Old dumpsites suggest that climate change could have accelerated the fall of part of the Byzantine Empire

A team of researchers affiliated with several Israeli institutions has uncovered evidence suggesting that rapid climate change may have played a role in the fall of part of the Byzantine empire. In their article published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes its study of tumuli outside the boundaries of the ancient Elusa settlement and their discoveries.

The Byzantine Empire (often called the Eastern Roman Empire) existed from about 330 to 1453. Its capital was Constantinople and its size has changed dramatically during its existence. At its peak, it included land in Greece, Italy, the Balkans, Asia Minor, North Africa and the Levant. The empire ceased to exist during its conquest by the Ottomans in 1453. Previous research has suggested that the Empire had lost its grip on the Levant because of the Islamic conquests of the seventh century. In this new effort, the researchers suggest that the invaders might have had some help from Mother Nature.

The researchers noted that their study of the former Elvis settlement in the Levant (currently in Israel) had not started with the study of rubbish heaps, but only after that they had begun to take an interest in the vast mounds located outside the colony's borders. A little excavation revealed that the mounds were nothing but piles of rubbish formed by materials discarded by the Elusa inhabitants.

The researchers searched up to the bottom of one of the mounds and discovered that it had been created in layers, suggesting that the garbage dump had occurred as part of the project. a concerted effort. The researchers suggest that this was due to the efforts of organized waste collectors. But they also found something else: Organized waste collection had stopped almost a century before the colony was invaded by invaders. But why? The researchers suggest that it was probably a sign that the settlement had gone through a difficult period. If that were the case, what would be the cause?

Other research has shown that there was a mini-ice age, from 536 AD, officially called the Little Ice Age of the late ancient times. It was triggered by three erupting volcanoes and filling the sky with so much debris that a large part of Europe and Asia became colder. And this has led to poor harvests and difficult times. The researchers noted that Gaza wine was the main export product of Elusa at the time. Although wine production was not affected by the Little Ice Age, exports to major customers could have been. With the drying up of the clientele, the Elusa colony may have experienced a difficult period and a dwindling population, making it easier for the invaders to arrive.

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More information:
Guy Bar-Oz et al. Old garbage dumps tear the urban collapse a century before the end of Byzantine hegemony in the south of the Levant, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2019). DOI: 10.1073 / pnas.1900233116