scholarly journals Reassessing the Mesolithic\Neolithic ‘gap’ in Southeast European cave sequences

2008 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 237-251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dimitrij Mlekuž ◽  
Mihael Budja ◽  
Robert Payton ◽  
Clive Bonsall ◽  
Andreja Žibrat Gašparič
Keyword(s):  
General Population ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Population Decline ◽  
Human Agency ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Cave Sediments ◽  
Soil Sediment ◽  
Geomorphological Processes ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Late Mesolithic

Radiocarbon sequences from some northern Mediterranean cave sites show a temporal gap between Mesolithic and Neolithic occupations. Some authors regard this as a regional phenomenon and have sought to explain it in terms of a general population decline in the late Mesolithic, which facilitated the replacement of indigenous foragers by immigrant farmers. New evidence from the rockshelter site of Mala Triglavca, in Slovenia, leads us to question this view. The results of AMS radiocarbon dating of samples recovered in excavations in the 1980s and associated soil/sediment analyses reveal evidence of substantial postdepositional disturbance of the cave sediments by human agency and geomorphological processes, which have created ‘temporal gaps’ and ‘inversions’ in the radiocarbon sequence and secondary deposits with residual finds.

‘Tilbury Man’: A Mesolithic Skeleton from the Lower Thames

2013 ◽  
Vol 79 ◽  
pp. 19-37
Author(s):  
Rick Schulting
Keyword(s):  
Adult Male ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Early Holocene ◽  
Burial Practices ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
North Shore ◽  
The North ◽  
Richard Owen ◽  
Late Mesolithic ◽  
Partial Skeleton

‘Tilbury Man’ is the partial skeleton of an adult male found in 1883 during the construction of new docks at Tilbury, Essex, on the north shore of the Thames, approximately half way between London and the mouth of the estuary. At the time the find stirred considerable interest due to its depth of nearly 10 m, with the eminent biologist and palaeontologist Sir Richard Owen hailing it as being of Palaeolithic age, though most subsequent (and even contemporary) researchers assigned it to the early Holocene. AMS radiocarbon dating now places the skeleton in the Late Mesolithic, 6065–5912 cal bc. This paper presents the circumstances of the find, describes the surviving skeletal elements, including two healed cranial injuries, and places Tilbury in the context of what little is known regarding Late Mesolithic burial practices in Britain

The Later Prehistory of North-West Europe

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Bradley ◽  
Colin Haselgrove ◽  
Marc Vander Linden ◽  
Leo Webley
Keyword(s):  
Social Development ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Low Countries ◽  
North West ◽  
Social Forms ◽  
Fresh Perspective ◽  
Western Germany ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Late Mesolithic

The Later Prehistory of North-West Europe provides a unique, up-to-date, and easily accessible synthesis of the later prehistoric archaeology of north-west Europe, transcending political and language barriers that can hinder understanding. By surveying changes in social forms, landscape organization, monument types, and ritual practices over six millennia, the volume reassesses the prehistory of north-west Europe from the late Mesolithic to the end of the pre-Roman Iron Age. It explores how far common patterns of social development are apparent across north-west Europe, and whether there were periods when local differences were emphasized instead. In relation to this, it also examines changes through time in the main axes of contact between the various regions of continental Europe, Britain, and Ireland. Key to the volume's broad scope is its focus on the vast mass of new evidence provided by recent development-led excavations. The authors collate data that has been gathered on thousands of sites across Britain, Ireland, northern France, the Low Countries, western Germany, and Denmark, using sources including unpublished 'grey literature' reports. The results challenge many aspects of previous narratives of later prehistory, allowing the volume to present a distinctively fresh perspective.

AMS Radiocarbon Dating of the Type Plainview and Firstview (Paleoindian) Assemblages: The Agony and the Ecstasy

1999 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 444-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vance T. Holliday ◽  
Eileen Johnson ◽  
Thomas W. Stafford
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Great Plains ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Southern Plains ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Tight Cluster ◽  
Bison Antiquus

Plainview and Firstview are two of the principal post-Folsom Paleoindian artifact assemblages on the Great Plains, but good radiometric age control for these artifact styles is relatively poor, due in part to lack of reliable age control on the type collections. This study reports the results of AMS-radiocarbon dating of specific amino acids from Bison antiquus bone associated with the type Plainview and Firstview assemblages from the Plainview and Olsen-Chubbuck sites, respectively. Seven samples of bone and teeth from Plainview produced a surprisingly wide array of ages. As a result, the age of the bone bed and the type Plainview collection remain uncertain, but it is most likely ≥ 10,000 B.P. (but late or post-Folsom) given the dating and stratigraphic relationships at Plainview and other sites. Seven samples of bone from Olsen-Chubbuck yielded a tight cluster of ages averaging ca 9400 B.P., fitting well with other dated Firstview features on the Southern Plains. These results show that much better age control from more sites is needed in order to understand the Paleoindian record. AMS-radiocarbon dating of specific amino acids from bone has revolutionized such issues of chronology in archaeology, but like any other method, it can provide confusing results and must be used in conjunction with other chronometric data.

Absolute Dating of the Virje and Hlebine Sites

2021 ◽  
pp. 92-100
Author(s):  
Katarina Botić
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Change ◽  
Bayesian Model ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Iron Formation ◽  
Iron Production ◽  
Formation Processes ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Absolute Dating ◽  
Cool Conditions

In this chapter the results of AMS radiocarbon dating of 26 charcoal samples from four sites are discussed. The primary aim was to explore the scope of (dis)continuity of temporally and functionally interconnected types of sites (settlement and iron production workshop). A Bayesian model was created based on the acquired data from excavated sites with three sequences in the model determined. The results show great accordance with the archaeologically based data, with some exceptions that are most probably a result of modelling strategy used. Contemporaneity of all four sites is mostly attested with a possible and very short temporal hiatus around AD 600. Occupation of workshop and residential areas at that time or slightly after may have been linked to the globally attested environmental change during the Bond 1 event when dry and cool conditions prevailed and which could have had an impact on bog iron formation processes.

scholarly journals AMS Radiocarbon Dating of Bones at Arizona

Radiocarbon ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 31 (03) ◽  
pp. 231-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Austin Long ◽  
A T Wilson ◽  
R D Ernst ◽  
B H Gore ◽  
P E Hare
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Preliminary Analysis ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Fossil Bone ◽  
Bone Material ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Fossil Bones ◽  
Extraneous Material

Modern bone contains ca 25% protein material, most of which is collagen. Amino acids separated from collagen isolated from bone are suitable for 14C dating of fossil bone, but attempts to carry out this procedure on bones seriously depleted in protein can yield erroneous 14C dates. Amino-acid analysis of fossil bone gives quantitative information on the degree of preservation of its organic component. Also, the relative abundance of the amino-acid components reveal the degree to which the collagen-like pattern has been altered. Alteration may be caused by addition of extraneous material. A 1mg sample of bone material is sufficient for this preliminary analysis. We have developed a series of acceptance criteria for whether a particular specimen is likely to yield the correct 14C age. 14C dating of fossil bones not seriously depleted in protein is a straightforward procedure and yields reliable dates.

scholarly journals Dating the Irrigation System of the Samarkand Oasis: A Geoarchaeological Study

Radiocarbon ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca C Malatesta ◽  
Sébastien Castelltort ◽  
Simone Mantellini ◽  
Vincenzo Picotti ◽  
Irka Hajdas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Modeling ◽  
Numerical Model ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Overland Flow ◽  
Irrigation System ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Sedimentary Deposits ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
Southern Flank

The oasis of Samarkand in the Middle Zeravshan Valley (modern Uzbekistan) was a major political and economic center in ancient western Central Asia. The chronology of its irrigation system was, until now, only constrained by the quality and quantity of archaeological findings and several different hypotheses have been proposed for it. We use a new approach combining archaeological surveying, radiocarbon dating, sedimentary analysis, and the numerical modeling of a flood event to offer new evidence for, and quantitative dating of, the development of irrigation system on the southern flank of the Middle Zeravshan Valley. We analyzed 13 bones and charcoals from 3 archaeological sites and obtained new 14C ages from Afrasiab (ancient Samarkand), a dwelling damaged by flooding in the 2nd century AD (site code: SAM-174) and the fortress of Kafir Kala. We established the origin of sedimentary deposits at the sites to infer the presence of the 2 most important canals of the southern flank: the Dargom and the Yanghiaryk. Finally, we show with a numerical model of overland flow that a natural flood was unlikely to have produced the damage observed at SAM-174. The combined results of the study indicate that the canals south of Samarkand existed, and were mainly developed, in the 2nd century AD and were not connected to the main feeding canal of Afrasiab at that time.

scholarly journals Chronostratigraphic Sequence of Santuario Della Madonna Cave (Calabria, Southern Italy): AMS Radiocarbon Data from a New Excavation Area

Radiocarbon ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 408-414 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Calcagnile ◽  
V Tinè ◽  
G Quarta ◽  
M D'Elia ◽  
G Fiorentino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Bronze Age ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Southern Italy ◽  
Statistical Tools ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Cultural Aspects ◽  
Radiocarbon Data ◽  
Middle Bronze Age ◽  
Excavation Area

The Santuario della Madonna Cave, located near Praia a Mare (Cosenza), along the northwestern coast of Calabria (southern Italy), has an impressive stratigraphy, with occupation phases spanning from the late Paleolithic to the advanced phases of the Middle Bronze Age. Recently, a new excavation area has been opened in the cave from which shortlived vegetal remains were sampled and submitted for accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating. The aim of this study was to define an accurate chronology of the different cultural aspects and to explore the potentialities resulting from application of advanced statistical tools for 14C data analysis in such a context.

scholarly journals 14C Wiggle-Matching of the B-Tm Tephra, Baitoushan Volcano, China/North Korea

Radiocarbon ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 933-940 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shinya Yatsuzuka ◽  
Mitsuru Okuno ◽  
Toshio Nakamura ◽  
Katsuhiko Kimura ◽  
Yohei Setoma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Accelerator Mass Spectrometry ◽  
North Korea ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Gas Emission ◽  
Volcanic Gas ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Eruption Age ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Volcanic Gas Emission

We performed accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating and wiggle-matching of 2 wood samples from charred trunks of trees (samples A and B) collected from an ignimbrite deposit on the northeastern slope of the Baitoushan Volcano on the border of China and North Korea. The obtained calendar years for the eruption are cal AD 945–960 for sample A and cal AD 859–884 and cal AD 935–963 for sample B in the 2-σ range. These results are unable to determine the precise eruption age. The reason for the difference in reported ages may be due to volcanic gas emission prior to the huge eruption.

scholarly journals Over 16,000 Years of Fire Frequency Determined from AMS Radiocarbon Dating of Soil Charcoal in an Alluvial Fan at Bear Flat, Northeastern British Columbia

Radiocarbon ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 435-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
A J Timothy Jull ◽  
Marten Geertsema
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fire Frequency ◽  
Alluvial Fan ◽  
Before Present ◽  
Ams Radiocarbon Dating ◽  
Soil Charcoal ◽  
Large Fires ◽  
Millennial Time Scale

We present results of radiocarbon dating of charcoal from paleosols and buried charcoal horizons in a unique sequence, which potentially records the last 36,000 yr, from a fan at Bear Flat, British Columbia (BC) (56°16'51’N, 121°13'39”W). Evidence for forest-fire charcoal is found over the last 13,500 ± 110 14C yr before present (BP) or 16,250 ± 700 cal BP. The study area is located east of the Rocky Mountains in an area that was ice-free at least 13,970 ± 170 14C yr BP (17,450–16,150 cal BP) ago. The latest evidence of fire is during the Medieval Warm Period (MWP). The charcoal ages show a periodicity in large fires on a millennial scale through the Holocene—an average of 4 fires per thousand years. Higher fire frequencies are observed between 2200 to 2800 cal BP, ∼5500 and ∼6000 cal BP, ∼7500 to 8200 cal BP, and 9000 to 10,000 cal BP. These intervals also appear to be times of above-average aggradation of the fan. We conclude that fire frequency is related to large-scale climatic events on a millennial time scale.

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