ПРИРОДНАЯ СРЕДА ОКРЕСТНОСТЕЙ БОЛГАРСКОГО ГОРОДИЩА (ПО МАТЕРИАЛАМ ПАЛИНОЛОГИЧЕСКИХ ИССЛЕДОВАНИЙ КУЛЬТУРНОГО СЛОЯ РАСКОПА CLXXIX)1

Abstract

As a result of palynological studies of cultural layers uncovered in excavation CLXXIX, the environmental changes during the pre-Mongol, Early Golden Horde and Late Golden Horde time were reconstructed. We distinguished several stages marked by sharp changes of the vegetation. The most signifi cant ones occurred around in the fi rst half of the 13th century and were associated with an active territory development. During this time, the mixed coniferous-broad-leaved and pine forests, which surrounded the settlement in the pre-Mongol time, were wasted. Later they persisted as small forests or grew at a suffi cient distance from the settlement. During the Golden Horde time the vegetation changed slightly. During this time, open spaces with grassesforbs
communities as well as anthropogenic landscapes dominated in the vicinity of the hillfort. They were occupied by ploughed fi elds and diverse weeds, which ratio varied slightly. The main changes concerned the composition of forests. In the Late Golden Horde time (subhorizon 3) the stage is observed when the secondary birch forests appeared, probably after deforestation or fi re. In the Late Golden Horde time (subhorizon 2) the role of broad-leaved species (lime and oak) increased slightly. And at the last stage in the 18–20th centuries the dominant position was occupied by birch groves.