
印刷版ISSN：1804-848X
出版年度：2016
卷号：VII
期号：2
页码：169-178
出版社：Archaeological Centre Olomouc
摘要：The study site is the Late Bronze Age (1750–1350 BC cal) settlement of Muradymovo located in theUrals, Russia (53°58′44.8″ N, 55°30′58.8″ E). Despite the presence of a humid climate, the modernsoils of the study site contain more than 27% of gypsum at a depth of just 10 cm from the surface andhave a microrelief typical of a gypsum desert. The nearby background Chernozems are gypsum-free toa depth of 2 metres. The ancient people of the “Srubno-Alakul” archaeological culture had a traditionof building their houses from gypsum rock. This is an excellent construction material in dry climates,but dissolves quickly under humid conditions. According to the archaeological data, the ancient peoplerebuilt their houses more than five times within a period of 200 years, thereby bringing a lot of gypsumto this site, which was later abandoned. At the present time, this area is still unsuitable for humansettlement, because the water of the nearest small river is still contaminated by gypsum and has a bittertaste. The properties of modern soils directly affected by Late Bronze Age human activities have beenidentified as a result of our studies on soil morphology and chemistry (pH, Corg., Ptot, gypsum andcalcium carbonate concentrations). Remarkably, there is residual soil contamination by gypsum evenafter 3,500 years since the abandonment of the site.
