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Article

Volcanic Impact Patterns in Tree Rings from Historical Wood in Northern Fennoscandia’s Old Churches

by
Oleg I. Shumilov
1,
Elena A. Kasatkina
1,*,
Mauri Timonen
2 and
Evgeniy O. Potorochin
1
1
Institute of North Industrial Ecology Problems, Kola Science Centre, Russian Academy of Sciences, 184209 Apatity, Russia
2
Natural Resources Institute (LUKE), 96200 Rovaniemi, Finland
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Forests 2025, 16(4), 573; https://doi.org/10.3390/f16040573
Submission received: 20 February 2025 / Revised: 17 March 2025 / Accepted: 24 March 2025 / Published: 26 March 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wood as Cultural Heritage Material: 2nd Edition)
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Abstract

:
This study revealed a significant reduction in tree growth across northern Fennoscandia following the 1600 AD eruption of Huaynaputina in Peru, the most powerful volcanic event in South America over the past two millennia. In the analysis, we utilized six tree-ring chronologies, which included the Finnish super-long chronology (5634 BC–2004 AD), the Kola Peninsula chronology (1445–2004 AD), and historical chronologies derived from old wooden churches in Finnish Lapland and Karelia, Russia. Using a superposed epoch analysis across these chronologies revealed a significant 24% (p < 0.01) decline in tree-ring growth in 1601 compared to the previous six years. The northernmost records, the Finnish super-long chronology (72%, p < 0.001) and the Sodankylä Old Church chronology (67%, p < 0.001), showed the most pronounced decreases. Statistical analysis confirmed significant (p < 0.05) similarities in tree-ring responses across all chronologies from 1601 to 1608. These findings underscore the reliability of using the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption as a chronological marker for dating historic wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia that were likely built between the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Additionally, analyzing church wood may provide insights into past climate patterns and environmental conditions linked to the eruption.

1. Introduction

Tree-ring dating, or dendrochronology, is a scientific method that uses the annual rings of trees to determine their age and that of wooden objects and structures. Each year, a tree forms a new growth ring, the thickness of which can depend on environmental factors such as temperature, rainfall, light, soil quality, and trees species [1]. All these environmental factors vary depending on location, latitude, and altitude [1]. Tree-ring analysis using historical wooden timbers can help determine the exact year when a tree was felled, providing a precise date for the construction or renovation of a building [1,2,3,4]. In addition, dendrochronological records from historical buildings can provide detailed information about past climate variability before the era of instrumental observations. Dendrochronology allows us to determine the dates of construction and renovation with greater accuracy, even when they are not clearly stated in archival sources. This method also helps to determine the origin of historical timber. By comparing individual tree-ring series with regional chronologies that represent the average growth conditions for specific areas, it is possible to determine the source of the wood, a process known as dendroprovenancing [4,5,6,7]. Using dendroprovenancing, for example, it has been possible to determine the origin of wood samples from the White Sea and Kara Sea regions that were used as building materials for Russian settlements on Svalbard during the 18th century [7]. The dendroprovenancing method has shown that high-quality oak and coniferous trees were imported from Scandinavia to Western Europe [2,5,6]. In addition, many churches in Fennoscandia were constructed using timber from nearby forests, while some materials were also transported over long distances, indicating trade networks and resource availability in the medieval period [8,9].
Recent studies have used tree-ring data from historical buildings, particularly old churches, to create climate records for the Late Holocene in different parts of Europe [4,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21]. Through the analysis of the timber employed in these churches, researchers have been able to recreate historical weather patterns, including times of drought or unusually cold winters, which may have impacted the building process or the accessibility of materials. Only a small part of these studies was related to Fennoscandia [11,14,17,18], which includes Finland, Sweden, Norway, and parts of northwestern Russia.
The oldest churches in Fennoscandia, both stone and wooden, date back to the Middle Ages [8,17,18,22,23,24,25,26]. Medieval wooden buildings can only be found through archaeological excavations, but medieval roof structures have been well preserved in Scandinavian stone churches [8,22,23,24,25]. The construction of some churches coincided with the spread of Christianity in the region during the 11th and 12th centuries [8,22,23,24,25,26]. For example, the roof constructions of some parish churches in Västergötland, in southwestern Sweden, were dated to the period between 1131 and 1157 AD [22]. Some wooden churches, such as the Urnes Stave Church in Norway, which was dendrochronologically dated to the 1130s AD, and the 1714 Church of the Transfiguration at Kizhi in the Republic of Karelia, Russia, have been listed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO [25,26].
The Russian part of Fennoscandia has several historic wooden churches that are an integral part of the region’s rich cultural and architectural heritage [26,27]. These churches reflect traditional Russian wooden architecture and are a testament to the region’s history and culture. In the northwestern part of Russia (60°–70° N, 30°–40° E), there are several dozens of preserved wooden churches and chapels [26,27]. Many of them are located in rural areas or on islands of Lakes Onega and Ladoga. Many of these churches are protected by the state as cultural heritage sites, and efforts are underway to preserve and restore them [27]. However, some are in poor condition due to limited resources and the difficulty of maintaining wooden structures in a harsh climate. The oldest wooden churches in the area date back to the 17th and 18th centuries, with over half of them having no precise dates [26,27]. For example, the Dormition Church in Varzuga, on the southern coast of the Kola Peninsula (66.4° N, 36.6° E), is believed to have been built in the 17th century [26]. Some sources date it around 1674, making it one of the oldest wooden churches in the region that has survived [27].
Many of these structures have undergone repairs, additions, and modifications, making it difficult to determine their original construction dates. In order to obtain accurate dating of historical wooden objects, certain ring-anatomy patterns, such as growth depressions associated with volcanic activity, can be used as dendrochronological markers for cross-dating [4,21,28,29]. The synchronization of volcanic sulfate peaks in Greenland and Antarctic ice-core records with tree-ring responses has enabled more precise dating of volcanic events. For instance, the most significant tree-ring growth anomaly, observed around 1628 BCE, has long been linked to the potential eruption of Thera (Santorini) [28]. However, the exact date and attribution of this event have remained subjects of debate [21,28]. Recent research utilizing ice-core data has provided compelling evidence that the 1628 BCE event was instead caused by a massive eruption of Alaska’s Aniakchak II volcano [30]. In addition to the above-mentioned challenges, the process of historical chronometric dating depends on the availability of reference chronologies—long sequences of tree-ring data from the same region—which may not always be available for older time periods. One such long tree-ring record is the Finnish multimillennial pine chronology, which spans more than 7600 years [31]. This chronology was constructed using the stems of both living and subfossil trees from the region of northern Finnish Lapland, which is located between 68° and 70° north and 20° and 30° east [31]. The longest pine tree-ring chronology from the Kola Peninsula, located in the northwestern part of Russia (68.6° N, 33.3° E), covers a period of 561 years [32]. Based on these two chronologies from Northern Fennoscandia, significant decreases in tree-ring widths have been revealed over several years following the most powerful (Volcanic Explosivity Index, VEI ≥ 5) mid-latitude volcanic eruptions during the medieval period [32,33,34] and through the middle and late Holocene [35]. Analyses of tree-ring records from both the Kola Peninsula and Finnish Lapland revealed the most significant decline in tree growth, with a 25% reduction relative to the previous year [32,33,34], along with notable post-volcanic cooling [35] following the 1600 eruption of Huaynaputina in Peru (VEI = 6).
This eruption is regarded as the largest volcanic event in South America in the last 2000 years, ranking it among the most powerful eruptions in the past 500 years [36]. According to ice-core and tree-ring records, the Huaynaputina eruption released an enormous amount of sulfur—up to 32 Mt—into the atmosphere [36,37,38]. This led to a reduction in atmospheric transparency and a subsequent drop in global temperatures. The following year, 1601, was marked by significantly colder temperatures across many parts of the world, leading to widespread crop failures and severe food shortages [39]. The eruption had far-reaching consequences, profoundly impacting human societies worldwide and causing dramatic changes in weather patterns and environmental conditions across North America, Central Europe, southern Scandinavia, and China [36,39,40,41]. In Russia, this event triggered severe summer frosts in 1601, resulting in widespread crop failures [39,42]. This led to a devastating famine and unprecedented mortality, with over 500,000 deaths between 1601 and 1603 [39]. The crisis caused significant social upheaval and political instability, a period now known as the Time of Troubles [39,42].
Despite the extensive array of paleoclimatic and historical evidence, the relationship between the Huaynaputina eruption and the associated climatic anomalies remains an unresolved research challenge. Volcanic eruptions eject enormous amounts of volcanic ash, sulfur dioxide, and water vapor into the atmosphere, significantly reducing atmospheric transparency and blocking solar radiation from reaching the Earth’s surface. These phenomena disturb the atmospheric energy balance, frequently resulting in a decline in surface temperatures [43]. The sulfate aerosols generated by intense volcanic eruptions can persist in the stratosphere for several years, further influencing global climate [43]. However, the cooling observed after the 1600 eruption lasted longer than can be explained solely by the direct radiative effects of stratospheric aerosols [44]. Most importantly, volcanic eruptions did not always or universally lead to cooling events [43]. Another potential explanation for the observed reductions in tree-ring growth is diminished atmospheric transparency, which can negatively impact the photosynthesis process [37,45]. The impact of volcanic eruptions on climate and ecological systems varies significantly by region and is influenced by factors such as the volume, chemical composition, and altitude of volcanic emissions [43]. Therefore, the 1600 event stands as a pivotal case study for examining the global consequences of major volcanic eruptions, especially in terms of their influence on climate change and the resilience of societies.
Our previous studies, utilizing two tree-ring chronologies from Fennoscandia’s northern timberline—where trees exhibit heightened sensitivity to environmental stressors—revealed a significant decline in tree-ring growth following the 1600 Huaynaputina volcanic eruption [32,33,34]. Tree-ring samples from historic churches in Fennoscandia provide a valuable opportunity to extend dendrochronological records both spatially and temporally, reaching further back in time than the ages of the oldest living trees in the region. However, most of the wooden churches dating to the period close to this eruption are located well below the northern timberline. This study sought to determine whether the potential impact of the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption is detectable in historical tree-ring width series derived from old wooden churches in Northern Fennoscandia.
The primary objectives of this study were (a) to evaluate the potential impact of the 1600 volcanic eruption on tree growth by analyzing historical tree-ring records obtained from wooden churches, which are situated significantly below the northern timberline, in northern Fennoscandia and (b) to compare the tree-growth responses observed at various sites across the region. The findings may offer critical insights into the reliability of using the 1600 AD marker date for the precise dating of historical wooden structures in this area. Furthermore, analyzing the timber used in the construction of these churches could yield valuable information for reconstructing historical climate patterns associated with this volcanic event.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Study Site

In this study, we utilized two regional and four historical tree-ring chronologies from northern part of Fennoscandia, encompassing the main territories of Finland, Sweden, and Norway, as well as parts of northwestern Russia, including Murmansk Oblast, most of the Republic of Karelia, and the northern section of Leningrad Oblast [46]. Among these, two regional chronologies and one historical chronology were derived from Finnish Lapland and the Kola Peninsula. The remaining three historical chronologies were obtained from wooden churches located in northern Karelia (Figure 1).

2.1.1. Kola Peninsula

The Kola Peninsula is located north of the Arctic Circle, bordered by the Barents Sea to the north and the White Sea to the south (Figure 1). The region features a combination of podzolic and rocky soils [50]. The climate in the study area (Loparskaya; 68.6° N, 33.3° E) is influenced by its proximity to the Barents Sea, with the average temperatures ranging from −11 °C in January (the coldest month) to +13 °C in July (the warmest month) [51]. The average annual precipitation is 500 mm, with the majority falling from June to October [51]. During the summer months, the Kola Peninsula experiences the phenomenon of the midnight sun, characterized by 24 h of continuous daylight for several weeks. At this latitude, the polar night extends from 2 December to 11 January, while the polar day occurs from 22 May to 22 July [51].
In the study area, the growing season spans from early June to the middle of September, while the snow cover period extends from the mid-October through to the end of May [52]. The Kola Peninsula is characterized by taiga forests in the south and tundra vegetation in the north. The dominant tree species at or near the coniferous tree line include Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] Karst.), and mountain birch (Betula pubescens ssp. tortuosa) [53]. Our study site is situated at the coniferous tree line, which is primarily formed by P. sylvestris [34] (Figure 1).

2.1.2. Northern Finnish Lapland

The study area in Finnish Lapland is situated north of the Arctic Circle, within the northern timberline region (Figure 1). The soils here are typically podzols, which are acidic and nutrient-poor [50]. The climate of northern Finnish Lapland is defined by its subarctic nature, featuring prolonged, harsh winters and short, mild summers. During winter, the region is predominantly influenced by cold air masses originating from the Arctic Ocean. In contrast, summer conditions are largely shaped by milder and more humid air masses from the Atlantic Ocean [54]. Summer temperatures in northern Finland are generally higher than those on the Kola Peninsula [54,55]. The study site, Sodankylä (67.4° N, 26.6° E), is characterized by a continental climate, marked by significant seasonal temperature variations. Winter temperatures average –13.7 °C in January, while summer temperatures reach +14.8 °C in July [55]. The region receives an average precipitation of 485 mm [55]. This region, along with the Kola Peninsula, experiences the phenomenon of the midnight sun, which results in continuous daylight. This extended period of sunlight enhances photosynthesis and promotes tree growth. For instance, at Sodankylä’s latitude, the polar night lasts from 20 to 23 December, while polar day extends from 31 May to 15 July [56]. The growing season in northern Finnish Lapland typically begins from late May and ends in early September [54]. The tree line and timberline in northern Finland are characterized by the same species found in the Kola Peninsula: P. sylvestris, P. abies, and B. pubescens.

2.1.3. Northern Karelia, the Lake Onega Region

The study area is situated in northern Karelia, within the Lake Onega region (Figure 1). This region lies south of the Arctic Circle and the northern timberline, resulting in a comparatively milder climate. The soil cover in this area is highly distinctive, differing significantly from other parts of Karelia. While podzols are typical across Karelia, they are scarce in this region [54]. Instead, the Lake Onega region is characterized by unique dark soils formed on carbonaceous rocks, specifically shungite, which are not found elsewhere in the world [54].
The climate around Lake Onega is humid, warm, and moderately continental, influenced predominantly by air masses of Atlantic and Arctic origin throughout the year [57]. The mean temperatures range from –13 °C to –8.4 °C in January and from +16 °C to +17.6 °C in July [57]. The annual precipitation in the catchment area varies between 550 and 750 mm, peaking during the summer months [57]. Snow cover typically forms in early November and persists until late April [58].
Compared to northern Finnish Lapland and the Kola Peninsula, the Lake Onega region experiences higher average summer temperatures and more fertile soils, creating more favorable conditions for conifer growth. The vegetation period for conifers in northern Karelia generally extends from late May to mid-September, lasting approximately 140–150 days [58]. The region is dominated by dense boreal forests, primarily composed of conifers such as P. sylvestris, Picea abies, and Picea obovata, along with some deciduous species including Betula spp., Alnus spp., and Populus tremula [57].

2.2. Data Sets and Methodology

2.2.1. Regional Chronologies from Living and Subfossil Trees

The Kola Peninsula tree-ring chronology (KTR) was developed from 36 cores of Pinus sylvestris L., sampled at the northern pine tree line (68.6° N, 33.3° E), which included the oldest living tree, which was 561 years old [32,34] (Figure 1). This chronology covers the period from 1445 to 2005. The wooden material was analyzed using standard methods of dendrochronology. After preparation, the samples were scanned at a resolution of 4800 dpi and measured with a precision of 0.01 mm using the TREMET image analysis system [59]. The resulting tree-ring series were then crossdated and standardized using the COFECHA (version 6.06P) and ARSTAN (version 41) software programs [60,61]. The ARSTAN software allows researchers to eliminate age-related growth trends from the data. Users have the option to fit various standardization curves to the dataset and evaluate the goodness of fit.
The Finnish supra-long pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) tree-ring chronology (FTR), spanning the period from 5634 BC to 2004 AD, is composed of series derived from both living and subfossil trees [31]. These samples were collected in the subarctic timberline region of northern Fennoscandia (68–70° N, 20–30° E) [31] (Figure 1). All tree-ring samples were processed following established dendrochronological techniques and dated to calendar years using standard procedures. For further methodological details, refer to study [31].

2.2.2. Historical Tree-Ring Data

We only identified four historical pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) tree-ring records from old wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia that span the period of the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption (Table 1). All of these records were obtained from the International Tree-Ring Data Bank (ITRDB) [47]. The chronologies in the collection had varying start dates, spanning from 1405 to 1549 AD, while the end dates ranged from 1617 to 1713 AD (Table 1).
The Sodankylä Old Church (67.4° N, 26.6° E) is one of the oldest surviving wooden churches in Finland (Figure 2a). Constructed in 1689, it is a typical example of the 17th-century Lutheran churches in the region [62]. The chronology covers the period from 1484 to 1688 [47] (Table 1).
The Church of Peter and Paul on the island of Lychny, Sandal Lake (62.5° N, 34° E), is one of the oldest monuments of wooden architecture in Karelia (Russia) and is an object of cultural heritage (Figure 2b). This Orthodox church was built in 1620, immediately after the devastating Polish–Lithuanian and Swedish invasions [47]. The chronology of the church spans from 1433 to 1620 [47,61] (Table 1).
The Orthodox Church of the Transfiguration is one of the most iconic structures located on Kizhi Island in Karelia, Russia (62.1° N, 35.2° E) [25,26,47] (Figure 2c). It was built in 1714, during the reign of Peter the Great [25,47] (Table 1). The chronology covers the period from 1405 to 1713 [47,48] (Table 1).
Another Orthodox church dedicated to Elijah the Prophet and the Three Saints is situated on the island of Lukostrov in Lake Onega, Karelia, Russia (62° N, 35.7° E) (Figure 2d). This wooden church, recognized as both an architectural and historical monument, is believed to have been constructed in the 1690s [49]. The chronology spans from 1433 to 1620 [47,49] (Table 1).
All historical tree-ring series were processed using the ARSTAN program [61].

2.3. Statistical Analysis

To evaluate post-volcanic tree-ring growth suppression, we applied superposed epoch analysis. Superposed epoch analysis (SEA) is a statistical method used to study the relationship between a key date (or event) and a time series by aligning multiple sequences of data relative to that event. SEA is often used to test specific hypotheses about the relationship between an event and the preceding conditions. Extending the analysis too far back in time can introduce noise or unrelated variability into the data. By limiting the analysis to the preceding several years, researchers can reduce the influence of unrelated long-term trends or external factors. In this study, the 6 years before and 8 years after a volcanic eruption were analyzed. The Kruskal–Wallis test was utilized to determine the significance of differences in volcanic responses across various tree-ring records [63]. The Kruskal–Wallis test is a non-parametric statistical method used to determine if there are statistically significant differences between three or more independent groups. It is often preferred over other methods, such as the one-way ANOVA. Unlike ANOVA, the Kruskal–Wallis test does not assume the homogeneity of variance or normality. Furthermore, non-parametric tests like the Kruskal–Wallis test are often more robust and reliable when dealing with small sample sizes [63]. Differences were deemed statistically significant when p < 0.05. Statistical significance was evaluated via t-statistics.

3. Results

In this study, we investigated tree-ring responses to the 1600 Huaynaputina powerful eruption (VEI = 6) by analyzing natural (FTR and KTR) and historical tree-ring chronologies derived from samples obtained in northern Fennoscandia.
Figure 3 illustrates a notable drop in tree growth, which was observed nearly simultaneously across all chronologies in the year following the eruption (Figure 3). The most significant reduction in tree-ring width, compared to the preceding five years, was recorded in the FTR (72%, p < 0.001) and the Sodankylä Old Church (67%, p < 0.001) tree-ring chronologies (Figure 3a,c and Table 1). Significant decreases in tree-ring growth, as indicated by the KTR and three historical tree-ring chronologies, are illustrated in Figure 3b,d–f, as well as in Table 1. The reductions were observed in KTR (30%, p < 0.001), Lychny Island (24%, p < 0.01), Kizhi Island (14%, p < 0.01), and Lukostrov Island (11%, p < 0.05). It is evident that all the curves exhibit a similar pattern, indicating a decline in tree growth for several years following the eruption (Figure 3).
Figure 4 presents the composite response of tree growth in northern Fennoscandia to the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption, derived using the superposed epoch method across all six analyzed chronologies. A significant reduction in tree growth (24%, p < 0.01) was observed in 1601 compared to the average growth over the preceding six years. This suppression persisted for several years following the eruption, as depicted in Figure 4. The reduction in tree-ring growth in 1605 was even more pronounced than that in 1601, likely resulting from the series of successive eruptions of Mount Etna between 1603 and 1610 [36].
The Kruskal–Wallis test was employed to assess the significance of differences in volcanic responses across all six tree-ring records for the period 1601–1608 AD. The results are visualized using box plots in Figure 5. The statistical analysis revealed that the volcanic responses across the six chronologies were similar (p < 0.05), as indicated by the overlapping confidence intervals of their medians (Figure 5).

4. Discussion

One of the key challenges in contemporary climate research is understanding extreme events and their impacts [64]. For instance, severe weather events can disrupt ecosystem functioning, pushing them beyond their stability threshold by triggering changes in species compositions and distributions [55,65]. Unfortunately, long-term trends in extreme weather events in northern Fennoscandia have been relatively understudied [55].
This study was based on the hypothesis that specific dates, referred to as “marker dates”, which are often linked to volcanic eruptions or other extreme events [28], can recur and be identified in historical tree-ring records from wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia. One of the most notable events of this kind is the powerful volcanic eruption of Huaynaputina in Peru in the year 1600 AD.
Our previous studies have shown that the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption led to a significant decline in tree growth for several years following the event in Finnish Lapland and on the Kola Peninsula, regions located more than 11,000 km from the eruption’s epicenter [32,33,34]. These findings were derived from two regional tree-ring chronologies (FTR and KTR), developed from living and subfossil pine trees at the northern timberline, an area where trees are particularly sensitive to environmental stressors. In this study, we present, for the first time, a comparative analysis of the 1600 volcanic tree-ring response using two regional and historical tree-ring chronologies obtained from old churches in Finnish Lapland and northern Karelia, Russia, spanning the period of the 1600 eruption (Figure 2). While all the tree-ring sampling sites are located within the northern region of Fennoscandia, three of the chronologies derived from Karelian churches are situated well below the northern timberline, providing a unique opportunity to examine the spatial variability of volcanic impacts on tree growth across different ecological zones (Figure 1). The influence of local environmental factors—including soil composition, precipitation, solar radiation, and other stresses—on tree-ring growth can be significant and should be considered across these diverse study sites.
The predominant soil type in northern Fennoscandia is podsol, which is typical of boreal forests. Podzols are acidic and nutrient-deficient, particularly in nitrogen and phosphorus [50]. These nutrient-poor, acidic soils, often combined with cold conditions, limit productivity. However, tree species in the region have evolved adaptations to thrive in such environments. In the Kola Peninsula, the soils are less developed and contain lower organic matter, further restricting tree growth [50]. In contrast, the soils in northern Karelia are somewhat more fertile compared to those in northern Finnish Lapland and the Kola Peninsula, supporting dense forests with higher growth rates [54].
The Onega Lake region, located in northern Karelia, benefits from a slightly milder climate compared to the study sites on the Kola Peninsula and northern Finnish Lapland, which lie at the northern timberline. Situated farther north, the Onega Lake region experiences a longer growing season and generally warmer temperatures, allowing conifers to enjoy an extended vegetation period. In contrast, the Kola Peninsula and northern Finnish Lapland are characterized by the midnight sun phenomenon during summer, with 24 h of daylight lasting for several weeks. While this continuous light supports photosynthesis, the cooler temperatures and shorter growing season significantly constrain the overall growth potential of conifers in these northern regions [66]. The Onega Lake region also experiences long daylight hours during summer (known as white nights), though they are less extreme compared to those in the Arctic. This provides sufficient light for photosynthesis, but at lower intensities compared to the Arctic regions.
The results of the superposed epoch analysis across all six chronologies revealed a significant 24% decrease (p < 0.01) in tree-ring growth in 1601 compared to the average growth over the preceding six years. The most substantial reductions in tree-ring width were observed in the two northernmost tree-ring records: the Finnish superlong chronology (72%, p < 0.001) and the Sodankylä Old Church chronology (67%, p < 0.001). The volcanic tree-ring response was also identified in tree-ring records from the Onega Lake region, but with lower values, ranging from 11% to 24%. This phenomenon can be attributed to the higher sensitivity of trees growing near the northern timberline to environmental stressors [33,67]. This finding aligns with the earlier results derived from the tree-ring maximum latewood density (MXD) records, suggesting that the post-volcanic response is more pronounced in Northern Europe than in Central Europe [68]. There was a greater reduction in tree growth in the Sodankyla Old Church chronology (67.4° N, 26.6° E) located approximately 200 km south from the northern coniferous tree line in Finnish Lapland compared with KTR (30%, p < 0.001), which is located at the pine tree line on the Kola Peninsula at a higher latitude (68.6° N, 33.3° E). Previously, it has been shown that the summer temperature was one of the main factors limiting tree growth at northern timberlines [35]. Therefore, for instance, the FTR chronology has been used for summer temperature reconstructions [35]. These findings suggest that, in addition to the temperature signal, the FTR, KTR, and the Sodankyla Old Church chronologies may depend on the received irradiance, which, in turn, depends on latitude, sunshine duration, polar day length, transparency, and other local environmental factors. In our previous research utilizing the mountain birch (Betula pubescens) chronology, which was derived from samples collected at the site above the coniferous tree line on the Kola Peninsula, it was shown that tree-ring growth correlated (r = −0.39, p < 0.01) with sunshine duration in July [67]. High-latitude trees receive continuous light throughout the polar day; however, excess light can also cause stress such as photosynthetic downregulation [66,69]. This effect depends on the received irradiance. Therefore, the same tree species experience very different environmental conditions just a few degrees of latitude to the south, where polar days are absent. Moreover, in the southern part of Scandinavia, the variability in pine growth was found to reflect changes in summertime precipitation and tree-ring chronologies that were used for drought reconstructions [14,17]. Considering the above, the question of which chronology is most suitable for reconstructing a particular climatic parameter (temperature, solar irradiance, precipitation, length of the growing season, droughts, etc.) requires careful consideration on a case-by-case basis.
The prolonged climatic depression that lasted for several years after the 1600 eruption of Huaynaputina was longer than can be explained solely by the direct radiative effects of stratospheric aerosols [44]. The 1605 reduction in tree-ring growth was an even greater than in 1601. It is possible that this extended period of tree growth depression was influenced by a sequence of successive eruptions of Mount Etna between 1603 and 1610 [34,36]. In the present study, the Kruskal–Wallis statistical analysis indicated that the volcanic tree-ring responses across the six chronologies during the period of 1601–1608 were similar (p < 0.05). It is interesting that this curve is almost identical to the curve of timber growth obtained at the altitude limit of tree growth (more than 2000 km) in the mountain range of Sierra Nevada in California [36]. Our earlier research demonstrated a striking similarity in tree-ring growth patterns between the KTR, FTR, and the foxtail pine (Pinus balfouriana) upper timberline chronology from the Sierra Nevada (36.5° N, 118.2° W; 3505 elevation) following the 1600 volcanic eruption and in the subsequent years [33,34]. These similarities in the wood growth responses to the 1600 volcanic eruption and potential subsequent events span a significant period of up to several years. This extended timeframe allows the 1600 eruption to serve as a reliable marker for dating historical objects, including the art-historical ones, where precise dating is often challenging [4].
In contrast, such a clear and prolonged response was not observed following other major volcanic eruptions, such as the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia (VEI ≥ 7) [33,34]. The 1815 Tambora eruption injected approximately 80 million tons of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, leading to a notable temperature decrease of about ~0.8 °C in the Northern Hemisphere [41,45]. This climatic disruption caused 1816 to be dubbed “the year without a summer” in North America and Central Europe [41,45,69,70]. However, in Scandinavia, the climate remained relatively mild, with no significant temperature declines recorded [69,70]. Furthermore, our previous studies demonstrated that tree growth in the Kola Peninsula and northern Finnish Lapland did not decline in 1816 compared to the previous year [33,34]. Instead, the reduction in growth began much earlier, in 1808, and persisted until 1822 [33,34]. Additionally, the evidence from ice-core records, such as a pronounced acidity peak, suggests that a powerful and climatically significant volcanic eruption of unknown origin occurred around 1808/1809 [36,70,71]. This event further underscores the complexity of linking volcanic activity to growth responses and climatic impacts.
Consequently, our findings confirm the reliability of using the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption as a chronological marker for the precise dating of historic wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia, which were likely built between the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Additionally, analyzing the timber used in the construction of these churches could provide valuable insights into reconstructing historical weather patterns associated with this volcanic event.

5. Conclusions

This study provides new evidence of a significant decline in tree growth in northern Fennoscandia for several years following the powerful (VEI = 6) volcanic eruption of Huaynaputina in Peru in the year 1600 AD. The analysis utilized two regional chronologies (the Finnish super long chronology and Kola Peninsula chronology) and four historical chronologies derived from old wooden churches in Finnish Lapland and Karelia, Russia, all of which spanned the period of the eruption. Applying a superposed epoch method across all six chronologies revealed a significant 24% (p < 0.01) reduction in tree-ring growth in 1601 compared to the average growth over the preceding six years. The most pronounced decreases in tree-ring width were observed in the two northernmost tree-ring records: the Finnish super-long chronology (72%, p < 0.001) and the Sodankylä Old Church chronology (67%, p < 0.001). These chronologies were developed from samples taken from living and subfossil trees from northern timberline. Historical chronologies from northern Karelia, situated a few degrees south of the northern timberline where trees are less sensitive to environmental stressors, also exhibited volcanic signals. However, the response was weaker, with values ranging from 11% to 24%. The results from the Kruskal–Wallis test further indicated a statistically significant (p < 0.05) similarity in volcanic tree-ring responses across the six chronologies from 1601 to 1608.
These findings highlight the reliability of using the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption as a chronological marker for the precise dating of historic wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia, which were likely constructed between the late 17th and early 18th centuries. The use of the 1600 eruption event as a dendrochronological marker could have significant implications for the accurate dating of wooden churches in this region, many of which lack precise construction dates due to extensive repairs, additions, and modifications over time. In addition, the lack of relevant reference chronologies in certain regions hinders the precise dating of historical buildings. By using the 1600 volcanic eruption event as a temporal marker, we can establish connections between these historical chronologies and reference data from more distant locations. Our findings revealed that the impact of the 1600 eruption extended over a period of up to eight years, establishing this event as a robust chronological marker. This makes it particularly valuable for dating art-historical objects, where precise dating is often challenging.
Furthermore, analyzing the wood utilized in building these churches may offer important clues for reconstructing past climate patterns and environmental conditions linked to this volcanic eruption. By utilizing historical chronologies obtained from wooden churches in Northern Fennoscandia, our findings have extended the geographic scope for evaluating the potential ecological impacts of the 1600 volcanic eruption across diverse regions. The findings obtained from this study can enhance our understanding of climate signals preserved in historical tree-ring records.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, O.I.S. and E.A.K.; methodology, O.I.S., E.A.K. and M.T.; software, E.A.K.; validation, O.I.S., E.A.K. and M.T.; formal analysis, O.I.S. and E.A.K.; investigation, O.I.S., E.A.K., M.T. and E.O.P.; resources, O.I.S. and M.T.; data curation, E.A.K., M.T. and E.O.P.; writing—original draft preparation, O.I.S., E.A.K. and M.T.; writing—review and editing, O.I.S. and E.A.K.; visualization, O.I.S., E.A.K. and M.T.; supervision, O.I.S.; project administration, O.I.S.; funding acquisition, O.I.S. and E.A.K. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This research was carried out within the framework of the State Task of the Institute of North Industrial Ecology Problems, Kola Science Centre RAS (project No. FMEZ-2025-0044).

Data Availability Statement

Data are contained within the article. The raw tree-ring data can be downloaded from the International Tree-Ring Data Bank at http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/data-access/paleoclimatology-data/datasets/tree-ring (accessed on 12 November 2024).

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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Figure 1. Map of Fennoscandia (outlined by dotted line [46]) showing sample collection sites for reference pine tree-ring chronologies (indicated by black (FTR) and red (KTR) triangles) and historical tree-ring chronologies from old wooden churches (marked by blue crosses, with numbers corresponding to Table 1).
Figure 1. Map of Fennoscandia (outlined by dotted line [46]) showing sample collection sites for reference pine tree-ring chronologies (indicated by black (FTR) and red (KTR) triangles) and historical tree-ring chronologies from old wooden churches (marked by blue crosses, with numbers corresponding to Table 1).
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Figure 2. Wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia from which tree-ring chronologies have been derived: (a) Sodankylä Old Church, 1689 (67.4° N, 26.6° E) [62]; (b) Church of Peter and Paul, 1620 (62.5° N, 34° E) [27]; (c) Church of the Transfiguration, 1714 (62.1° N, 35.2° E) [27]; (d) Church of Elijah the Prophet and the Three Saints, 1690s (62° N, 35.7° E) [27].
Figure 2. Wooden churches in northern Fennoscandia from which tree-ring chronologies have been derived: (a) Sodankylä Old Church, 1689 (67.4° N, 26.6° E) [62]; (b) Church of Peter and Paul, 1620 (62.5° N, 34° E) [27]; (c) Church of the Transfiguration, 1714 (62.1° N, 35.2° E) [27]; (d) Church of Elijah the Prophet and the Three Saints, 1690s (62° N, 35.7° E) [27].
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Figure 3. Tree-ring growth response to the powerful volcanic eruption of Huaynaputina (VEI = 6) in Peru in 1600 AD: (a) the Finnish surer-long tree-ring chronology (68°–70° N, 20°–30° E); (b) the Kola Peninsula tree-ring chronology (68.6° N, 33.3° E); (c) tree-ring chronology from the Sodankylä Old Church, Finland (67.4° N, 26.6° E); (d) tree-ring chronology from the Church of Peter and Paul, Russia (62.5° N, 34° E); (e) tree-ring chronology from the Church of the Transfiguration, Kizhi Pogost, Russia (62.1° N, 35.2° E); (f) tree-ring chronology from the Church of Elijah the Prophet and the Three Saints, Russia (62° N, 35.7° E).
Figure 3. Tree-ring growth response to the powerful volcanic eruption of Huaynaputina (VEI = 6) in Peru in 1600 AD: (a) the Finnish surer-long tree-ring chronology (68°–70° N, 20°–30° E); (b) the Kola Peninsula tree-ring chronology (68.6° N, 33.3° E); (c) tree-ring chronology from the Sodankylä Old Church, Finland (67.4° N, 26.6° E); (d) tree-ring chronology from the Church of Peter and Paul, Russia (62.5° N, 34° E); (e) tree-ring chronology from the Church of the Transfiguration, Kizhi Pogost, Russia (62.1° N, 35.2° E); (f) tree-ring chronology from the Church of Elijah the Prophet and the Three Saints, Russia (62° N, 35.7° E).
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Figure 4. Superposed epoch analysis of all six studied chronologies from northern Fennoscandia, centered on the 1600 CE eruption of the Huanayputina volcano. Error bars show the standard error of the mean. The horizontal line indicates the average tree-ring growth over the preceding six years.
Figure 4. Superposed epoch analysis of all six studied chronologies from northern Fennoscandia, centered on the 1600 CE eruption of the Huanayputina volcano. Error bars show the standard error of the mean. The horizontal line indicates the average tree-ring growth over the preceding six years.
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Figure 5. Results of the nonparametric Kruskal–Wallis test used to evaluate the statistical significance of differences (or similarities) in tree-ring volcanic responses across all six chronologies from northern Fennoscandia following the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption. Outlier is marked with a black plus.
Figure 5. Results of the nonparametric Kruskal–Wallis test used to evaluate the statistical significance of differences (or similarities) in tree-ring volcanic responses across all six chronologies from northern Fennoscandia following the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption. Outlier is marked with a black plus.
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Table 1. Historical tree-ring width chronologies for pine.
Table 1. Historical tree-ring width chronologies for pine.
#No *ObjectPlaceCoord.Years AD **d ***Originator/Source
1finl048Sodankylä Old ChurchSodankylä,
Finland		(67.4° N, 26.6° E)1484–168867
p < 0.001		Originator: Meriläinen, J.; Lindholm, M.; Timonen, M./[47]
2russ391Church of Peter and PaulLychny Island, Karelia, Russia(62.5° N, 34° E)1432–161724
p < 0.01		Originator: Kolchin, B.A.; Chernykh, N.B.; Karpukhin, A.A.; Matskovsky, V.V.; Solovyeva, L.N./[47,48]
3russ286Church of the Transfiguration, Kizhi PogostKizhi Island, Karelia, Russia(62.1° N, 35.2° E)1405–171314
p < 0.05		Originator: Kolchin, B.A.; Chernych, N.B.; Karpukhin, A.A./[47]
4russ392Church of Elijah the Prophet and the Three SaintsLukostrov
Island, Karelia, Russia		(62° N, 35.7° E)1549–166911
p < 0.05		Originator: Chernykh, N.B.; Sargeeva, N.F.; Karpukhin, A.A.; Matskovsky, V.V.; Solovyeva, L.N./[47,49]
* This name follows the classification system used by the International Tree-Ring Data Bank (ITRDB) [47]; ** time coverage; *** reduction (%) in tree-ring width one year after the 1600 Huaynaputina eruption compared to the average of the previous five years.
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Shumilov, O.I.; Kasatkina, E.A.; Timonen, M.; Potorochin, E.O. Volcanic Impact Patterns in Tree Rings from Historical Wood in Northern Fennoscandia’s Old Churches. Forests 2025, 16, 573. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16040573

AMA Style

Shumilov OI, Kasatkina EA, Timonen M, Potorochin EO. Volcanic Impact Patterns in Tree Rings from Historical Wood in Northern Fennoscandia’s Old Churches. Forests. 2025; 16(4):573. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16040573

Chicago/Turabian Style

Shumilov, Oleg I., Elena A. Kasatkina, Mauri Timonen, and Evgeniy O. Potorochin. 2025. "Volcanic Impact Patterns in Tree Rings from Historical Wood in Northern Fennoscandia’s Old Churches" Forests 16, no. 4: 573. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16040573

APA Style

Shumilov, O. I., Kasatkina, E. A., Timonen, M., & Potorochin, E. O. (2025). Volcanic Impact Patterns in Tree Rings from Historical Wood in Northern Fennoscandia’s Old Churches. Forests, 16(4), 573. https://doi.org/10.3390/f16040573

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