SUITMA 2005 Cairo - Soil characteristics and classification by the profile study of a Han Dynasty tomb
SUITMA 2005 Cairo
| This abstract is about one of the papers of the Historical sites theme of the SUITMA 2005 symposium. |
| Fengrong Zhang,i | Danfeng Sun.i |
- i - College of Resources and Environment, China Agriculture University, Beijing, China.
In 2001, archaeologists opened an ancient tomb located in the suburb area of Beijing, and constructed two thousand years ago. The authors also went there to study the soil formation assuming the initially formation time was exactly determined.
The tomb was dug more than 10 m deep. The upper soil horizons from the surface to the depth of 3 m were extremely mixed with fine earth and some rock fragments. The lower soil layers from 3 m to the top of coffin, which was buried, more than 10 m deep, were quite uniform with fine earth. All of the soil material was transported by the tomb construction works. Only the upper soil horizons from the surface to the depth of 2 m were described and sampled for studying the characteristics, formation and classification. The study results are as follows :
The soil was coarse loam, the soil structure was medium crumb, and the soil consistence was hard when dry. The organic carbon content showed an irregular tendency to decrease with depth in the solum, as well as the carbonates. The rock fragments were not deeply weathered. There were a few of mycelium like carbonate crystals in the middle horizons. A schist fragment line was found at the 120 cm depth from the surface, which was about ten cm thick and regularly paved like the roof tiles. The authors assumed that the schist fragments line was man made and for preventing water penetration. A bronze fastener was also discovered at the depth of 170 cm form the surface.
The soil forming evidences showed that the soil was in the juvenile stage. Under the warm and sub-humid climate, weathering was found to be slow. The soil was far from being in equilibrium with their environments.
This soil was not fitted to the Earth-cumuli orthic anthrosol in Chinese Soil Taxonomy. There were not any taxa that could cover the soil mentioned above. However there are a lot of soils, like the soil described in this paper, which are developed from artificially transported material. Although the artificially transported material is mainly local soil material, they were extremely mixed, sometimes, could find a few artifacts such as coal cinder, bricks, bottle fragments. So it is necessary to give taxa for these soils.
