Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy)
Shelter caves serve as crucial repositories that provide valuable insights into Late Pleistocene–Holocene depositional mechanisms and environmental changes. In this study, we conducted a stratigraphic analysis of the easternmost cave-fill succession within the Santuario della Madonna cave, located a...
| Main Authors: | , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2023-08-01
|
| Series: | Geosciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/13/9/260 |
| _version_ | 1797579890510266368 |
|---|---|
| author | Gaetano Robustelli Federica Lucà |
| author_facet | Gaetano Robustelli Federica Lucà |
| author_sort | Gaetano Robustelli |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Shelter caves serve as crucial repositories that provide valuable insights into Late Pleistocene–Holocene depositional mechanisms and environmental changes. In this study, we conducted a stratigraphic analysis of the easternmost cave-fill succession within the Santuario della Madonna cave, located along the Tyrrhenian coasts of southern Italy. By examining the cave-fill deposits and their relationship with archaeological successions from previous excavation campaigns, we aimed to enhance our understanding of sedimentary evolution, specifically, the interplay between local and global environmental factors. A comprehensive sedimentological analysis was conducted, enabling the identification of three distinct sedimentary facies within the clastic succession that overlays the calcareous cave roof. Our findings reveal a noticeable shift in cave sedimentation processes, characterized by a gap in detritus accumulation followed by the deposition of flowstones. Furthermore, the presence of oversized boulders within the succession was attributed to failures from the cliffs that overhang the cave opening. We interpret these boulders as possible evidence of cave collapses induced by earthquakes, similarly to rockfall phenomena observed in the archaeological test pits within the shelter, which show a strong correlation with paleoseismic events. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:43:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7a152361dd8940b3a22c9dab0de26805 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3263 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:43:28Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Geosciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-7a152361dd8940b3a22c9dab0de268052023-11-19T10:54:41ZengMDPI AGGeosciences2076-32632023-08-0113926010.3390/geosciences13090260Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy)Gaetano Robustelli0Federica Lucà1Department of Biology, Ecology and Earth Science (DiBEST), University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, ItalyDepartment of Biology, Ecology and Earth Science (DiBEST), University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, ItalyShelter caves serve as crucial repositories that provide valuable insights into Late Pleistocene–Holocene depositional mechanisms and environmental changes. In this study, we conducted a stratigraphic analysis of the easternmost cave-fill succession within the Santuario della Madonna cave, located along the Tyrrhenian coasts of southern Italy. By examining the cave-fill deposits and their relationship with archaeological successions from previous excavation campaigns, we aimed to enhance our understanding of sedimentary evolution, specifically, the interplay between local and global environmental factors. A comprehensive sedimentological analysis was conducted, enabling the identification of three distinct sedimentary facies within the clastic succession that overlays the calcareous cave roof. Our findings reveal a noticeable shift in cave sedimentation processes, characterized by a gap in detritus accumulation followed by the deposition of flowstones. Furthermore, the presence of oversized boulders within the succession was attributed to failures from the cliffs that overhang the cave opening. We interpret these boulders as possible evidence of cave collapses induced by earthquakes, similarly to rockfall phenomena observed in the archaeological test pits within the shelter, which show a strong correlation with paleoseismic events.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/13/9/260shelter caveclastic sedimentationCalabriaLate Quaternaryearthquake-induced rockfall |
| spellingShingle | Gaetano Robustelli Federica Lucà Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy) Geosciences shelter cave clastic sedimentation Calabria Late Quaternary earthquake-induced rockfall |
| title | Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy) |
| title_full | Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy) |
| title_fullStr | Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy) |
| title_short | Insights into Late Quaternary Rock Shelter Sedimentation at Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Northern Calabria, Italy) |
| title_sort | insights into late quaternary rock shelter sedimentation at santuario della madonna cave northern calabria italy |
| topic | shelter cave clastic sedimentation Calabria Late Quaternary earthquake-induced rockfall |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/13/9/260 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gaetanorobustelli insightsintolatequaternaryrocksheltersedimentationatsantuariodellamadonnacavenortherncalabriaitaly AT federicaluca insightsintolatequaternaryrocksheltersedimentationatsantuariodellamadonnacavenortherncalabriaitaly |