Thermoluminescence dating

Over the last few years the Nordic Laboratory for Thermoluminescence (TL) Dating has obtained TL dates for a considerable number of archaeological samples, ceramics, bricks, burnt clay and burnt stones from the Nordic countries. The majority of TL dates have been consistent and in agreement with other dating evidence. Discrepancies caused primarily by excessive short‐term fading of the latent TL signal were encountered in a few cases. A procedure for eliminating errors caused by short‐term fading is described. A brief discussion of the sources of error in TL dating is given. Finally, results obtained by TL are compared with those obtained by radiocarbon for a number of sites.     

Solving mixture problems in archaeology: Analysis of ceramic materials for dating and demographic reconstruction

Mixed collections are ubiquitous in archaeology. Multiple linear regression provides one means for partitioning mixed archaeological collections into their constituent components. The technique estimates the best combination of specified sets of sources in the composition of a mixed whole. As applied to ceramic collections, this technique has proven successful in solving complex dating problems. Used in conjunction with sherd collections obtained through probabilistic sampling, the technique can be extended to demographic reconstruction. Under certain conditions, the techniques described in this paper provide important ancillary data for detecting seasonality, duration, and nature of occupations.     

瓷器热释光测定年代研究

本工作从标准的(即线性的)前剂量技术着手,研究了瓷器热释光测定年代的方法。在这个研究中,发现了瓷器的灵敏度对剂量的非线性响应和灵敏度随剂量变化的指数模式。因此,一个用饱和指数拟合的方法被提了出来。实验表明,这是一个测定瓷器年代的成功方法。另外,还对一些与测定年代有关的复杂因素进行了讨论。例如,当少数瓷器的灵敏度与剂量不呈指数关系时,就要改变拟合模式或采用B的平均值方法等。     

Seasonal dating from fish frequencies

The method of seasonal dating from fish remain suggested by Leach is shown to be unsatisfactory. The method requires catch statistics that are at present unavailable. More important, when the method proposed for manipulating the data was applied to a set of hypothetical data, the results were not an accurate reflection of what was a very clear-cut situation.     

Pedogenetic dating of loess strata

Loess is an aeolian Pleistocene sediment of periglacial or arid origins, deposited without internal stratification in parcels representing geological periods. The contents of total as well as individual carbonates are comparatively uniform within a specific stratum, but the relative carbonate contents differ significantly between the various glacials as represented by loess facies. There is a consistent increase in the content of dolomite with decreasing age of stratigraphic units, which has traditionally been attributed to postdepositional alteration, notably the gradual removal of the calcite fraction by weathering. The explanation of pedogenetic enrichment in the course of aeolian recycling of glacial and glacio-fluvial deposits could convincingly account for the stepped profile of the dolomite's depth functions. The implication is that such recycled sediments can be attributed to specific cryocratic phases simply by their characteristic dolomite fraction, i.e. they can be dated. In order to test this hypothesis against the competing weathering hypothesis, strata of the Gudenus Cave in Lower Austria were subjected to carbonate differentiation analysis. The results are presented, analyzed and discussed. It is shown that the dolomite contents of the unweathered strata provide a clear trend that is even more pronounced than that found at open-air sites.     

The book of joshua - origin and dating

ABSTACT

Responding to an article by Marvin Lloyd Miller, we welcome the recent change in the approach of Nehemiah 5, the corner-stone of social-scientific exegesis. We reassert that the chapter does not reflect the complaints of marginal farmers. We doubt the value of the notion of whimsical taxation by the Achaemenid administration. We warn against adducing the vituperations of eighth century BCE prophets as clues of socio-economic crises. They should rather be read in light of appeals by contempo-rary aid agencies.     

Use of Lichenometric and weathering rates for dating

This summary serves to introduce the ongoing research and testing of the lichenometric method within the Bothnian region. Within this framework, applications of the Schmidt Test Hammer have also been evaluated. Shore displacement has provided an ideal means for calculating growth and weathering rates. The strength of this study is the combination of independent biologically, geologically and physically based methods in an attempt to solve basic archaeological problems.     

Sample preparation for accelerator-based radiocarbon dating

Although several efficient sample preparation methods have been devised for conventional radiocarbon dating, the advent of the accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) dating technique with its much smaller sample requirement and different counting method has meant that new preparation routes have had to be developed. Techniques used for the Oxford AMS system are described in this paper.     

Radiocarbon dating by the accelerator technique

Radiometric dating of archaeological samples by the accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) technique is well established today. The main advantage of this method compared to the old decay counting procedure is the small sample size (1 mg carbon equivalent weight) needed to carry out a dating. The basic principles as well as the present status of the technique are presented. Experiences from the first year of routine measurements in the Uppsala laboratory are discussed and some examples of the material analysed are given.     

前剂量热释光测定年代方法

分析了三种测量方法──多次激活、加剂量法和钉子技术的优缺点,并对细粒石英前剂量方法进行了专门研究。结果表明,细粒五英前剂量方法测量简便,减少了来自多次激活、试验剂量和归一引起的误差,最小可测年龄能达到几十年。     

The archaeology of radiocarbon accelerator dating

Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) allows radiocarbon dating to be carried out by direct counting of¹⁴C atoms, rather than the conventional counting of radioactive disintegrations. The result is that samples up to 1000 times smaller can be handled. The approach was tested in principle by 1977 and for archaeological operation by 1983. More than 2000 samples per year are now being dated worldwide. The machines can now operate to about ± 80 years or better. Dates older than 40,000 years have not yet been achieved, but the ability to use small samples has already had considerable impact on dating the period 10,000–30,000 years ago. Bone is an ideal material for the new technique, since amino acids can normally be isolated and purified from gram-size samples. Studies of the origins of domestication are aided by the dating of individual grains and seeds. Because small samples can be mobile in the soil, careful sample selection strategies and procedures are required. The full impact of the technique can be assessed only through the rapid and comprehensive publication of archaeological results.     

南下约会武夷山

<正> 去武夷山看看,是我向往已久的事情。2005年12月9日,应秦皇岛海燕国际旅行社之邀,采访中国老年旅游联合体年会,终于得以成行。从秦皇岛到上海,再从上海搭乘开往厦门的K197次旅客列车,一路还算顺利。巧啦,8号卧铺车箱里唯一的一个外国人,就睡在我对面的下铺。我猜测,这个英俊的小伙子一定是来中国留学的学生或是某个学校的外教。列车刚一启动,     

Archaeomagnetic dating of archaeological sites from Switzerland and Bulgaria

Baked materials from three archaeological sites in Switzerland and one in Bulgaria have been examined and dated archaeomagnetically. The detailed rock-magnetic properties of the burnt clay collected have already been studied therefore and have been published elsewhere (Geophysical Journal International 153 (2003) 146). The main aim of this paper is to determine the terminus ante quem for the last firing of the clay collected from pottery kilns or burnt layers. The directional and intensity results of the ancient geomagnetic field corresponding to the time of the structure's last firing are given for each site. These geomagnetic parameters are then compared with reference curves to provide archaeomagnetic dates for the last use of the kilns. Application of archaeomagnetism as a dating tool is only possible for those regions that already have reference curves. Bulgaria is fortunate in having established reference curves covering almost the last 8000 years. Two Swiss sites were dated using only directional results on the basis of existing palaeodirectional results for Switzerland as well as the French directional reference curves. The archaeomagnetic dates of three of the sites were then compared to archaeological evidence and available radiocarbon dates. The palaeointensity data obtained from this study will enrich the existing archaeomagnetic database for western Europe.     

Seasonal dating and the valve-pairing technique in shell-midden analysis

Three-dimensional excavation of 23 artifact fragments and 4382 shells was carried out in the shell layer of an abandoned dwelling pit. Principal component analysis using three locational variables was used for drawing the central axes and the regression plane of the shell layer. Valve-pairing carried out on the clam Meretrix lusoria indicated that 380 pairs could be established among a total of 2089 unbroken valves. Preservation of shells was estimated at 70% by comparing the number of shells found in the shell layer with the clam population size which was in turn calculated by a probability formula using paired valves among samples. In addition to these data, the distance separating pairs gave some idea of the movement of shells. Seasonal dating by daily growth line counting showed that the shell layer could be subdivided into at least three main seasonal layers and that the period of accumulation was approximately 500 days.