Pollen Analysis and Its Bearing upon American Prehistory: A Critique

Abstract

Extending over a wide area in northern and central Europe great beds of peat cover stretches of moor and occupy valleys and depressions where sluggish drainage has favored the growth of marsh vegetation. More than any other soil type they are entirely dependent in substance on the vegetation which they support. Thus they are peculiarly reflective of changes of a climatic nature, and this, combined with the preservative effects of bog acid, both upon pollens and artifacts, has made them a peculiarly effective medium for investigation. While most thoroughly studied in Europe, peats occur in both the northern and southern hemisphere wherever conditions permit. Typically and most extensively however, they are a circumpolar phenomenon closely attendant upon glaciation.