The Curonian Spit in Lithuania, a popular destination among holidaymakers, is not only fascinating for its nature but is also full of historical mysteries that scientists are trying to uncover.
According to legends, there was a prisoner of war camp near Nida, the largest Curonian Spit town, in the early 20th century. The existence of the camp could not be established to this day.
Researchers from Vilnius University (VU), together with colleagues from the US, have also searched for traces of this site. Moreover, they have gathered valuable information that could help determine how the dunes of the Curonian Spit will look in the future, says Donatas Pupienis, a coastal researcher at the VU Faculty of Chemistry.
Legends about prisoners of war
In various sources, historians write that the German authorities set up a camp for French war prisoners near the Dune of Parnidis in Nida in the 20th century. It was a “response” to the French setting up a similar camp for German prisoners in Algeria.
Funded by the French Defence Ministry, a symbolic memorial to the prisoners was erected on the Parnidis Dune. However, archaeologists who have investigated the site have not found any concrete evidence of the camp.
“Researchers from Vilnius University and the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire have been working on a topographic map of Death Valley and geophysical surveys to determine the approximate location of the former French prisoner of war camp,” Pupienis said.
“The research involved non-invasive geophysical surveys of the dunes using GPRs [Ground Penetrating Radar] at different frequencies, without disturbing the layers underground. If there are layers of different densities underground (sand, clay, groundwater) or distinctive objects (stump, stone), this allows us to discover objects of interest,” he added.
According to him, Professor Harry Jol from the US, together with his students, chose this location when they were researching the sites of Holocaust victims in Lithuania and Latvia.
However, the information gathered by GPR is also valuable for the study of the nature of the Curonian Spit. Although no traces of a former prisoner of war camp were found, investigations revealed a layer of lagoon marl at a depth of 1-2 metres.
“Lagoon marl is a highly viscous, carbonate mud under wet conditions. Although lagoon marl in the Curonian Spit has been known for more than 150 years, we still don’t know how widespread it is, how often if is exposed,” Pupienis said.
The lagoon marl outcrop is a recognised geomorphological natural monument. According to the scientist, it is special because it uncovers a layer of 6,000-year-old carbonated mud.
For a long time, visitors to the Curonian Spit National Park were able to admire the outcrop, which reached up to 3 metres, near the western slope of the Parnidis Dune. However, it has declined over years and is now only 0.2 metres tall.
According to Pupienis, the discovered layers of lagoon marl mean that in the future, new portions of it may be squeezed out and a new outcrop may be formed, thus altering the landscape of the area.
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