Inaddition, the fact that Melle remained unmined in all later historical periods is enigmatic compared to the almost ubiquitous reworking of significant ore deposits elsewhere.In this paper, I discuss the geological characteristics, mining parameters, documented historical mining rates and workforce considerations, all of which can be used to constrain production estimates for Melle. There is no geological evidence for primary or secondary enrichment to generate silver-rich ore. Furthermore, it is a Mississippi Valley type (MVT) base metal deposit, which are typically not major silver producers.

However, this deposit has geological and mining characteristics economically unsuitable for substantial production, because it is thin, sub-horizontal and comprised of discontinuous pods. The results also indicate that the observed increase of Fagus during the Early Middle Ages, which was never an important element in the woodland vegetation in northern Belgium before, was related to climatic changes rather than anthropogenic factors.Įarly Medieval silver production for the Melle Pb-Ag deposit in western France has been estimated up to 15 tonnes per year over hundreds of years (Téreygeol, 2013) which would place it amongst the top silver mines of all times prior to the New World discoveries. Abandoned fields were first covered with pioneer woodland (Salix, Corylus and Betula), then Quercus-dominated secondary forest and finally a late-successional forest with Fagus sylvatica, Carpinus betulus and Ilex aquifolium, an evolution that took over 300 years. Especially the long period of woodland regeneration following abandonment of the site around AD 270, covering the Late Roman and Early Medieval period, could be reconstructed in detail.

The results of the archaeological and archaeobotan-ical analyses provide information on changes in land use and resulting dynamics of woodland cover and composition between c.600 BC and AD 1200, with a spatial and temporal resolution unrivalled in northern Belgium. The site was subsequently abandoned from c. The region was largely uninhabited until the Iron Age and Roman period when a rural settlement was established, resulting in small-scale woodland clearance. The results from analyses of botanical remains (pollen, wood, charcoal, seeds) from several archaeological features excavated in Kluizen (northern Belgium) are presented.

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