Radiocarbon Dated Raised Beaches in Kong Karls Land, Svalbard, and their Consequences for the Glacial History of the Barents Sea Area

Abstract

Twenty-three radiocarbon datings of driftwood, whalebones, and shells from Kong Karls Land are presented. An emergence curve for eastern Kongsøya shows that a shoreline displacement of more than 100 m has taken place during the Holocene. The rate of emergence is high, about 4 m/100 years during the first one thousand years and 0.3 m/100 years during the last thousand years. Two levels with high concentrations of pumice have been dated by driftwood samples with ages of 5240 + 70 years and 3110±80 years. Driftwood seems to have floated ashore throughout most of the Holocene. The about 9000 years old driftwood had an unexpected high percentage of Salix sp. (40 %) and a low percentage of Larix sp (25 %). The occurrence of American species was also remarkable.The emergence curve presented is the strongest evidence in favour of a Late Weichselian ice sheet over Kong Karls Land. Glacial striae show that the last ice movements have taken place from the north-northwest and the north. Six driftwood, whalebone and shell datings gave Middle Weichselian ages (or older), indicating that numerous interstadial sediments have survived the last glaciation in Kong Karls Land.