AMS 14C Dating Using Black Pottery and Fiber Pottery

A technique of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) has made it possible to directly measure radiocarbon ages of pottery by isolating organic materials sealed in the pottery when the pottery was formed. We analyzed the carbon contents and 14C ages for “black pottery” from the Philippines and “fiber pottery” from Japan using the relevant carbonaceous materials extracted from the pottery samples, i.e., adhered chaff or grass fibers that were incorporated in the pottery matrix, respectively. The carbon yield of the pottery sample varied largely depending on the pottery types, the preservation conditions, as well as the chemical pretreatment methods to purify carbonaceous materials for 14C dating. We will discuss criteria for sample selection of well-preserved pottery, and a modified method, instead of the standard alkali treatment, to obtain sufficient material for precise 14C dating.