• 

  

  

  

  You can access I-GEOARCHive is now online.

I-GEOARCHive is now online!

We are proud to announce that our high-resolution image database I-GEOARCHive is now online. Over the next few days, we will begin to upload images to the database. Have a look and enjoy it: https://www.dasch.swiss/project/i-geoarchive

• 

  

  Join us from your DarkEarth Cantinas through our News-Page Commenting System.

Finally from the Depths of Dark Earths - Our New Commenting System Awaits Your Insights!

We are excited to announce a complete overhaul of our news page, which now features a new commenting system! To participate, please register and login first. Once registered, you'll be able to leave permanent public comments on all our news articles.

While not quite a holographic display, we've introduced this straightforward solution to foster engagement with our DarkSide Project, and we look forward to hearing your thoughts in the comments section!

Please note: Usernames, passwords, and comments, once set, are permanent and cannot be altered. Optional emails provided will be publicly visible. While passwords are securely hashed and stored, usernames and emails are stored in plain text. Treat all provided information as public.

• 

  

  

  Some impressions of the workshop…

The WASM 2024 was a great success!

We had a great workshop on Archaeological Soil Micromorphology and Phytoliths in Brussels (WASM 2024)! There were two great keynote speeches, different exciting poster presentations, and the lively discussions at the microscopes broadened our horizons once again! In addition, several participants tested the I-GEOARCHrec database. The evaluation of the questionnaire is ongoing, we will soon report back...

• 

  The publication is now avaiable on De Gruyter Open Access.

Recording, Sharing and Linking Micromorphological Data: A Two-Pillar Database System

An interesting and nice article about databases in soil micromorphology has been published by Sarah Lo Russo and our Dark Earth team! Have a look at it: Recording, Sharing and Linking Micromorphological Data: A Two-Pillar Database System

• 

  

  

  

  

  

  Our Meeting in Basel with insightful presentations from various team members.

Team Brussel visited us in Basel!

The recent visit of the Brussels team to Basel proved to be a productive gathering, marked by insightful presentations from various team members. Hosted at the IPNA Basel, the meeting included engaging discussions on recent project developments and updates to our database. The event also featured a lively Mittegshöck, reminiscent of the clandestine gatherings within the depths of the galaxy's dark side. It was an enriching opportunity to exchange ideas and further strengthen our project's progress, as we continue our exploration of the mysteries shrouded in the shadows of our Dark Earths.

• 

  

  

  

  Meihui Li, has successfully attended the UCL Archaeological Soil Micromorphology training course.

Meihui’s UCL Training

Our newest member, Meihui Li (PhD student at VUB), has successfully attended the UCL Archaeological Soil Micromorphology training course.

Through her first academic training in UK, she has acquired new knowledge and practical experiences on Micromorphology from researchers and collegues gathering at UCL this February. Currently, she is working on her first DE study: “Dark Earths from the Historical Centre of Oudenaarde (BE)”. We are looking forward to her study progress and following outputs.

A matter of scale. Urban Geoarchaeology in Brussels and Flanders

Yannick Devos gave a presentation at the international conference "Reading the soil in archaeology: field practice and interdisciplinary perspectives" in Tours!

Find the presentation online:A matter of scale. Urban Geoarchaeology in Brussels and Flanders

• 

  

  The DarkSide Team in Brussels

Our November meeting in Brussels was a success!

We've had fascinating microscopy sessions exploring organic remains, coprolites, parasite eggs, and phytoliths in diverse Dark Earth sediments across Belgium and Switzerland.And to top it off, had the pleasure of gathering the teams for some quality time together. It was a good opportunity to bond and further strengthen our collaboration.

• 

  DarkSide Logo

DarkSide: Instagram One - The Phantoms Follow!

Traveling through hyperspace with us is just like dusting thinsections! 📸 Follow us into a larger world @darkearth.eu on our official Instagram! Join our online DarkEarth communit - See you there!

• 

  A new team member is working with us!

Welcoming Meihui Li to our Dark Earth Project Team!

We are excited to announce that Meihui Li has joined our Dark Earth project team in Brussels! She's specializing in Geoarchaeology with micromorphological studies of Medieval Urban Dark Earths in Belgium and Switzerland.

• 

  Since 1th of July working on the microscope for the Dark Earth Project!

We welcome our newest addition to the team, Monica!

We are thrilled to welcome Monica Alonso Eguiluz to our Dark Earth project team in Brussels! Her expertise in phytolith analysis will greatly contribute to our interdisciplinary research, enhancing our understanding of the past societies and their environmental context through the study of plant remains.

• 

  

  Yannik and Kristin at the WASM in Utrecht 

Workshops Archaeological Soil Micromorphology 2023

The second WASM this year, organised by Hans Husiman and Kim Cohen, Yannick Devos and Elena Familetto, took place in Utrecht. Participants were able to view thin sections of organic material and phytoliths, in addition to thin sections of Dark Earth.

• 

  Christine eats her ice cream like a true Sith Lady!!
  (Reveal the force behind the force by mousing over.)

A Galactic Bash: Basel Sommerfest 2023

On June 9, the Basel team swapped its usual dark side for the sunlit St. Jakob Stadium. Our summer event was like a Nar Shaddaa party - the fun was unstoppable. The field was transformed into a Viking chess battlefield, where strategies were developed to rival those of Grand Admiral Thrawn. A pizza cart, provided us with the pizze of our choice, but the crowning glory was our very own Sith, Christine, summoning her ice cream with the Force. In this heat, more intense than beneath Jakku's blazing sun - may the ice cream always be with us!

• 

  The Dark Siders in the colorful Botanical Garden of the University of Basel!

IPNA Kränzli and Team Meeting: A Resounding Success

Resisting the Dark Side is futile, especially when it comes to Yannick's fruitful presentation at the IPNA Kränzli. Many of the new and interested participants listened intently and might embrace the allure of Dark Earths in the future. Driven by this irresistible Force for Dark Earth, our microscopy sessions were particularly insightful, truly marking a rise in our shared understanding of the topic. In addition, our consistent work on the database project led to significant advancements, pushing us closer to ruling the galaxy... I mean, to the rollout of the database!

• IPNA Kränzli at Schnitz, Seminarraum S 01, Rosshofgasse 2, 4051 Basel

Yannick presents "The legacy of urban soils and sediments" at the University of Basel

On 8th May at 6:15 pm Yannick Devos gives a lecture in the research seminar in Basel about "The legacy of urban soils and sediments: urbanisation viewed from below - examples from Brussels and Flanders". Interested parties are always welcome! . Location

• 

  Christine Pümpin and Kristin Ismail-Meyer attending the ViMi

The Dark Siders presenting Urban Dark Earth at the ViMi!

We would like to thank the Faro team for the great and successful organisation of the ViMi 4. In our breakout room on Thursday we met many familiar faces who were very interested in our topic. We presented our Database I-GEAORCHrec and I-GEOARCHive and answered many questions about Urban Dark Earth. Greetings, The Dark Siders

• 

  Cluster of burned phytoliths in an Urban Dark Earth from Cologne (Germany)

Urban Dark Earth at this weeks ViMi in breakout room 3!

Dear All, We will be presenting at the ViMi 4 on Thursday 27th of April our database I-GEOARCHrec and I-GEOARCHive and explore the world of Urban Dark Earth. We will be in the breakout room 3 and look forward to your questions on both topics. We hope for a lively exchange, be it in the form of discussions or picture sharing. If you want to show pictures or have questions that we could discuss next Thursday, you can already post them in the ViMi Forum "What is This?". Greetings, The Dark Siders

ResearchGate Project Section Migrated to Website

We are pleased to announce that our ResearchGate Project section has been successfully migrated to our website. You can now find all the latest updates, information, and resources about our project on our official (this) website. The commenting function on our website isn't fully up and running yet, but keep your comments in mind for later. We'll have it up and running soon.

Our homepage is online!

Dear Dark Earth Friends, As you perhaps know, ResearchGate is soon going to delete the Projects. But, our Dark Earth Homepage is online since a few days (some parts are still under construction): https://darkearth.eu Hope to meet you there, thank you for your interest and all the best from the Dark Side, Kristin

Our article "Animals, crops and dark earth ..." is finally out!

If you are curious about the results, you can find our open access article with the following link: Tandfonline.
We look forward to your comments and feedback!

Animals, crops and Dark Earth ...

Our manuscript “Animals, crops and Dark Earth – an interdisciplinary study of urban development from the late Roman period to the Early Middle Ages in Cologne (Germany)” submitted to Environmental Archaeology, has been accepted! Thank you to Idoia Grau-Sologestoa, Astrid Röpke and the other co-authors for this great collaboration.

St. Ursanne ...

Today, the parcel with the resized sections from St. Ursanne has been delivered to the post office. We eagerly await the thin sections for study, but we must be patient until they are produced and sent back to BaselIn any case, we will keep you informed...

First project meeting in Brussels

We had very interesting microscopy sessions looking at organic remains, coprolites, intestine parasite eggs and phytoliths within different Dark Earth sediments in Belgium and Switzerland. And the project homepage should be ready soon. About the Belgium beer, this is a very complex task... In fact, we could not find a consent about the best beer, but thanks to Yannick Devos we can now continue our exercises also in Switzerland! After my opinion, we will need further training lessons in Brussels soon :-)

From Basel to Brussels...

Our first scientific meeting of almost the whole research group is approaching... We are happy to meet the Brussels team in this beautiful city. Our program? First, to get from Basel to Brussels by train in one day... Intense Dark Earth microscopy sessions. Scientific planing of the project Release of the Dark Side-Homepage, at least very soon Testing of local beers and publish our results in this blog :-)

Sections of the Dark Earth site St-Ursanne (Switzerland)

Thanks to Michel Guélat we have the chance to have an unexpected Dark Earth site in our project; St-Ursanne, a small but impressing Medieval town within the Jura mountains, and surprisingly with rich Dark Earth sediments deposited next to the river Doubs. The polished sections are ready now, and the dark layers look really promising. Can't wait to get the thin sections...

• 

  Our DarkEarth-Project Logo

Welcome to the Dark Side

Our project "Welcome to the Dark Side" is excited to announce that the ResearchGate project section has been migrated to our website! You can now find all the latest news and updates about our project on our website at darkearth.eu . Please note that the commenting function is not yet fully implemented, but feel free to keep your comments ready for later!