New study offers detailed insight into the development of the Soutok landscape
Analysis of a meander of the Dyje River that disappeared two thousand years ago has provided scientists with unique data on the development of the river landscape and human settlement in the area known as Soutok in southern Moravia.
At the time when the Dyje River left its channel, the floodplain was covered by riparian forest, mainly consisting of oak, elm, and hornbeam. Floods were mild, the floodplain was not clogged with sediments, and forest soil developed, on which people lived as early as the Iron Age. The composition of today’s forest is very similar to that of the past. This is the conclusion of research conducted within the RES-HUM project, which aims to study the resilience of human society on an interdisciplinary basis. A new study brings another expert perspective on the uniqueness of the so-called Soutok landscape, which is currently widely discussed in connection with the declaration of a Protected Landscape Area CHKO.
Around the turn of the era, Germanic tribes settled in the area of today’s Soutok, and the increasing intensity of settlement transformed the floodplain—forests diminished, and grain fields expanded. “Whether the Roman army passed through the confluence and whether the Dyje was used to supply Roman legions is not certain, but nearby Roman camps in Mušov and Břeclav-Poštorná directly suggest this hypothesis,” said Petr Dresler from the Institute of Archaeology and Museology at Masaryk University.
With the arrival of the Slavs in the 6th century, there were no changes in land use or management, but the intensity of human impact on the landscape increased. “The riparian forest almost disappeared, ruderal species spread, supported by regular grass burning. The original forest had long been cut down,” said Libor Petr from Masaryk University, who studies the impact of climate change and human activity in Central Europe.
The peak of Slavic settlement was marked by the construction of stone churches and massive stone fortifications in one of the most significant archaeological sites in Moravia—Pohansko. Stone was transported to the site from the White Carpathians using the Dyje as a waterway. Goods also traveled the same route. The Dyje and Morava rivers connected the centers of Great Moravia not only with each other but also with the surrounding world. The existence of the agglomeration was brief, but settlement did not disappear—it merely changed in character, becoming less imposing but otherwise typical for the time.
Key changes occurred on a completely different scale but had a fundamental impact on the Soutok area. In distant Bohemia, the Přemyslid dynasty established their principality and around 1040 founded the Břeclav castle as a border stronghold against Hungary and Austria. “More important was the change in the Dyje’s water regime. Floods became more frequent and intense, settlement in the floodplain disappeared, and riparian forest spread again,” said Petr.
Colonization of higher elevations in the 13th century and erosion in the watershed subsequently caused the silting of the floodplain, changing the character of the river, which carried large amounts of sediment. Silver mining in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands even manifested here, hundreds of kilometers away, in the geochemical record of heavy metals—long before the industrial revolution. In the High Middle Ages and early modern period, flood intensity peaked. A major change came with river regulation in the last century, which prevented further flooding. Modern industrial pollution by heavy metals now affects areas far downstream and remains permanently stored in sediments.
The Soutok area became an uninhabited periphery and, from the modern era, a Liechtenstein game reserve. The locality is extensively managed, with fields and meadows where large oaks and riparian forest grow, again resembling the composition from the Iron Age. “It is precisely the mosaic of fields, meadows, solitary trees, and riparian forest that has created a unique area in the middle of a settled landscape and industrial agriculture, with unique biodiversity. Its protection requires appropriate management and human activity. This must also be reflected in forest management—close to nature, without planting conifer monocultures and invasive species. Only the CHKO Soutok, a protected area with sustainable activities in the public interest accessible to people, can ensure this,” added Petr.
In the case of Soutok, researchers analyzed the infill of a vanished meander of the Dyje and archaeobotanical finds from Pohansko. This helped them better answer questions about how the river floodplain developed in the late Holocene and how the landscape changed with it. They also focused on changes in settlement structure, economy, and use of natural resources, building on archaeological research that continues at Pohansko.
Link: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10745-025-00584-y
