Hipercorig Hallstatt History (H3) reveals a high-resolution Late Pleistocene to Holocene sediment record at Lake Hallstatt (Salzkammergut, Austria)

A groundbreaking sediment core from Lake Hallstatt, Austria, reveals a high-resolution record spanning the Late Pleistocene to Holocene, offering unprecedented insights into the 7,000-year history of human salt mining and environmental changes in this UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Hipercorig platform enabled the recovery of two undisturbed cores (41m and 51m) from 122m water depth, revealing distinct lithostratigraphic units—Holocene sediments marked by laminated clays, mass-movement deposits, and turbidites, and Late Pleistocene layers characterized by thin-bedded silty clays with intermittent laminations. Multi-proxy analyses, including x-ray tomography and core logging, confirm the cores' representativeness and promise to elucidate early human settlement patterns, climatic shifts, and geological events in this Alpine cultural landscape.

Ortler, M., Brauer, A., Fabbri, S. C., Kowarik, K., Kueck, J., & Strasser, M. (2022). Hipercorig Hallstatt History (H3) reveals a high-resolution Late Pleistocene to Holocene sediment record at Lake Hallstatt (Salzkammergut, Austria). https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-3428