Abstract
The Kos Plateau Tuff (KPT), was an enormous caldera forming eruption originating from a vent within the Kos/Nisyros/Yali volcanic complex, occurring at 161 ka. It is the largest recognised Late Quaternary eruption in the Eastern Mediterranean. With its distinctive, highly silicic chemical composition, the resulting ash deposits have been used both as a synchronous marker for palaeoenvironmental records in the region, and to provide information on eruption processes and magnitude. Here, we describe ash layers detected at multiple sites (deep-sea sequences and a terrestrial archaeological site) with ages generated by radiometric dating and sapropel correlation, to demonstrate the existence of a later, but geochemically similar eruption from the Kos volcano which has not previously been identified in proximal volcanic units. This eruption is dated to MIS 5e (∼124–129 ka), i.e. ∼40 kyr younger than the KPT. This tephra marks the start of MIS5e, and presents a rare opportunity to independently and precisely align paleoenvironmental records and archaeological sites during a time of rapid warming and sea level rise analogous to the present day. The presence of multiple tephras also implies the possibility of multiple eruptions during this period. This adds to our knowledge of the active and hazardous nature of Kos/Nisyros/Yali volcanic complex.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 108054 |
| Journal | Quaternary Science Reviews |
| Volume | 307 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 May 2023 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2023 The Authors
Funding
The British Ocean Sediment Core Research Facility (BOSCORF) is thanked for providing sediment subsamples. The research was funded by the Leverhulme Trust (PG-2017-087 to S.B. E.A. S.J.A. and M.D.P.) and Irene Levi-Sala CARE Archaeological Foundation. SA's contribution to this work was partly supported by the Research Council of Norway, through its Centres of Excellence funding scheme, SFF Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), project number 262618. The Nahal Aqev excavation was directed by O.B. and E.B. under the funding of the Max Planck-Weizmann Centre for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology. O.B. and E.B. wishes to thank Maya Oron (Israel Antiquities Authority) for her invaluable contribution to the Nahal Aqev excavation research. The authors also thank the editor Professor Giovanni Zanchetta as well as two anonymous reviewers for their helpful and constructive reviews and recommendations, which have greatly improved the submitted manuscript. The British Ocean Sediment Core Research Facility (BOSCORF) is thanked for providing sediment subsamples. The research was funded by the Leverhulme Trust ( PG-2017-087 to S.B., E.A., S.J.A. and M.D.P.) and Irene Levi-Sala CARE Archaeological Foundation. SA's contribution to this work was partly supported by the Research Council of Norway , through its Centres of Excellence funding scheme, SFF Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE), project number 262618. The Nahal Aqev excavation was directed by O.B. and E.B. under the funding of the Max Planck-Weizmann Centre for Integrative Archaeology and Anthropology. O.B. and E.B. wishes to thank Maya Oron (Israel Antiquities Authority) for her invaluable contribution to the Nahal Aqev excavation research. The authors also thank the editor Professor Giovanni Zanchetta as well as two anonymous reviewers for their helpful and constructive reviews and recommendations, which have greatly improved the submitted manuscript.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| British Ocean Sediment Core Research Facility | |
| Irene Levi-Sala Care Archaeological Foundation | |
| Israel Antiquities Authority | |
| Maya Oron | |
| SFF Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour | |
| SapienCE | 262618 |
| Leverhulme Trust | PG-2017-087 |
| Norges Forskningsråd |
Keywords
- Cryptotephra
- Eastern mediterranean
- Kos plateau tuff
- Kos-nisyros-yali volcanic complex
- MIS 5e
- Tephrochronology
- Tephrostratigraphy
- Trace elements