Centre for Archaeology - University of Lisbon

Publications

Environmental changes in the Atlantic World: how did the trade of enslaved people shape the landscapes

Publication . Costa, Ana; Pombo de Freitas, Maria da Conceição; Gomes Coelho, Rui; Cachao, Mario

ABSTRACT: This paper focuses on the environmental changes that occurred along the margins of Cacheu River (Guinea-Bissau) and Sado River (Portugal), in the context of the transatlantic trade of enslaved people and its aftermath (15th century to the present). We collected four sediment cores in the estuarine areas of those two rivers – Cacheu1, Cacheu2, Cacheu3 and Laxique. The sediments were analysed for environmental proxies and radiocarbon dated. The preliminary analyses of Cacheu1 and Cacheu2 reveal a long sedimentary sequence covering changes over the last 8000 years. The preliminary analyses of sediments collected from the Sado River indicate anthropic influence and the introduction of N-fertilisers in the river alluvial plain before the 18th century, probably related to the production of rice. New dating will improve the resolution of the age-depth models produced for the sedimentary sequences in recent years and will allow a more accurate environmental evolution model.

2025-04Journal article

Open access