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Black adzes in the Early Neolithic of Belgium. Contribution of the Raman microspectrometry and petrography in the characterization and sourcing
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Ancient Neolithic (Linear Pottery Culture) adzes originate from settlements and workshops accompany the neolithization of Belgium. They are made from a wide range of extraregional lithic raw materials such as metamorphic green rocks (amphibolite) and black volcanic rocks (‘basalt’) beside more local or regional raw material as flints, light-coloured (sedimentary and lightly metamorphic) quartzites and fine-grained black rocks. Another material source included black lydites (Cambrian nodular phtanite of Céroux-Mousty and Lower Namurian banded phtanites) and dark grey Lower Namurian silicified sandstones called ‘Micaceous sandstones of Horion-Hozémont’. The discovery of the workshop of Noir Fontaine near the city of Liège in the 1970s and 1980s provides exceptional assemblage available for updating analytical studies. This research focuses on the multi-scale characterization, the discrimination and sourcing of the different types of fine-grained black materials composing Ancient Neolithic adzes found in Belgium. Their black colour results from finely dispersed organic matter, but the absence of palynomorphs does not allow a biostratigraphic ascription. Additional petrographical analyses (Optical Petrography - OP, Scanning Electronic Microscopy - SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analyses (Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy - EDS) and measuring the degree of graphitization of the organic matter through Raman microspectrometry have been decisive in identifying the geological and geographical provenances by comparing the acquired results with geological reference samples collected in the field or through reference collections. The distribution of the different black coloured rocks shows that Cambrian lydites are coming from a very restricted area and were preferred to other more local rock sources.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2021
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Middle Neolithic fluorites in Northern France and Belgium: Characterization, sourcing and methodological limitations.
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Abstract Ornaments and fragments of fluorite have been found at sixteen Neolithic sites in Belgium and Northern France, mainly Middle Neolithic sites associated with the Michelsberg culture and the Spiere and Chassean groups. These sites are located in a large geographical area representing different types of sites and various geological backgrounds. One of the aims of this study is to identify where this mineral could have been quarried in the Neolithic and compare the possible source(s) with those used during the Palaeolithic. A survey of some Neolithic fluorite occurrences in Belgium and Northern France was conducted and the origins of this mineral determined/investigated by means of geochemical Rare Earth Element (REE) and Sr-isotopic analysis. We also explore the limitations of isotopic 87Sr/86Sr and REE ratios for analysis of fluorite. Results show that Neolithic fluorite originates from the Dinantian limestones/dolostones of the Ardennes Allochthon, in contrast to the use of silicified Givetian limestones of the Calestian Band near Givet (France) during the Magdalenian. Keywords: Fluorite ornaments, Middle Neolithic, REE, Sr isotopes, Northern France, Belgium
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RBINS Staff Publications 2021
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A new ant-eating spider genus Sufascar (Araneae: Zodariidae) endemic to Madagascar: a considerable extension of the dual femoral organ clade
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Long-Term Subsidence Monitoring of the Alluvial Plain of the Scheldt River in Antwerp (Belgium) Using Radar Interferometry
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The coupled effects of climate change, sea-level rise, and land sinking in estuaries/alluvial plains prone to inundation and flooding mean that reliable estimation of land movements/subsidence is becoming more crucial. During the last few decades, land subsidence has been monitored by precise and continuous geodetic measurements either from space or using terrestrial techniques. Among them, the Persistent Scaterrer Interferometry (PSInSAR) technique is used on the entire Belgian territory to detect, map and interpret the identified ground movements observed since 1992. Here the research focuses on one of the biggest cities in Belgium that became the second European harbour with giant docks and the deepening of the Scheldt river allowing the navigation of the largest container vessels. The areas along the embankments of the Scheldt river and the harbour facilities are associated to Holocene fluviatile deposits overlain by recent landfills. These sedimentary deposits and human-made landfills are affected by important and ongoing land subsidence phenomena. The land subsidence process is highlighted by an annual average Line of Sight (LOS) velocity of about −3.4 mm/year during the years 1992–2001 (ERS1/2 datasets), followed by an annual average LOS velocity of about −2.71 mm/year and −2.11 mm/year, respectively, during the years 2003–2010 (ENVISAT) and 2016–2019 (Sentinel 1A). The Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) imagery data indicate a progressive decrease in the average annual velocities on a global scale independently of important local variations in different districts along the Scheldt river. On the contrary, the city centre and the old historic centre of Antwerp are not affected by negative LOS velocities, indicating stable ground conditions. A geological interpretation of this difference in settlement behaviour between the different areas is provided.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2021
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A pathological ulna of Amurosaurus riabinini from the Upper Cretaceous of Far Eastern Russia
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
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Uncertainties associated with in situ high-frequency long-term observations of suspended particulate matter concentration using optical and accoustic sensors
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Seasonal dynamics of organic matter composition and its effects on suspended sediment flocculation in river water
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Effects of aquatic biofilms on flocculation processes of cohesive sediments: A modeling approach
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Mud dynamics in the port of Zeebrugge
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Behavior and body size modulate the defense of toxin‑containing sawfly larvae against ants
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RBINS Staff Publications 2021