climate change in caithness history

[rich]

I'm looking for references for an article I may write on climate and global warming. In particular I am interested in the climate in Caithness over the last 5,000 years. I read somewhere that in Dunbeath the locals were lolling around in a state of near nudity most of the time and quaffing down fine red wine from the local grapes. This was all a long. long time ago, needless to say. Are there any climate scholars out there with an opinion, or better yet, actual knowledge....

[MadPict]

I read somewhere that in Dunbeath the locals were lolling around in a state of near nudity most of the time and quaffing down fine red wine from the local grapes. ....

Don't they still do that? [lol] [lol] [lol]

[htwood]

Hi rich,
contact Nan and George Bethune at Dunbeath Heritage Center. I bet they would have the references for such information, or could put you in contact with someone who does. And remember, just because they might have been strolling about in near nudity doesnt mean they were warm and enjoying themselves [lol] Maybe they just ran out of woven grass mats to wear.

[George Brims]

The near nudity probably explains why the Romans thought the Picts painted themselves blue...

[Errogie]

The best record of climate change is a sediment core from a deep loch from which experts can analyse the pollen deposit over the years and surmise what vegetation was around at the time and hence the growing conditions which is how they're deducing world climate change in the Antartic.

Of course you probably won't get a Caithness loch sample beyond the last ice age 10,000 years ago because the place was pretty badly scraped over then!

No idea who could provide that information but it might be worth contacting Scottish Natural Heritage

[fred]

I'm looking for references for an article I may write on climate and global warming. In particular I am interested in the climate in Caithness over the last 5,000 years. I read somewhere that in Dunbeath the locals were lolling around in a state of near nudity most of the time and quaffing down fine red wine from the local grapes. This was all a long. long time ago, needless to say. Are there any climate scholars out there with an opinion, or better yet, actual knowledge....

I'm not an expert but I wouldn't have thought so in the last 5,000 years. During the Ice Age there were long periods of warm climate called interglacial oscillations when grapes would have grown easily enough at Dunbeath and people wouldn't have needed to wear too much in the way of clothing but I think it would have been quite a bit before 5,000 years ago and if there were any grapes or people in the area at the time I wouldn't know.

[JAWS]

It's believed that the reason the Norsemen settled for a time in Greenland over a thousand years ago was because the climate was much warmer for a period making Greenland more suitable for habitation than it is now.

When the Romans were in England, (not forgetting the period when they were in southern and central Scotland), England was noted for it's excellent wine so I would assume it was a much warmer period at that time also.

Certainly from two to four hundred years ago there was a period called the Mini Ice Age in Britain when the Thames froze on a regular basis to such an extent that Fairs were held on the frozen river.
That being the case I would assume that the temperature in the Far North would have followed the same trends.

One thing is certain, the climate of the British Isles has varied to some degree or other throughout the last two thousand years of recorded history.

[Rheghead]

I read somewhere that either Dundee or Aberdeen have an Eskimo kayak in their museum. Apparently, during the 17th century, an Eskimo was able to paddle his way into the harbour from Greenland. He was able to do this because the ice was so far South that he was able to take shelter on the ice floes when things got rough.

A good indication for climate change by anyone's book.

[Errogie]

Rheghead,

It was to Aberdeen that the Eskimo came ashore and I'm sure that I've seen his kayak somewhere around the university. He survived for something like 6 months before catching a faitly ordinary infection like measles and succumbed. There was some speculation that he may have been lifted pert of the way on a whaler or similar ship.