Deglaciation and Shoreline Displacement on Alexandra Land, Franz Josef Land

14C datings of driftwood from raised beaches on the island Alexandra Land, Franz Josef Land, Russia, indicate deglaciation by 680014C years BP. The age of a diamicton containing small shell fragments, found beneath a beach ridge formed c. 5000 BP, has been dated to 8265 ± 90 14C years BP (age after sea correction 7755 BP), suggesting that Alexandra Land was at least partly deglaciated by that time. The deposit containing shell fragments has been interpreted as a till which, if the interpretation is correct, indicates that a glacial advance occurred sometime between 7800 and 6800 BP.The highest shoreline, 23.5 m a.s.l., was formed either during a rapid deglaciation of the island or during a transgression. A shoreline displacement curve has been constructed for Alexandra Land. The rate of shore displacement since 6800 BP is calculated to 0.3 m/100 years. No pumice was found on Alexandra Land.Lunar Ice Cap on Alexandra Land was smaller than it is at present when the highest shoreline was formed, 6800 BP. The ice cap is believed to now be close to its Mid- to Late Holocene maximum, as almost all fluctuations of the Lunar Ice Cap since the deglaciation seem to have been within the present day glacier margin. A climatic deterioration c. 2000 BP is indicated by the formation of an ice/snow dammed lake.Evidence of former glácier movement directions, such as striae and chattermarks, were not found on Alexandra Land. However, the large scale bedrock topography and the orientation of elongated bedrock basins seem to indicate ice flow in a southeast to northwest direction.