Workshop on “The Fluvial Anthroposphere in the Medieval and Post-Medieval Era”
Prague, 5th–7th June 2025
Hosted at Charles University’s Department of Archaeology in Prague, the workshop “The Fluvial Anthroposphere in the Medieval and Post-Medieval Era” brought together leading researchers to explore spatial and geoarchaeological perspectives on settlement dynamics, land-use change, and hydrological transformations across Central and Eastern Europe.
The three-day event opened with a panel on historic land use, highlighting the economic role of medieval forests, LiDAR-based analysis of riverine settlements, and evolving agricultural practices. The second day focused on settlement dynamics and landscape archaeology, revealing cutting-edge non-invasive survey techniques and long-term transformations in riverine settings.
Participants also delved into spatial environmental modeling, showcasing high-resolution reconstructions of historic land cover in regions like the Rhine-Meuse Delta and Eastern Hungary. Further sessions explored sedimentary archives, including vanished fishponds and fluvial valleys impacted by mining and metallurgy from the 11th to 17th centuries.
Supported by the Charles University PRIMUS Program (Grant No. 24SSH012), this interdisciplinary gathering fostered rich dialogue across archaeological, environmental, and historical disciplines. The discussions underscored the importance of integrative, cross-border research in understanding how human activity has shaped, and been shaped by, fluvial environments across the centuries.
