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Environmental Archaeology
The Journal of Human Palaeoecology
ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/yenv20
Modelling Prehistoric Topography and
Vegetation in the Lower Thames Valley, UK:
Palaeoenvironmental Context for Wetland
Archaeology and Evidence for Neolithic Landnám
from North Woolwich
Phil Stastney , Rob Scaife , Lara Gonzalez Carretero , John E. Whittaker , Nigel
Cameron & Enid Allison
To cite this article: Phil Stastney , Rob Scaife , Lara Gonzalez Carretero , John E. Whittaker ,
Nigel Cameron & Enid Allison (2021): Modelling Prehistoric Topography and Vegetation in
the Lower Thames Valley, UK: Palaeoenvironmental Context for Wetland Archaeology and
Evidence for Neolithic Landnám from North Woolwich, Environmental Archaeology, DOI:
10.1080/14614103.2021.1880683
To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/14614103.2021.1880683
Published online: 11 Feb 2021.
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Modelling Prehistoric Topography and Vegetation in the Lower Thames Valley,
UK: Palaeoenvironmental Context for Wetland Archaeology and Evidence for
Neolithic Landnám from North Woolwich
Phil Stastney
a
, Rob Scaife
b
, Lara Gonzalez Carretero
a
, John E. Whittaker
c
, Nigel Cameron
d
and
Enid Allison
e
a
Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA), London, UK;
b
Geography and Environmental Science, University of Southampton,
Southampton, UK;
c
Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London, UK;
d
Environmental Change Research Centre,
Department of Geography, University College London, London, UK;
e
Canterbury Archaeological Trust, Canterbury, UK
ABSTRACT
Multi-proxy investigations at 2 Pier Road, North Woolwich, London, UK, have revealed deposits
spanning the Middle-Late Holocene from the late Mesolithic (c. 4360 cal BC) onwards. Pollen
data show an Elm Decline at c. 4210–3950 cal BC followed by landnám clearances at
c. 4210–3910 cal BC and c. 3710–3030 cal BC and the first appearance of cereal at c. 3540–
3030 cal BC. These events are potentially contemporary with the construction of nearby
Neolithic trackways, providing indirect evidence for agriculture and settlement. REVEALS
modelling shows the first significant reduction in woodland cover is coincident with the
Neolithic Elm decline, but the main step-change to open conditions occurred in the Early
Bronze Age, following a decline in lime at c. 2110–1630 cal BC. Palaeo-topographic
modelling of the region shows that although the trend towards increasing openness
coincides with gradual wetland expansion, the shift to open vegetation cover cannot be
explained by this and is probably the result of human activity. This study highlights the
value of combining deposit and vegetation cover modelling to contextualise wetland
archaeology and shows that together these provide useful proxies for landscape-scale
human activity that can identify ephemeral signals of prehistoric activity.
ARTICLE HISTORY
Received 4 March 2020
Revised 4 January 2021
Accepted 18 January 2021
KEYWORDS
London; vegetation cover;
deposit modelling; Elm
decline; trackways; landnám
© Association for Environmental Archaeology 2021
CONTACT Phil Stastney pstastney@mola.org.uk Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA), Mortimer Wheeler House, 46 Eagle Wharf Road, London
N1 7ED, UK
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY
https://doi.org/10.1080/14614103.2021.1880683
Introduction
The deep sediment sequences of the Lower Thames
Valley, UK, are widely recognised as important
archives of Holocene environmental change, particu-
larly of relative sea level (RSL) and regional vegetation
cover (Devoy 1977,1979,1980,1982,2000; Sidell et al.
2000, 111–117; Wilkinson, Scaife, and Jane Sidell
2000; Branch et al. 2012; Batchelor et al. 2014). The
focus of many of these studies has largely been on
palaeoenvironmental issues, with the interactions
between human activity and environmental change a
recurring theme, especially with respect to evidence
for increasing anthropogenic disturbance of the veg-
etation cover during the Late Holocene (Turner
1962; Batchelor et al. 2014; Parker et al. 2002; Scaife
1988).
Intensifying redevelopment of the former industrial
districts of east London and the encroachment of
urbanisation into neighbouring parts of Essex and
Kent fuelled by the city’s growing population has led
to a large increase in developer-funded archaeological
investigations in the region over recent decades. As a
result, a growing body of evidence for prehistoric
occupation and activity in the Lower Thames Valley
has come to light in the form of prehistoric timber
trackways, first discovered in the region in the early
1990s (Meddens 1996; Carew et al. 2009; Stafford,
Goodburn, and Bates 2012; Hart et al. 2015) as well
as evidence for early settlement and agriculture
(Bates and Minkin 1999; Casanova et al. 2020).
Timber trackways, typically dating from the Neo-
lithic to Iron Age, are known in many wetland (and
former wetland) areas across north-western Europe,
with significant concentrations in central Ireland, the
Netherlands and Lower Saxony (Germany), Scandina-
via, and mainly northern and western parts of the UK,
most notably the Somerset Levels (Coles and Coles
1989), and there is a significant body of research
investigating the social and environmental context of
trackways in many of these regions (e.g. Raftery
1996; Smedstad 2001; Plunkett et al. 2013; Achterberg
et al. 2015; Stastney 2020). In the Lower Thames
Valley, research around the siting of prehistoric track-
ways and how this relates to their function has been
largely limited to the observation that most (Meddens
1996; Stafford, Goodburn, and Bates 2012), but not all
(Crockett, Allen, and Scaife 2002) occur at the edge of
the Thames floodplain. Similarly, understanding of
how trackway construction relates to potential
environmental change in the Lower Thames is pre-
sently limited compared to other regions with com-
parable archaeology such as Ireland (Stastney 2020;
Plunkett et al. 2013) and Northern Germany (Achter-
berg et al. 2015). Trackway construction will undoubt-
edly have been driven by a range of interconnected
factors, social and environmental, operating at
multiple scales and subject to regional variability,
including, for example, the diversity of peat-forming
environments in which trackways occur, such as
fens, lowland raised bogs and intertidal marshes.
Therefore, further detailed research linking the wet-
land archaeological record with wider patterns of
environmental change is needed. Due to the long his-
tory of intensive urban development in London,
resulting in widespread truncation by later activity,
the evidence for prehistoric occupation in the region
is fragmentary (Merriman 1987; Holder and Jamieson
2003), and so indirect proxies of prehistoric activity
provided by wetland structures and palaeoenviron-
mental datasets are likely to be important sources of
information for understanding prehistoric settlement
patterns and demographics. Relating wetland struc-
tures to pollen and other palaeoenvironmental proxy
records containing both localised patterns of human
disturbance as well as regional patterns of vegetation
clearance will facilitate their integration with the
wider archaeological record, allowing the first steps
towards understanding past patterns of occupation
and environmental change as a whole, even if such
comparison between different records and different
chronologies can be methodologically challenging
(e.g. Baauw 2012; Stastney 2020).
The occurrence of both palaeoenvironmental and
archaeological remains in the Lower Thames Valley
therefore provides an opportunity to explore the com-
plex relationships between patterns of human activity
and numerous interlinked manifestations of environ-
mental change –climate variability, past sea level
rise, and vegetation dynamics –all of which have the
potential to key-in with current concerns about the
impacts of global warming on human society (Butzer
1983; Chapman 2002; Van de Noort 2011,2013;
Kintigh et al. 2014; Riede, Andersen, and Price 2016).
This paper adds to this body of research by present-
ing a record of Holocene environmental change
obtained from a small development site in east
London that spans the late Mesolithic through to the
historic era. By utilising recent developments in
deposit modelling (Chapman and Gearey 2013;
Carey et al. 2018) and vegetation cover modelling
(Sugita 2007; Fyfe et al. 2013; Trondman et al. 2015),
the data from this site provides a palaeoenvironmental
context for recent archaeological discoveries
(especially prehistoric trackways) in the Lower
Thames, and demonstrates the potential value of com-
bining modelling approaches.
Site and Methods
Geoarchaeological investigations were carried out by
Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA) in advance
of construction of a residential and commercial devel-
opment at 2 Pier Road. The study site is adjacent to
2P. STASTNEY ET AL.
North Woolwich Pier, in the London Borough of
Newham, London, UK, and comprises a 0.17 ha plot
of land bounded by the River Thames to the south,
Pier Road to the west, and Royal Victoria Gardens
to the north and east (Figure 1). The mapped geology
of the site comprises superficial deposits of Made
Ground and Alluvium (Figure 2, left panel) over bed-
rock of the White Chalk Subgroup (BGS 1998). Mod-
ern ground level on the site is at approximately 5 m
OD. At North Woolwich Pier, current highest tides
are at approximately 7.50 m OD, and lowest tides at
approximately 0.50 m OD (Port of London Authority
2019).
Pre-development evaluation of the site comprised
the drilling of four windowless sample boreholes
(BH01-BH04) from the ground surface to the base of
the Holocene sediment sequence, in each case the
boreholes refused at the top of the underlying Late
Pleistocene floodplain gravels. 1m-long undisturbed
cores were recovered in plastic liners for logging and
subsampling.
Core liners were split and the sediments cleaned,
photographed and described according to standard
criteria (Jones, Tucker, and Hart 1999; Tucker
2003). Lithological and location data were entered
into a RockWorks 17 database along with data
from other nearby borehole records held on
MOLA’s database and records available from the
British Geological Survey. A surface model for the
top of pre-Holocene deposits was generated using
a Kriging algorithm (nearest 16 neighbours) and
constrained utilising modern LIDAR DTM data
(contains public sector information licensed under
the Open Government Licence v3.0) to approximate
the topography of the area at the end of the Pleis-
tocene (‘Early Holocene Surface’,Figure 2, right
panel).
The borehole with the thickest alluvial sediments
that was also representative of the overall sedimentary
sequence at the site, BH03, was sub-sampled for plant
macrofossil assessment, radiocarbon dating, pollen
analysis, diatoms, ostracods, foraminifera and testate
amoebae. Additional bulk samples from two other
boreholes (BH01 and BH04) were taken for insect
assessment, as insufficient material was available
from the BH03 cores.
Small samples taken from the cores were processed
for the recovery of plant macrofossils by flotation
using meshes of 0.25 mm and 1.00 m. Residues and
flots were then scanned under a low-power micro-
scope. Identifiable macro-remains suitable for radio-
carbon dating were submitted to Beta Analytic,
Miami, Florida, and SUERC, East Kilbride, UK, for
AMS measurement following acid-alkali-acid pre-
Figure 1. Site location.
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY 3
treatment. Radiocarbon ages were calibrated to the
calendar timescale using OxCal 4.3 (Bronk Ramsey
1995,2001,2017), and the internationally agreed cali-
bration curve for the northern hemisphere IntCal13
(Reimer et al. 2013).
Pollen sub-samples were processed using standard
techniques (Moore and Webb 1978; Moore, Webb,
and Collinson 1991) and examined at magnifications
of ×400 and ×1000. Slides were counted until totals
of between 200 and 350 total land pollen grains were
reached, counts of some samples were therefore some-
what limited in terms of representation. Taxonomy
followed that of Moore and Webb (1978), Bennett,
Whittington, and Edwards (1994) and Stace (1991).
Due to the likely autochthonous nature and high pol-
len productivity of Alnus glutinosa, this taxon was
included in the ‘marsh and aquatic’category to
avoid adverse within-sum variations in the pro-
portions of terrestrial taxa (Janssen 1969). Percentages
were calculated as follows.
Pollen sum = % total land pollen (tlp).
Marsh and aquatic = % tlp + sum of marsh/
aquatics.
Spores = % tlp + sum of spores.
Diatom preparation followed standard techniques
(Battarbee et al. 2001). Diatom floras consulted for
diatom identification included Hendey (1964), Van
Der Werffand Huls (1957), Hartley et al. (1996),
Krammer and Lange-Bertalot (1991) and Witkowski,
Lange-Bertalot, and Metzeltin (2000). Salinity prefer-
ence groups followed those of Hustedt (1953,1957,
199).
Subsamples of c.50 g of sediment were processed
for ostracods and foraminifera by drying, soaking in
dilute sodium carbonate solution and wet sieving
through 75 µm mesh. The dried residues were divided
into size fractions and examined under a low-powered
microscope.
Subsamples from organic strata were processed for
testate amoebae using standard methods (Charman,
Hendon, and Woodland 2000), with samples mounted
in water and examined at magnifications of between
×200 and ×1000.
Samples of 0.25–0.5 litres were processed for
insect remains by wet sieving and paraffinflotation
following the methods of Kenward, Hall, and
Jones (1980). The flots were scanned in industrial
methylated spirits for the presence of insects and
other invertebrates using a low-power microscope
(×10 –×45).
Lithostratigraphy and Chronology
A broadly consistent sediment sequence was observed
across all four boreholes at the site. Based on the litho-
logical properties of the sediments, five litho-facies
were defined. The base of the sequence at c. −4.00 m
OD, and at depths of 8.50 m –9.00 m below ground
level (b.g.l.), was underlain by dense grey coarse
sandy flint gravels of the Late Devensian Shepperton
Gravel Member (Gibbard 1999)–defined as facies
1. Facies 1 was overlain by a sequence of Holocene
alluvial sediments and peats up to 7.20 m thick, com-
prising facies formed under a range of depositional
environments (Miall 1996): channel marginal
environments (laminated sandy clays and organic
silt/clay –facies 2), semi-terrestrial alder carr and
riparian wetlands (peats –facies 3), and intertidal
floodplains (massive silt/clays –facies 4). The alluvial
sediments were overlain and variably truncated by
Made Ground (brick and concrete demolition rubble)
and post-medieval to modern foreshore deposits,
defined collectively as facies 5, which capped the
uppermost 1.80 m –3.60 m of the sediment column
Table 1.
Seven AMS radiocarbon dates were obtained from
BH03, Table 2. These results indicate that alluvial depo-
sition on the site began during the Late Mesolithic
period, soon before 4450–4270 cal BC (95% probability,
SUERC-88164). A Bayesian age depth model, generated
Figure 2. left: superficial geology of the vicinity of the site; right: modelled Early Holocene surface.
4P. STASTNEY ET AL.
using the Bacon package (Blaauw and Christen 2011),
see Figure 3, indicates a mean accumulation rate of
approximately 14 yrs cm
−1
through the sequence as a
whole. The age depth model appears to have largely
excluded the date at 7.78 m b.g.l. (SUERC-88163), indi-
cating this may be an outlier, or alternatively this may
be due to the actual sediment accumulation rate
between 8.47 and 7.78 m b.g.l. being more rapid than
suggested by the model. Modelled date estimates
derived from the age depth model are given in italics.
The onset of peat formation (7.55 m b.g.l.) is estimated
to date to 3353–2881 cal BC (95% probability) during
the Neolithic. Given the apparently sharp change in
accumulation rate coincident with the switch from
peat formation to mineral alluvium deposition and
marked changes in pollen assemblage, a hiatus, prob-
ably representing a phase of erosion followed by further
sedimentation, has been inferred at 5.88 m b.g.l.
(dashed horizontal line in Figure 3)betweenc. 1312–
967 cal BC (95% probability) and c. 151 cal BC- cal
AD 188 (95% probability).
Biostratigraphy
Plant macrofossil assemblages throughout the sequence
are dominated by species associated with wetlands and
marshy ground –most notably Alnus glutinosa (alder)
as well as Persicaria hydropiper (water pepper), Carex
spp. (sedges), Ranunculus subgen. aquaticum (crow-
foots) and Rumex sp. (dock). A sample from the base
of the minerogenic floodplain alluvium, facies 4,
(5.81 m b.g.l.) contained a single charred Triticum
spelta (spelt) grain dated to the Roman period (cal
AD 80–220, 95% probability, BETA-515736).
Insect assemblages in the peats (MOLA 2019)
contained a few moderately preserved aquatic and
Table 1. BH03 sediment stratigraphy.
BH03
Easting: 543377.038; Northing: 179804.608; Elevation: 4.78 m OD
Depth
(m b.g.l.)
Elevation of base
(m OD) Description Interpretation
0.00–1.00 3.78 Grey brown silty sandy gravel with bricks. Made Ground
1.00–1.80 2.98 Friable orange brown coarse sand with flint pebbles and cobbles, brick and
concrete and textile.
1.80–3.30 1.48 Firm grey brown mottled slightly sandy silt/clay. Occasional rootlets, rare
granules of chalk and charcoal and land mollusc shells. Grading into:
Alluvium
3.30–3.52 1.26 Pale grey brown mottled silt/clay. Grading into:
3.52–5.54 −0.76 Mid brownish grey silt/clay, with rare charcoal granules, organic fibres and
molluscs. Diffuse to:
5.54–5.58 −0.80 Band of yellow grey very silty clay. Diffuse to:
5.58–5.73 −0.95 Dark grey, mottled black, slightly organic silt/clay with occasional decayed
detrital organic fragments. Grading into:
5.73–5.88 −1.10 Dark grey, with heavy dark brown mottling, organic silt/clay with frequent
decayed organic fibres. Diffuse to:
5.88–6.00 −1.22 Dark brown humified silty very fibrous peat. Grading into: Alder carr
6.00–7.00 −2.22 Dark greenish grey very organic slightly fine sandy silt/clay with very frequent
woody remains and other decayed organic fibres.
7.00–7.32 −2.54 Black fibrous humified peat.
7.32–7.41 −2.63 Diffuse band of very dark brown organic clay.
7.41–7.55 −2.77 Dark brown humified wood peat. Diffuse to:
7.55–8.52 −3.74 Dark brownish grey horizontally laminated fine sandy silt with frequent
woody remains. Diffuse to:
River channel margin
8.52–8.59 −3.81 Dark grey organic silt/clay. Grading into:
8.59–8.63 −3.85 Olive grey silty fine sand. Diffuse to:
8.63–8.89 −4.11 Dark grey brown fibrous organic silt/clay with woody roots. Diffuse to:
8.89–9.00 −4.22 Dark olive grey laminated sandy silt/clay with partings of grey fine sand.
9.00+ −4.27 Grey coarse sandy gravel. Braid Plain
Table 2. Radiocarbon dates from BH03.
Depth
(m b.g.l.)
Elevation
(m OD) Lab code Material δ13C
Radiocarbon age
(BP)
Calibrated age range
(95% probability)
5.81 −1.03 BETA-515736 Charred Triticum
spelta grain
−22.2 1860±30 cal AD 80–230 (95%)
5.94 −1.16 BETA-535960 Alnus catkin −25.9 3020±30 1390–1330 cal BC (18.9%)
1320–1190 cal BC (73%)
1180–1160 cal BC (1.1%)
1150–1130 cal BC (2%)
6.35 −1.57 BETA-535961 Alnus catkin −28 3140±30 1500–1370 cal BC (78.8%)
1370–1300 (15.1%)
7.21 −2.43 SUERC-88162 Alnus catkin −25.7 4136±30 2880–2620 cal BC (94.4%)
2610–2590 cal BC (0.5%)
7.78 −3.00 SUERC-88163 Alnus catkin −25 5019±30 3950–3710 cal BC (95%)
8.47 −3.69 BETA-515737 Alnus catkin −26.5 5020±30 3950–3710 cal BC (95%)
8.85 −4.07 SUERC-88164 Alnus catkin −25 5506±30 4450–4320 cal BC (92.1%)
4290–4270 cal BC (2.7%)
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY 5
terrestrial taxa consistent with a wetland/alder carr
environment: Contacyphon typically occurs in wet-
land with shallow standing water and rich veg-
etation; Baeopelma foesteri nymphs live on the
young shoots and in the leaf axils of alder (White
and Hodkinson 1982, 29; Ellis 2019), and Cercyon
tristis group and Ptenidium live among moist litter.
A fragment of a scarabaeid dung beetle (Aphodii-
nae) may indicate presence of grazing herbivores
in the vicinity, but some among this group will
overwinter among flood debris (Jessop 1986,19–
25).
Micropalaeontological assemblages from BH03
(Figure 4) showed considerable variation through
the sequence. The lowermost sample, from the sandy
clay (facies 2), overlying the gravels, contained a
mixed fauna of estuarine foraminifera (Ammonia
sp., Haynesina germanica,Elphidium williamsoni and
Lagenida spp.) and freshwater ostracods (Candonidae
spp., Cyclocypris sp.). The overlying organic clay and
fine sandy silts contained earthworm granules, chiro-
nomid larva head capsules, fragments of cladocera,
and the first occurrence of testate amoebae (Cyclopyxis
arcelloides type and Centropyxis cassis type) as well as
two freshwater ostracod taxa (Candona neglecta and
Ilyocypris bradyi). Testate amoebae assemblages were
more diverse in the wood peat strata (facies 3) than
in the other facies, including a range of taxa (e.g.
Difflugia pulex,Hyalosphenia subflava and Trigono-
pyxis arcula) typically associated with relatively dry
mire surface conditions (Charman, Hendon, and
Woodland 2000; Amesbury et al. 2016), that sub-
sequently give way to assemblages dominated by Cen-
tropyxis spp., Difflugia pristis type and Cyclopyxis
arcelloides type, where they are also accompanied by
a diverse diatom flora comprising poly- and meso-
Figure 3. Age depth model derived from radiocarbon dates form BH03.
6P. STASTNEY ET AL.
halobous and halophilous types. Mesohalobous dia-
toms continued to dominate into the upper minero-
genic strata (facies 4), accompanied by the brackish
foraminifera Entzia macrescens and Trochammina
inflata (MOLA 2019).
Palynology
Four local pollen assemblage zones (l.p.a.z.) have been
recognised, summarised in Table 3 and Figure 5.
These reflect changes in local vegetation cover that
match the recognised pattern of Middle and Late
Holocene vegetation history in Southern Britain (e.g.
Godwin 1975; Greig 1989): dense mixed deciduous
woodland during the late Mesolithic period (l.p.a.z.
1), followed by a decline in Ulmus (elm) and the first
appearance of cereal pollen, accompanied by an
apparent landnám-type clearance event during the
Neolithic (l.p.a.z. 2), a decline in Tilia (lime) and
shift towards increasingly open conditions during
the Bronze Age (l.p.a.z. 3), and finally, largely open
conditions dominated by grasses, cultivated plants
and weeds from the Roman period onwards (l.p.a.z. 4).
L.p.a.z. 1 is characterised by the dominance of typi-
cal Middle Holocene mixed deciduous woodland (e.g.
Godwin 1975; Girling and Greig 1985; Wilkinson,
Scaife, and Jane Sidell 2000) comprising Tilia,Quercus
(oak), Ulmus and Corylus (hazel) with Alnus also pre-
sent, presumably dominant on the river floodplain.
Relatively few herbs are present in this zone, but her-
baceous taxa do include small numbers of Poaceae
(grasses) and Cyperaceae (sedges) as well as Chenopo-
diaceae (goosefoot etc); the latter taxon increases
throughout the profile and may be attributed to an
increase in halophytic communities or saltmarsh in
the vicinity of the site.
Ulmus values decline sharply at 8.64 m bgl at the
base of l.pa.z. 2, representing a clear Neolithic Elm
Decline event (Smith and Pilcher 1973; Scaife 1988;
Parker et al. 2002; Batchelor et al. 2014), dated here
to c. 4270–3950 cal BC (95% confidence). Immediately
after the decline in Ulmus, there are ephemeral peaks
in Betula (birch) and Pinus (pine), as well as progress-
ively increasing values of Poaceae and occurrences of
Plantago lanceolata (ribwort plantain) later in this
zone, as well as the first appearance of cereal pollen
at 7.70 m bgl, dated to c. 3540–3030 cal BC (95% confi-
dence). The minor peaks of Betula at 8.60 m bgl
(c.4210–3910 cal BC, 95% confidence) and 7.80 m bgl
(c.3710–3130 cal BC, 95% confidence) may represent
secondary regeneration of ephemeral clearances,
reflecting a pattern typical of Neolithic landnám culti-
vation (Iversen 1941; Pilcher et al. 1971; Caseldine and
Fyfe 2006). In spite of the evidence for disturbance,
woodland remained dominant in this zone, dominated
by Quercus,Corylus and Tilia. In common with other
Figure 4. Micropalaeontology from BH03. Values of various
microfossils are given on a 4-point scale of abundance (0 =
absent; 3 = abundant).
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY 7
sites in London (Greig 1992; Thomas and Rackham
1996; Wilkinson, Scaife, and Jane Sidell 2000), Tilia
is likely to have been a dominant component of the
woodland cover around the study site since its pollen
is typically under-represented in pollen spectra due to
entomophily and flowering during mid-summer when
all trees are in leaf, thus inhibiting dispersion. High
values of Alnus throughout the zone indicate the con-
tinued presence of alder carr woodland nearby.
L.p.a.z. 3 is characterised by declining values in Tilia
starting from 7.36 m bgl (c. 3100–2700 cal BC, 95%
confidence) and reaching a minimum at 6.40 m bgl
(c. 1770–1440 cal BC, 95% confidence), representing a
typicalBronzeAgeLimeDecline(Turner1962; Grant,
Waller, and Groves 2011). The decline in Tilia values
was accompanied by a general decline in the abundance
of arboreal taxa, although Quercus and Corylus
remained present, as did Alnus on the floodplain, and
values of Poaceae and other herbaceous taxa increased.
After a probable hiatus in sedimentation or an ero-
sional event, l.p.a.z 4 represents the Roman period (cal
AD 80–220, 95% confidence, BETA-515736) onwards
during which the pollen catchment became larger and
portrays a more open and herb-dominated habitat.
Grasses become important with small numbers of cer-
eal pollen and Plantago lanceolata indicative of mixed
agriculture. Increased values of Chenopodiaceae Bras-
sicaceae are probably evidence of salt marsh halo-
phytes in this zone.
The on-site Environment
The Quaternary sequence at Pier Road begins with the
formation of facies 1, the Shepperton Gravels (Gib-
bard 1994), laid down in a high-energy river braid
plain environment during the Late Devensian cold
stage. This braid plain was incised into older, higher
gravel terraces, themselves the remains of river braid
plains formed earlier in the Pleistocene (Bridgland,
Allen, and Haggart 1995,2014). The surface mor-
phology of this unit, comprising channels separated
by gravel bars and islands (eyots), provided the under-
lying ‘template’onto which subsequent sedimentation
during the Holocene was draped, and has been mod-
elled as the ‘Early Holocene surface’(Figure 2, right).
At the site, this surface lies at approximately −4m
OD, indicating that the site lies within the deeper por-
tion of the floodplain, whilst further south, on the
other side of the present River Thames at Woolwich,
the surface rises as pre-Quaternary bedrock strata out-
crop at the surface.
Facies 2 marks the beginning of the Holocene
sequence at the site. The laminated sandy silts
and clays of facies 2 are indicative of deposition
within and on the margins of a meandering river
channel on channel bars, point bars and levees
(Miall 1996). These sediments were laid down in
a lower-energy environment than in the preceding
Devensian, indicative of lower river discharge in
the Early Holocene, with a smaller stream inherit-
ing the braid plain. Similar fine-grained sandy
deposits dating to the Mesolithic have been
recorded at a number of locations in the lower
Thames valley (e.g. Sidell et al. 2000). Although
typically thought to represent deposition by a
meandering river system under freshwater con-
ditions, supported by the presence of freshwater
ostracods, the presence of brackish foraminifera in
the basal sample from these sediments indicates
some estuarine influence at this early stage as a
result of rapid sea level rise during the Early
Holocene (Devoy 1982; Cronin et al. 2007). These
Table 3. Local pollen assemblage zones.
Zone Description
l.p.a.z. 4
5.86–4.60 m
Poaceae –Cerealia –
Chenopodiaceae
Continued expansion of herbs and decline in trees and shrubs. Quercus (10%) and Corylus (14%) remain most
important arboreal taxa. Herbs are dominated by Poaceae (c.30%), Brassicaceae (a single peak to 50%),
Chenopodiaceae (15%), Asteraceae types (especially Bidens type with an individual peak to 27%) and sporadic
occurrences of a wide range of other taxa. Cereal remains a constant presence. Marsh taxa show a substantial
reduction in Alnus and expansion of Cyperaceae (peak to 20%). Pre-Quaternary palynomorphs reach their highest
values.
l.p.a.z. 3
7.36–5.86 m
Corylus –Alnus
A notable decline in Tilia and reductions in other arboreal taxa. Corylus peaks to its highest values of 70% near the
base of this zone. Quercus (c.30%), Ulmus (c.5%) and Fraxinus (1–2%) remain consistent and Betula values increase
to 5%. Frangula alnus is present from this zone onwards. Herb pollen becomes dominant with high values of
Chenopodiaceae (20%) and the start of a continuous cereal pollen record along with Plantago lanceolata.Alnus
(50%) remains the dominant marsh/fen component with small numbers of Typha/Sparganium type and
Cyperaceae. Pre-Quaternary palynomorphs increase.
l.p.a.z. 2
8.64–7.36 m
Quercus –Tilia –Alnus
A notable decline in Ulmus (to 1–2%), accompanied by a peak in Betula (5%) and an increase in herbs, especially
Poaceae and Chenopodiaceae. Trees and shrubs are dominated by Quercus (46%), Tilia (20%) and Corylus avellana
type (increasing from 40% to a peak of 70% in the subsequent zone). Fraxinus (5%) and Hedera helix are present.
Herbs include a peak of Poaceae (15%), Chenopodiaceae (peak to 10%) and a single occurrence of cereal type.
Alnus values increase to their maximum levels (95% sum + marsh). Small numbers of Potamogeton type, Typha
angustifolia type and Cyperaceae (1–2%). Spores of ferns become important with Dryopteris type (28%) and
Pteridium aquilinum (4%). Pre-Quaternary palynomorph values increase to 10%.
l.p.a.z. 1
8.96–8.64 m
Ulmus –Quercus –Tilia –Corylus
High arboreal and shrub pollen values, especially higher values of Ulmus (28%) than in subsequent zones. Quercus
(up to 48%), Tilia (peak to 25%) and Corylus avellana type (40% at base) are important. Small numbers of other taxa
including Betula (<1%), Pinus (<1%) and Fraxinus (4%). Only small numbers of herbs, principally Chenopodiaceae
and Poaceae. Single occurrence of Plantago lanceolata at the upper boundary. Marsh taxa are dominated by Alnus
(peak to 70%) with small numbers of Cyperaceae (2%), Typha angustifolia/Sparganium type. Small numbers of pre-
Quaternary palynomorphs.
8P. STASTNEY ET AL.
Figure 5. Percentage pollen diagram from BH03, 2 Pier Road.
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY 9
strata pass upwards into more organic fine-grained
sediments, containing remains of freshwater ostra-
cods, testate amoebae, and increasing Alnus pollen,
indicating the establishment of semi-terrestrial alder
carr woodland along the margins of the floodplain
at this time.
The facies 3 wood peats mark the lateral expansion
of the alder carr onto the study site at c. 3100 cal BC
(5060 cal BP). Based on the date and elevation of the
unit, this peat is the broad equivalent to Devoy’s
(1979) Tilbury III peat, which is widespread and
persistent across much of the lower Thames valley
(Gibbard 1994). Devoy interpreted the peat as repre-
senting a major phase of marine regression. However,
the current prevailing view is that these phases probably
reflect a slowing in the rate of RSL rise, rather than a fall
in RSL (Devoy 1977,1979;BatesandWhittaker2004;
Stafford, Goodburn, and Bates 2012), a view that is sup-
ported by evidence for increasing brackish influence
throughout facies 3. After c. 2480 cal BC (2700–2250
cal BC, 95% probability) testate amoebae assemblages
reflect typical upper salt marsh communities (Gehrels,
Roe, and Charman 2001; Barnett et al. 2017), probably
between mean high tide (MHT) and highest astronom-
ical tide (HAT), and diatom assemblages represent a
diverse poly- to meso-halobous flora. In spite of
occasional inundation during the highest tides, the
on-site vegetation cover was characterised by dense
alder carr woodland that persisted at least until
c. 1170 cal BC (1320–960, 95% probability).
The surface of facies 3 is marked by a hiatus, prob-
ably representing erosion of the peat surface by tidal
scour. Above this surface, beginning at least as early
as cal AD 80–220 (95% probability; BETA-515736)
in the Roman period, fine grained minerogenic
sediments (facies 4) indicative of intertidal floodplain
conditions formed across the site. The presence of
meso- to halophilous diatom assemblages and brackish
foraminifera clearly indicate estuarine conditions from
this time, and pollen assemblages indicate open veg-
etation cover. Anthropogenic inclusions within the
floodplain sediments show the persistent and growing
influence of human occupation around the site from
the Roman period (charred spelt wheat grain) up
until the post-medieval period (coal, charcoal and
brick and tile), culminating in the deliberate dumping
of made ground (facies 5) on the site as the area was
reclaimed for development in the nineteenth century.
Modelling Wetland Expansion in the Lower
Thames Valley
To visualise wetland expansion around the site during
the Middle and Late Holocene, the Early Holocene
surface model (shown in Figure 2, right) was
‘flooded’utilising a combination of information
from the age depth model derived from BH03
(Figure 3) and existing models of Holocene RSL rise
in the Lower Thames (Bates and Whittaker 2004;
Stafford, Goodburn, and Bates 2012). Given the pre-
sent shortage of precise sea level index points (van
de Plassche 1986; Shennan and Horton 2002), these
models remain subject to uncertainty, and should be
regarded as provisional and schematic, nevertheless,
further data may lead to their future refinement. The
mean uncertainty (95% probability) of the age depth
model from the site was 386 calendar years (s.d. =
92 years), and these values ranged from a maximum
of 567 years at 7.80 m b.g.l., influenced by the possible
outlier date at 7.78 m b.g.l. (SUERC-88163), to a mini-
mum of 211 years towards the top of the sequence. On
this basis a time-slice size of 500 years was selected for
modelling, providing a balance between chronological
resolution and the robustness of the age depth model.
For the purposes of the models shown in Figure 6, the
intertidal zone was defined as land below −4.20 m OD
for the 4500–4000 BC time-slice, −3.80 m OD for
4000–3500 BC, −3.50 m OD for 3500–3000 BC,
−3.00 m OD for 3000–2500 BC, −2.70 m OD for
2500–2000 BC, −2.3 m OD for 2000–1500 BC,
−1.8 m OD for 1500–1000 BC, and at −1.00 m OD
for the final time-slice at AD 1–500. The period
between 1000 BC and AD 1 has not been modelled
due to the hiatus in the sediment sequence at Pier
Road. To represent a degree of uncertainty and pro-
vide an estimate of the extent of marginal wetlands,
the areas 0.5 and 1.00 m above the intertidal zone
have been defined as ‘marginal’and ‘supratidal wet-
land’zones, respectively, in each time-slice.
These flooding models show the gradual expan-
sion of wetlands in the study area from the end of
the Mesolithic period onwards occurring mostly to
the north of the site (the southern parts of the pre-
sent day London Borough of Newham). The earliest
time-slice model suggests that by the end of the
Mesolithic period at 4000 BC, estuarine influence
may have extended as far upstream as the present-
day Greenwich peninsula and the confluence of the
River Thames and River Lea. Through the Neolithic
period (approximately 4000–2000 BC) the areas
north of study site (present day North Woolwich
and Silvertown) as well as the area to the east-south-
east (present day Thamesmead) were characterised
by a mosaic of marginal ecotonal environments; by
the Bronze Age, these marginal environments had
migrated further northwards to present day Beckton
and Dagenham. Compared with the relative
heterogeneity of the wetland environments in later
prehistory, by the Roman period (AD1–500 time-
slice) the landscape of the study area adopted a
more uniform character, with a broad intertidal
floodplain stretching up to the edges of the higher
gravel terraces north of the Thames and the outcrop
of Paleogene bedrock to the south.
10 P. STASTNEY ET AL.
Regional Vegetation Cover Modelling
Regional vegetation cover was reconstructed by apply-
ing the REVEALS model (Sugita 2007) to the pollen
data from Pier Road, implemented using REVEAL-
SINR in the DISQOVER package (Theuerkauf and
Couwenberg 2017). Autochthonous plant taxa such
as Alnus (alder) and Cyperaceae (sedges) were
excluded from the model to avoid violating the
assumptions of the REVEALS model, and pollen
productivity estimates, standard errors and fallspeed
parameters were taken from published sources (Abra-
ham and Kozáková 2012; Trondman et al. 2015), and
plant taxa were grouped as shown in Table 4, follow-
ing Fyfe et al. (2013) except that cereal and Plantago
lanceolata are shown as ‘cultivation’. REVEALS esti-
mates in 500-year time-slices, identical to those used
for landscape modelling, are shown in Figure 7.
REVEALS data from Pier Road show an over-
whelming dominance of mixed deciduous trees and
shrubs in the Late Mesolithic that persisted through-
out the Neolithic. Grassland cover began to expand
in the Early Neolithic, almost entirely as a result of
the reduction in Ulmus (from 15% to 7%), and the
first evidence for cultivation is apparent in the 3500–
3000 BC time-slice but is followed by re-expansion
of deciduous woodland at 3000–2500 BC, due to
expansion in Tilia (from 25% to 31%), Fraxinus
(from 0% to 2%) and Corylus (from 38% to 45%).
From the Late Neolithic (2500–2000 BC) open habi-
tats expand to c. 30% of regional cover, but the step-
change to predominantly open vegetation (grasses
and herbaceous taxa >60%) coincides with the begin-
ning of the Bronze Age, from c. 2000 BC, with a sharp
reduction in Tilia (from 23% to 5%) and the expansion
Table 4. Plant functional groups, after Fyfe et al. (2013).
Group Taxon
Deciduous trees Betula
Fraxinus
Quercus
Tilia
Ulmus
Coniferous trees Picea
Pinus
Shrubs Corylus
Cultivation Cerealia
Plantago lanceolata
Grasses Poaceae
Other herbaceous Artemisia
Chenopodiaceae
Filipendula
Plantago major
Rumex
Figure 7. Stacked bar chart showing modelled regional vegetation cover in 500 year time-slices.
12 P. STASTNEY ET AL.
of grassland and cultivation gradually increasing
thereafter. This pattern broadly agrees with the view
that much of Britain was largely cleared of
woodland in later prehistory (Rackham 2000; Fyfe
et al. 2013).
Although the broad trend towards increasing open-
ness through the Middle and Late Holocene occurs
alongside a gradual expansion in wetlands in the
Lower Thames (Figure 6), the step-change to open
conditions in the Early Bronze Age does not coincide
with a proportionate change in the rate of wetland
expansion. Instead, the main reductions in woodland
cover occur largely as a result of declines in specific
taxa: the decline in Ulmus in the early Neolithic
(Elm Decline dated to c. 4270–3950 cal BC, 95% prob-
ability) and then the decline in Tilia in the Bronze Age
(Lime Decline dated to c. 2110–1630 cal BC, 95% prob-
ability), the latter event accounting for the step-change
to open conditions. Even if the Elm Decline was not
solely caused by human activity (Parker et al. 2002;
Batchelor et al. 2014), it would seem that Neolithic
farmers close to the Pier Road site took advantage of
the clearances and engaged in shifting landnám agri-
culture. The Lime Decline, by contrast, is less ambig-
uous, and almost certainly appears to have been
driven by the expansion of agriculture (Turner 1962;
Greig 1989; Grant, Waller, and Groves 2011). As
such, it would appear that the opening of the veg-
etation cover around the study site in later prehistory
was largely driven by human activity.
Contextualising Prehistoric Human Activity
and Activity in East London
In the vicinity of the study site at Pier Road, within a
7 km radius, are seven known prehistoric timber
trackways and one wooden anthropomorphic figure
(Coles 1990; Beasley 1993; Divers 1994a,1994b; Med-
dens 1996; Crockett, Allen, and Scaife 2002; Hart et al.
2015); see Table 5. The trackway at the Hays Storage
site, Dagenham, (Divers 1994b) was not directly
dated, however a date estimate (1721–1136 cal BC,
95% probability) has been modelled in OxCal (Bronk
Ramsey 1995) utilising dates on the peat
directly above (2960±80 BP, BETA-70881) and
below (3380±80 BP, BETA-70882) the structure (Med-
dens 1996).
The wetland features have been plotted in the
appropriate time-slices on Figure 6 (nos. 1–7), show-
ing a close correspondence between their position
and the modelled extent of marginal wetlands. The
possible trackway at Fort Street (Crockett, Allen, and
Scaife 2002) has previously been thought to be unusual
in that it is located away from the present edge of the
floodplain (Hart et al. 2015, 216), however this model
indicates that this site would have been at the edge of
the floodplain at the time of construction during the
Neolithic. The only known trackways on the southern
margins of the floodplain, those at Belmarsh West
(Hart et al. 2015), appear to be constructed at a time
when marginal and supratidal wetlands began to
expand around a small area of higher ground in pre-
sent day Thamesmead; otherwise it is notable that
trackway construction seems to have been more
prevalent along the northern fringes of the floodplain,
where more extensive and broken areas of marginal
wetlands are shown in the model. This would appear
to confirm the association between prehistoric track-
way construction and ecotonal environments –per-
haps affording easier access through and into these
areas, which are notable for their diverse range of
resources (e.g. Coles and Coles 1989;O’Sullivan
2007), as well as being significant areas for ritual
deposition during later prehistory (Bradley 2000).
The closest structures to Pier Road all date to the
Neolithic: the structures at Belmarsh West approxi-
mately 2 km to the south-east and the structure at
Fort Street 3 km to the west (Figure 6, 1 and 2). The
Belmarsh West structures post-date the Elm Decline
event at c. 4270–3950 cal BC (95% probability) and
there is a small overlap in the date ranges for these
structures and the first possible landnám event at
c. 4210–3910 cal BC (95% probability), although it is
probable that this event also pre-dates the structures.
The Fort Street structure may potentially have been
contemporary with either a second landnám event at
c. 3710–3130 cal BC (95% probability) or the first
appearance of cereal pollen at c. 3540–3030 cal BC
(95% probability). This chronological correspondence
demonstrates a probable relationship between track-
way construction and nearby agriculture and settle-
ment, and also highlights the need for close
sampling in order to identify such inherently localised
phenomena such as landnám clearance events.
Table 5. Known prehistoric trackways from the vicinity of the site, and plotted in Figure 6.
Type Date Reference Label on Figure 6
Belmarsh West 1 Timber trackway 3930–3705 cal BC Hart et al. (2015)1
Belmarsh West 2 Timber trackway 3930–3660 cal BC Hart et al. (2015)1
Fort Street Possible trackway 3340–2900 cal BC Crockett, Allen, and Scaife (2002)2
Dagenham Idol Anthropomorphic figure 2351–2139 cal BC Coles (1990)3
Hays Storage Timber trackway 1721–1136 cal BC Divers (1994b)4
Tesco Barking Timber trackway 1505–1226 cal BC Meddens (1996)5
Beckton 3D Timber trackway 1505–1089 cal BC Beasley (1993)6
Beckton Nursery Timber trackway 1449–1211 cal BC Divers (1994a)7
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY 13
At a broader spatial scale, the relationship between
trackway construction and evidence for increased
woodland clearance and agriculture also holds true,
with the increased number and spatial spread of track-
ways in the Bronze Age coinciding with modelled
decline of woodland cover from about 2000 BC
onwards. Together, the wetland archaeology and the
pollen data show that by the Bronze Age this part of
the Lower Thames Valley was extensively cultivated
and settled.
Conclusions and Future Work
This study has shown that the combination of deposit
modelling and vegetation cover modelling has the
potential to draw together evidence to form a wider
understanding of prehistoric landscapes in the Lower
Thames Valley, that could be applied to other similar
wetland/estuarine landscapes. Individual traces of
activity such as the construction of timber trackways
or short-lived clearance and cultivation of a patch of
woodland may be ephemeral, but modelling allows
them to be put into a wider, and more understandable
context.
The pollen data and age depth model show the
close chronological correspondence between evidence
for prehistoric activity, such as the Elm Decline at
c. 4270–3950 cal BC (95% probability), possible land-
nám events at c. 4210–3910 cal BC (95% probability)
and at c. 3710–3130 cal BC (95% probability) and the
first appearance of cereal pollen at c. 3540–3030 cal
BC (95% probability), with the construction of nearby
Neolithic trackways, as well as the general correspon-
dence between increased trackway construction and
vegetation clearance in the Bronze Age. This shows
that these data in combination can be useful proxies
for patterns of prehistoric settlement and activity.
The ‘flooding model’for the study area shows that
known trackways tend to occur at the edge of wet-
lands, where there is a broad ‘ecotonal’zone –which
may both have been a physical barrier to movement,
as well as a draw in terms of resources. As well as con-
textualising the archaeological record, this type of
modelling may also be a useful tool for predicting
the likely location of further, as yet undiscovered, wet-
land archaeological features.
Finally, there is clear future potential in exploring
ways in which the outputs from vegetation cover
models could be combined with palaeo-topographic
models to produce detailed palaeo-geographic maps
to contextualise the archaeological record. Advances
in vegetation cover modelling, such as the ROPES
method (Theuerkauf and Couwenberg 2018), which
may in future allow the extent of non-pollen produ-
cing areas such as open water to be modelled, has
the potential to further enhance reconstructions. The
creation of visually-rich landscape reconstructions
(Fyfe, Caseldine, and Gillings 2010) may aid not
only the understanding and management of the
archaeological resource, but also provide engaging
tools to visualise narratives of past environmental
change relevant to present concerns about present
and future change.
Acknowledgements
The work presented in this article was funded by Higgins
Construction PLC. The project was managed for MOLA
by Marit Leenstra and commissioned by Claire Smith of
Higgins. The authors wish to thank Mark Burch, MOLA,
and all at PJ Drilling Ltd for their assistance on site. Thanks
are also due to Sylvia Warman and Adam Single, both of
Historic England, and Graham Spurr, MOLA, for their help-
ful advice. The two anonymous reviewers are thanked for
their helpful and constructive comments that helped
improve an earlier version of this manuscript.
Disclosure Statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Funding
This work was supported by Higgins Construction Ltd:
[Grant Number n/a].
Notes on contributors
Phil Stastney is a geoarchaeologist and project manager at
MOLA. His work focuses on wetland palaeoenvironments,
Holocene climate change and human-environment
interactions.
Rob Scaife is a Visiting Professor of Palaeoecology and
Environmental Archaeology at the University of Southamp-
ton and an Honorary Research Associate of the McDonald
Institute for Archaeological Research, Cambridge.
Dr Lara Gonzalez Carretero is an archaeobotanist who
specialises in the study of archaeological food and dietary
patterns through time.
John E. Whittaker is a Scientific Associate in the Depart-
ment of Earth Sciences at The Natural History Museum,
London, and works on both the Foraminifera and the
Ostracoda.
Nigel Cameron is a palaeoecologist and environmental
archaeologist. He is interested particularly in the application
of diatom analysis in geoarchaeology.
Enid Allison B.SC, D.Phil is an Environmental Specialist at
Canterbury Archaeological Trust.
ORCID
Phil Stastney http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4556-9148
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