Multi-proxy reconstruction of mire development in the Poręby Wojsławskie ecosystem (Sandomierz Basin, southeastern Poland)

Multi-proxy analysis (sedimentological, palaeobotanical, geochemical data and results of radiocarbon dating) of the biogenic sediments from a small mire ecosystem in the Sandomierz Basin (SE Poland) is presented. The ecosystem contains a full hydroseral sequence from minerotrophic to ombrotrophic wetland. It is one of the few sites in this region which is so thoroughly investigated in terms of the palaeoenvironmental record. Changes in the water supply of the mire area, and consequently the changes in the plant and sediment succession, were well correlated with the regional tendencies in precipitation and temperature during the Late Glacial/Holocene transition and in the Holocene. Human impact is very well recorded in pollen diagram from the Subboreal period.     

Beads from a mediaeval pilgrim centre: Chemical composition and provenance of glass from Banganarti,Nubia, Sudan

Christian Nubia was a region with intensive transcultural connections that are visible through the understudied overseas glass bead imports found there. This paper presents the results of an analysis of 20 glass beads from Banganarti, a Christian pilgrim site active during the Makuria kingdom (mid-sixth to 14th centuries CE). Compositional analyses using laser ablation–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) have identified glass belonging to a number of broad compositional groups. Two beads were made of mineral soda-lime glass, dated before the mid-ninth century CE. Numerous beads were made from plant ash-soda-lime glass associated with “Mesopotamian” production dated between the eighth and 10th centuries CE. Lead-soda-silica glass has parallels in the ninth–10th centuries glass found in Africa and Europe. One plant ash-soda-lime bead was of eastern Mediterranean origin dated after the 10th century CE. Results of this study provide new evidence for provenance and chronology of glass beads available in the mediaeval Northeast Africa as well as contribute new data to the research on the pilgrim and/or trade routes of that time.     

Mesolithic fishery in the Polish Lowland. Fish remains from the Site 7 at Krzyż Wielkopolski,Poland

Fish remains have been discovered at seven Mesolithic sites located mainly in central and northern Poland, an area that is known as the Lakeland of the Polish Lowland. Based mainly on the results of the identification of fish remains uncovered during the excavations at the Site 7 in Krzy? Wielkopolski (Western Poland), the conclusions were made on the locality and technique of fishery. The fish taxa represented show that the fishing showed that the fishing economy during the Mesolithic period was focused on nearby freshwater rivers and lakes. At that time, people fished primarily for Cyprinids, pike and perch. According to the archaeological finds, the basic fishing tools used by the Mesolithic communities were spears, harpoons and rods with hooks. The small fishes recovered were most probably caught by fishing traps or nets, but such artifact finds are very rare in the Polish Lowland. This paper summarises the current data on Mesolithic fishery in the Polish Lowland based mainly on the data from the Site 7 at Krzy? Wielkopolski, but also includes archaeological data collected from previous studies in the region.     

Application of electron microprobe analysis to identify the origin of ancient pottery production from the Castillo de Huarmey,Peru

A vast amount of ceramics (among other grave goods) were recovered from Castillo de Huarmey, a Wari culture (650–1050 ce ) archaeological site on the north coast of Peru. In order to assess ceramic production area(s) and possible trade, political or cultural interactions with other regions, and to complement earlier petrographic analysis, electron microprobe analysis (EMPA) was conducted following a rarely used methodology in archaeology. The chemical composition of individual minerals in ceramics and sediments samples from the Huarmey Valley was obtained, focusing mainly on amphiboles, feldspars and pyroxenes. The results of the analyses clearly indicate that the majority of the ceramic analysed was made of raw material of local origin.     

Heat treatment of Polish flints

In Poland three types of flint (chocolate, spotted and banded) were intensively mined from the Terminal Palaeolithic to the Early Bronze Age. Although heating of flint to improve its flaking properties was practised across the world from ∼110,000 years ago to the recent, particularly in southwestern Europe, heat treatment of flint in Poland is known from only two sites.     

Service or Benefice? Officeholders in Poland and Sweden of the seventeenth century

Exploring the differential structures of social and political power in early modern Europe, this paper examines the contrasting experiences of Poland and Sweden by focusing on the growth of civil office in each country. Central to the study is an understanding of the books of disciplinary regulation imposed on office holders, and how and why these measures were enforced. As the author illustrates, the two case studies give very different conclusions. In Sweden, as exemplified in the trial of leading members of the Swedish Council in 1680, the holder of civic office was constrained by a ‘corset of bureaucratic routine’. Strict, and widely enforced, rules governed activities such as office hours, dress and rates of remuneration. In contrast, Polish office holders pursued appointments not in the name of civic efficiency but to grasp social and political privilege. At the end of the article Kopczyński discusses some of the factors involved in these differences, laying emphasis on the structures of political and military power in each state.     

Do the Buildings Really Matter? Czech,Polish and Slovak Museums and Centres of Contemporary Art in Adapted Buildings

This paper discusses the connection between museums and centres of contemporary art operating in adapted buildings, on the one hand, and on the other, the history of the place where the buildings are located. I discuss seven discrete case studies, representing a variety of approaches to buildings and the areas in which they operate, in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia. My analysis of each case study covers four main subject areas: (1) discussions connecting the building’s history with its new role; (2) the architectural features and appearance of the building; (3) references3 to the history of the site in the institution’s programme and communication; and (4) efforts to build bonds with local communities. In my conclusions, I argue that the identity of the institution may either be rooted in the history of the place presented and discussed in its programme, or be independent of the history of the building but nonetheless connected to the area in which it is located.