Internship in coastal geoarchaeology/geomorphology: Holocene evolution of European coastal dunes. Reconstruction from archaeological data. (5-6 month internship)

This internship is offered as part of the project entitled “DuneScape – Holocene Coastal DUNES Chronology and Adaptation of Past communities to the sand invasion along European coasts”. This interdisciplinary project involves different European researchers (France, Poland, Spain and Portugal) from various disciplines (archaeology, sedimentology, geomorphology, geology, biology). Along the Atlantic coast of Europe, a large number of studies have focused on the Holocene coastal dune morphodynamic with the objective of reconstructing the periods of dune installation and aeolian remobilisation, both in time and space. Most of these studies have demonstrated that the morphodynamic of Holocene coastal dunes is characterised by a succession of sand-drift events alternating with periods of dune stabilisation. Periods of dune stability have been reconstructed by the radiocarbon dating of dune paleosols interbedded within aeolian sand deposits, while Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating has been used on sandy material to date sand-drift events. However, some regions are still relatively poorly documented, mainly due to the low conservation of interbedded paleosols and the limited deployment of OSL dating. A recent study carried out on the Atlantic coast of Northwest France has developed an original method based on the analysis of existing archaeological documentation. Thus, a primary objective of this project is to apply this method to other study contexts, especially in Portugal, Spain, and Poland, in order to improve existing chronologies. This internship is intended for students with a background in archaeology, geoarchaeology, geography, geomorphology or geology who are interested in interdisciplinary approaches in paleoenvironmental sciences. Knowledge of coastal archaeological and/or geomorphological contexts in Spain and/or Portugal would be appreciated but is not mandatory. Knowledge of one or more of the project partner languages (Polish, Spanish, Portuguese or French) would also be an advantage. The scholarship student was working in partnership with other SEA-EU students. The duration and timing of the internship can be adapted (to a limited extent) to the student’s academic constraints.