Geology of Denmark III: The Development of Denmark's Nature since the Last Glacial

Abstract

The history of nature since the Ice Age has occupied Scandinavian researchers for more than a century: it is probably no exaggeration to say that Scandinavia during the whole of this period has been a centre for such research. The most important techniques were developed here, and the crucial ideas were formulated and made the subject of lively, even violent debate, all whilst a great number of observations was being accumulated. The peat bogs with their abundant remains, the plant growth of previous ages, animal life, and human activity, were an especially prized object of study. The ability of peat to preserve organic material makes peat bogs a valuable archive in which everything is stored in chronological order, the oldest at the bottom and the youngest at the top.