TIMING AND PATTERN OF THE LAST DEGLACIATION IN THE KATTEGAT REGION, SOUTHWEST SCANDINAVIA

This paper presents evidence on the timing and pattern of the Late Wei chselian deglaciation in SW Scandinavia. particularly in the Oresund-K attegat region before the Allerod interstadial. New radiocarbon ages a nd evaluated older dates demonstrate that active glacier ice had left eastern Denmark. southern Halland and western Skane before 14,000 BP. The deglaciation in the Oresund region took place mainly under glacioe stuarine conditions in a narrow fjord or inlet with some marine influe nce, as indicated by radiocarbon-dated finds of Polar Cod (Boreogadus saida) and the vertebra of a Ringed Seal (Phoca hispida). The Swedish west coast experienced glaciomarine and deltaic ice proximal condition s, where Vendsyssel was at the same time under full marine conditions with little evidence of ice rafting. A paleogeographic interpretation illustrates land, sea and ice configurations around 14,000 BP. We sugg est that a subsequent lateglacial transgression reached the entire reg ion almost simultaneously and peaked around 13,300 BP. This led to dep osition of an ice-rafted diamicton (the Oresund diamicton) in Skane an d Sjaelland, and of glaciolacustrine mud in Halland. We propose that t he complex transgression and regression events recorded in the region were governed by interaction of the eustatic sea level rise, isostatic reponse to glacier unloading and possibly also by damming by an ice s tream in the Skagerrak and northern Kattegat.