Lake Powidz,
Wielkopolska, West Central Poland
Two submerged lake dwellings in Lake Powidz (Jezioro
Powidzkie), the largest lake in the Central Polish region
of Wielkopolska, are being examined by a joint underwater
team from UARC and the University of Torun.
A Nottingham student examines a
timber pile at Powidz
|
The sites have
been surveyed in detail using a Total Station
equipped with Pen Map for Windows datalogging
software. This software, unlike other logging and
processing software, is used on a pen-based
portable computer, plugged directly into the
Total Station, which displays each point on
screen as it is taken. This is particularly
advantageous for underwater survey, as the spread
of points being taken on a site can be viewed in
real time as they are being taken. This means
that grids and tapes do not have to set up
underwater and divers can position themselves at
any point on the site at any given time (for a
fuller description of this surveying method see
Henderson and Burgess 1996). The use of this
software allowed the production of accurate
three-dimensional digital plans of each submerged
site. |
| The
site at Polanowu survives as a dense
concentration of submerged pine and birch piles
in 1 to 2m of water, some 76 m north of the shore
(see plan). 570 timbers (383 vertical piles, 45
piles inserted at an angle, and 142 horizontal
timbers) were surveyed covering an area extending
35m N-S by 53m W-E. |
| 87
birch piles were recorded at Powidz (84 vertical
piles and 3 horizontal timbers) covering an area
26.5m N-S by 15m W-E. The site sits in 1 to 2m of
water on the edge of a shallow shelf which then
plunges down from 2m to 20m. The depth of the
site and it location at the edge of a shelf 2m
underwater are directly comparable to the
conditions recorded at Polanowu. The site at
Powidz is located on a stretch of lake-shore
which is extremely popular with tourists due to
the recent construction of a pier and the dumping
of sand by the lake-shore to create a beach
effect. As a result the site is constant threat
from swimmers, wind-surfers and boat owners. The
site sits in shallow water just to the right of
the pier and is being actively damaged by people
walking over it. The most devastating damage is
being caused by boats dislodging timbers and
deposits as they are being dragged over the site
to the shore or to the pier. This relatively
recent activity may account for the small number
of piles recorded at Powidz when compared to
Polanowu. |
| Over one
thousand ceramics were recovered from the two
sites and all suggest a date sometime during the
transition from the Late Bronze to the Iron Age
(from the 8th to the 6th century BC). This dating
has been confirmed from radiocarbon dating of
structural piles from both sites and suggests
they are contemporary with the so-called Lusatian
culture - the Central European version of the
Urnfield culture. The large fortified settlements
of the Biskupin type (Lausitz fortifications) are
the most characteristic settlements of the late
phase of the Lusatian culture. These sites,
although much larger than those at Powidz, were
also situated near water, either on peninsulas or
islands. Smaller settlements belonging to the
transitional period from the Late Bronze Age to
the Iron Age are extremely rare and indeed lake
dwellings of this date are virtually unknown in
continental Europe. The Powidz sites have a
further importance by the fact that they lie
within fifty kilometres of the famous Late Bronze
Age fortified stockade of Biskupin. |
A timber pile at Polanowu
|
Structural pile from Powidz
radiocarbon dated to 795 – 522 cal BC (2
sigma)
|
It seems likely
that both Powidz and Polanowu were originally
lakeside dwellings that became submerged after
the 6th century BC. This would tie in with
evidence from Biskupin where changes in climate
after 700 BC led to a rise in the groundwater
level of 2m which ultimately led to the
abandonment of the site after 500 BC. The
computer model below simulates the projected 2
metre rise in water level from the Late Bronze
Age to the present day level at Polanowu. |
|
