This discussion paper is a preprint. It is a manuscript under review for the journal Climate of the Past (CP).
The 4.2 ka BP Event in the Mediterranean Region: an overview
Monica Bini1,Giovanni Zanchetta1,Aurel Persoiu2,Rosine Cartier3,Albert Català4,Isabel Cacho4,Jonathan R. Dean5,Federico Di Rita6,Russell N. Drysdale7,Martin Finnè8,Ilaria Isola9,Bassem Jalali10,Fabrizio Lirer11,Donatella Magri6,Alessia Masi6,Leszek Marks12,Anna Maria Mercuri13,Odile Peyron14,Laura Sadori6,Marie-Alexandrine Sicre10,Fabian Welc15,Christoph Zielhofer16,and Elodie Brisset17Monica Bini et al. Monica Bini1,Giovanni Zanchetta1,Aurel Persoiu2,Rosine Cartier3,Albert Català4,Isabel Cacho4,Jonathan R. Dean5,Federico Di Rita6,Russell N. Drysdale7,Martin Finnè8,Ilaria Isola9,Bassem Jalali10,Fabrizio Lirer11,Donatella Magri6,Alessia Masi6,Leszek Marks12,Anna Maria Mercuri13,Odile Peyron14,Laura Sadori6,Marie-Alexandrine Sicre10,Fabian Welc15,Christoph Zielhofer16,and Elodie Brisset17
1Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa
2Emil Racovita Institute of Speleology, Romanian Academy Transylvania, Romania
3Postdoctoral researcher at Lund University Quaternary Sciences, Sweden
4GRC Geociències Marines, Departament de Dinàmica de la Terra i de l'Oceà, Facultat de Geologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
5School of Environmental Sciences, University of Hull, Hull, UK
6Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy
7School of Geography, University of Melbourne, Australia
8Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden and Department of Physical Geography, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
9Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione di Pisa, Pisa, Italy
10LOCEAN Laboratory, Sorbonne Universités (UPMC, Universitè de Paris 06)-CNRS-IRD-MNHN, France
11Instituto per l’Ambiente Marino Costiero–CNR, Naples, Italy
12Faculty of Geology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
13Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita, Università di Reggio Emilia e Modena, Italy
14Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution (ISEM), Université de Montpellier, France
15Institute of Archaeology Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
16Chair of Physical Geography, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
17IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain and Àrea de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain
1Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, University of Pisa
2Emil Racovita Institute of Speleology, Romanian Academy Transylvania, Romania
3Postdoctoral researcher at Lund University Quaternary Sciences, Sweden
4GRC Geociències Marines, Departament de Dinàmica de la Terra i de l'Oceà, Facultat de Geologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain
5School of Environmental Sciences, University of Hull, Hull, UK
6Dipartimento di Biologia Ambientale, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Rome, Italy
7School of Geography, University of Melbourne, Australia
8Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden and Department of Physical Geography, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
9Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione di Pisa, Pisa, Italy
10LOCEAN Laboratory, Sorbonne Universités (UPMC, Universitè de Paris 06)-CNRS-IRD-MNHN, France
11Instituto per l’Ambiente Marino Costiero–CNR, Naples, Italy
12Faculty of Geology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
13Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita, Università di Reggio Emilia e Modena, Italy
14Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution (ISEM), Université de Montpellier, France
15Institute of Archaeology Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
16Chair of Physical Geography, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
17IPHES, Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social, Tarragona, Spain and Àrea de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain
Received: 30 Oct 2018 – Accepted for review: 06 Nov 2018 – Discussion started: 15 Nov 2018
Abstract. The Mediterranean region and the Levant have returned some of the clearest evidence of a climatically dry period occurring around 4200 years ago. However, some regional evidence are controversial and contradictory, and issues remain regarding timing, progression and regional articulation of this event. In this paper we review the evidence from selected proxies (sea-surface temperature, precipitation and temperature reconstructed from pollen, δ18O on speleothems, and δ18O on lacustrine carbonate) over the Mediterranean basin to infer possible regional climate patterns during the interval between 4.3 and 3.8 cal ka BP. The values and limitations of these proxies are discussed, and their potential for furnishing information on seasonality is also explored. Despite the chronological uncertainties, which are the main limitations for disentangling details of the climatic conditions, the data suggests that winter over the Mediterranean was drier condition, in addition to already dry summers. However, some exceptions to this prevail, – where wetter condition seems to have persisted – suggesting regional heterogeneity in climate patterns. Temperature data, even if sparse, also suggest a cooling anomaly, even if this is not uniform. The most common paradigm to interpret the precipitation regime in the Mediterranean – a North Atlantic Oscillation-like pattern – is not completely satisfactory to interpret the selected data.
The Mediterranean region has returned some of the clearest evidence of a climatically dry period occurring at ca. 4200 years ago. We reviewed selected proxies to infer regional climate patterns between 4.3 and 3.8 cal ka BP. Temperature data suggest a cooling anomaly, even if this is not uniform, whereas winter was drier along with dry summers. However, some exceptions to this prevail, where wetter condition seems to have persisted, suggesting regional heterogeneity.
The Mediterranean region has returned some of the clearest evidence of a climatically dry period...