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Until recently, there was a lack of radiocarbon (14C) dates from the Bronze and Earliest Iron Age (1800–500–1 BC) burial sites in Latvia. The chronology of the sites was assessed on the basis of archaeological analogies with neighboring regions and typological studies of the rather meagre grave inventory. In order to establish a firm foundation for an absolute chronology of burial sites and to better understand changes in mortuary practices during the period, sequences of samples from various burial sites have been dated. In this paper we report 48 14C dates from 12 different sites and discuss them in the context of previously established archaeological chronologies. 14C reservoir effects are addressed: regarding FRE, stable isotope analysis is helpful; however, more data should be gathered in future research. In some cases, the new dates are in accord with previous chronologies, while in other cases some widely accepted assumptions may need to be revised. The new dates have proved false several previous assumptions about both the dates of individual graves and whole sites. Based on the 14C dates, we model the chronological spread of burial barrows in Latvia along waterways, the earliest examples appearing in coastal western Latvia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population density is an important variable in the development of social complexity. Estimating population densities from the archaeological record requires combining estimates of population, area, and time. Archaeological population estimates tend to be reported as a maximum population derived from the total accumulation of discrete archaeological material types, usually ceramics or radiocarbon (14C) dates. However, given the palimpsest nature of the archaeological record at recurrently occupied archaeological sites, these maximal, total estimates are, at best, a poor reflection of contemporaneous populations. I present a method for calculating average yearly population densities for occupations at a large, multicomponent site using a combination of distributional data and 60 14C dates. By employing this method at other sites in the same region, modeling intra-regional population dynamics at fine time scales will be possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El Maye is a community located in the municipality of Ixmiquilpan, Hidalgo, in the central region of Mexico. During the late Postclassic period (1350–1521 AD), the Aztecs controlled the area through the establishment of a dual-headed system, one part belonging to the Aztec government and the other to the local government. El Maye was the local government center for the Ixmiquilpan territory under the Aztec domain. The residential units of El Maye archaeological site were constructed in 6 different occupational phases, with the presence of large rooms, stucco floors and walls, offerings, and a variety of ceramics belonging to the late Aztec III ceramic period (1400–1520 AD). The Axis Project of the Mezquital Valley (PEVM-ENAH) and the Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Laboratory (LEMA-UNAM) have undertaken a collaborative study of the El Maye site by performing absolute radiocarbon accelerator mass spectrometry (14C AMS) dating. For a better understanding of the emergence and development of El Maye, a series of AMS 14C dates of charcoal and bone samples recovered from different stratigraphic levels, was performed. This allowed us to locate the occupation of the site between 1320 and 1625 cal AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper raises methodological issues of radiocarbon (14C) dating of historical events based on data obtained during the excavations of the Russian medieval city of Yaroslavl. The city is of special interest to our study because of the precise time of its destruction by troops of Batu Khan mentioned in chronicles—the winter of 1238. To date in Yaroslavl, researchers have discovered 9 mass burials of citizens and domestic animals buried sometime after the massacre by the Mongols. Mass burials of people alongside animals in a common grave and outside of the cemetery, in violation of Christian traditions, are not typical of medieval Russia and are a sign of a military catastrophe. To test this hypothesis, we dated a total of 65 samples representing all 9 mass burials. A Bayesian chronological model of the accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dates narrowed the interval to the range of 1197–1280 cal AD, with the mean age of 1239 AD, consistent with the hypothesis that the studied mass burials of citizens and livestock are related to the capture of the city by the army of Batu Khan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The direct dating of rock paintings is not always possible due to the lack of organic carbon compounds in pigments, or because sampling from a heritage site is often restricted. To overcome these limitations, dating laboratories have to develop new approaches. In this study, we consider sampling calcium oxalate crusts covering the painted artworks as a way to indirectly date the rock art. This stratigraphic approach includes isolating and extracting pure oxalate from the crusts. The approach was tested on natural bulk accretions collected in the open-air sites of Erongo Mountains in Namibia. The accretions were separated into two phases (pure oxalate and the remaining residues) with a special pretreatment. This process removes carbonates through acidification (HCl 6N) and dissolves the oxalate into the supernatant, leaving the minerals and windblown organic compounds in the residue. The efficiency of the separation was checked on the two phases by FTIR analyses and by 14C dating and showed that pure oxalate powders were indeed obtained. AMS radiocarbon results of various accretions on the same art panels provided ages from modern periods to 2410 ± 35 BP. From these first results, more targeted sampling campaigns can be considered to provide a terminus ante quem for the rock art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent radiocarbon (14C) research demonstrates that the urban culture of Early-Bronze III in the southern Levant ends around 2500 BC, and not around 2300 BC as was widely assumed. This should extend the Intermediate Bronze Age by 200 years. Charred olive pits from Intermediate Bronze Age contexts in the site of Khirbat el-'Alya Northeast in the Judean Shephelah region (Israel) were 14C dated, resulting in calibrated dates around 2500 BC. The date range of Khirbat el-'Alya Northeast samples is an indication that in the Mediterranean parts of the southern Levant, the Intermediate Bronze Age material culture appeared around the time of the decline of the preceding culture of Early-Bronze III—around 2500 BC or somewhat earlier. Possible Intermediate Bronze settlement pattern and the site's relation to the nearby Early-Bronze city of Tel Yarmuth are discussed based on previous Intermediate Bronze and Early-Bronze related research in the surrounding area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Leather has been produced by a variety of methods throughout human history, providing researchers unique insight into multiple facets of social and economic life in the past. Archaeologically recovered leather is often fragile and poorly preserved, leading to the use of various conservation and restoration efforts that may include the application of fats, oils, or waxes. Such additives introduce exogenous carbon to the leather, contaminating the specimen. These contaminants, in addition to those accumulated during interment, must be removed through chemical pretreatment prior to radiocarbon (14C) dating to ensure accurate dating. DirectAMS utilizes organic solvents, acid-base-acid (ABA) and gelatinization for all leather samples. Collagen yield from leather samples is variable due to the method of production and the quality of preservation. However, evaluating the acid-soluble collagen fraction, when available, provides the most accurate 14C dates for leather samples. In instances where gelatinization does not yield sufficient material, the resulting acid-insoluble fraction may be dated. Here we examine the effectiveness of the combined organic solvent and ABA pretreatment with gelatinization for leather samples, as well as the suitability of the acid-insoluble fraction for 14C dating. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When dating documents by radiocarbon (14C), what we typically measure is the concentration of the support (e.g. paper, parchment, or papyrus). This can however lead to a possible misinterpretation of results because the support may be older than the writing itself. To minimize such a possible ambiguity, the ideal approach would be direct dating of the ink or color (if organic). Here we propose a feasibility study to date carbon-based black inks when deposited on papyrus, one of the most widespread writing supports used in the past. We prepared test samples, using a commercial papyrus and a homemade black ink, obtained combining modern charcoal fragments and Arabic gum. Even though the ink binder might have represented the best candidate to be dated, we verified by FTIR that the molecular composition of its soluble fraction is very similar to papyrus extractives, thus identifying the residual charcoals recovered after extraction as the most suitable material for the measurement. Enough charcoal material was extracted from the test samples and processed using our new setup optimized for microgram-size samples. The overall experimental procedure was found to be reproducible, and measured 14C concentrations were coherent with the data obtained from larger samples and raw materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent archaeological excavations on Rakahanga Atoll, Northern Cook Islands, produced one of the earliest examples of dog (Canis familiaris) remains found on East Polynesian atolls. Direct dating of these and other Pacific Island fauna by AMS is complicated by a number of factors. (1) The animals' diets may consist of marine and terrestrial protein. (2) Marine 14C is itself a mix of carbon pools with localized offsets that vary over time and space. (3) The region is potentially impacted by inter-hemispheric mixing of atmospheric 14C. Stable isotope analysis of gelatin extracted from dog teeth was used to estimate marine/terrestrial dietary components and paired terrestrial and marine samples were used to constrain local atmospheric and marine carbon offsets. The dates were modeled as a phase in a Bayesian chronological framework using mixed calibration curves. The resulting models confirm the presence of dogs on Rakahanga shortly after the initial colonization of the region and suggest that dogs were among the species that accompanied voyagers as they discovered and settled new islands. These methods can be applied to accurately date any marine-influenced terrestrial vertebrate remains in Remote Oceania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adoption of a new funerary ritual with all its social and cognitive meanings is of great importance to understanding social transformations of past societies. The first known occurrence of cremation in the territory corresponding to modern Belgium dates back to the Mesolithic period. From the end of the Neolithic onward, the practice of cremation was characterized by periods in which this rite was predominant and periods of contractions, defined by a decrease in the use of this funerary ritual. This paper aims to quantify such phenomenon for the first time by modeling discontinuities in burial practices through kernel density analysis of 1428 radiocarbon (14C) dates from 311 archaeological sites located in Belgium from the Mesolithic to the Middle Ages. Despite possible taphonomic and sampling biases, the results highlight the existence of periods with a large uptake of cremation rite followed by periods of contractions; such discontinuities took place in correlation with changes in the socio-economical structure of local communities, as, for example, during the later Middle Bronze Age and at the end of the Roman Period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Mayan Codex of Mexico (MCM), the only Mayan codex found in the 20th century, was unveiled in 1971 during the Ancient Maya Calligraphy exhibition at Club Grolier. The codex comprises 10 pages of bark paper in accordion format, coated with a layer of plaster on both sides. It illustrates the synodic cycles of Venus, with its four phases. Since its discovery, the MCM has been subject to controversy and discussions about its authenticity. In 2016, a group of specialists led by Baltazar Brito chief of the National Library of Anthropology and History, carried out an exhaustive study of the codex with the purpose of determining its temporality and authenticity. In this work, the pre-Columbian authenticity of the codex is verified by the radiocarbon (14C) technique using AMS. Two cleaning procedures were contrasted: the standard acid-base-acid (ABA) protocol and a second one with Soxhlet plus ABA. Results obtained when samples were prepared following ABA protocol only, placed the age of the bark paper between 991 and 1147 cal AD. The second cleaning method with Soxhlet plus ABA, resulted in younger ages, between 1159 and 1261 cal AD. However, we consider that when Sohxlet is used as part of the cleaning protocol, organic contaminants are reduced to a minimum, and 14C dates are more reliable. These results indicate that the vegetal support of the MCM belongs to Postclassical Mayan period and place it as the oldest known manuscript of America found to date. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiocarbon (14C) has been instrumental in clarifying how people came to inhabit the expanse of Pacific Oceania, now supporting an "incremental growth model" that shows a number of long-distance sea-crossing migrations over the last few millennia. A crucial step in this narrative involved the initial settlement of the remote-distance Oceanic region, in the case of the Mariana Islands around 1500 BC. The Marianas case can be demonstrated through delineation of stratigraphic layers, dating of individual points or features within those layers, redundant dating of samples in secure contexts, localized and taxon-specific corrections for marine samples, and cross-constraining dating of superimposed layer sequences. Based on the technical and methodological lessons from the Marianas example, the further steps of the incremental growth model will continue to be refined across Pacific Oceania. Many of these issues may be relevant for broader research of ancient settlement horizons in other regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the close of the Bronze Age, a tendency developed in Central Europe towards the concentration of settlement and fortification of sites which served special economic and social functions. One of the largest centers of this kind in the northern part of Central Europe is the Łubowice stronghold (SW Poland). Archaeological excavations allowed the stratigraphy of the fortification remnants to be comprehensively investigated. In their final stage, these fortifications comprised of a monumental earthen rampart with timber structures, which were later destroyed in a violent fire. Originally, the destruction of the Łubowice stronghold was linked with the raids by nomadic Scythians and dated to the first half of the 6th century BC. However, radiocarbon analyses of charcoal from the burned rampart relics have shown that the destruction of the fortifications took place in the 9th century BC. The new dating of the moment when the Łubowice fortifications was burned down, i.e. "shortly after 845–802 cal BC" places this event within historical processes which reshaped the cultural picture in much of Central Europe at the dawn of the Iron Age. The spreading of a new, Hallstatt cultural model was associated with deep changes in social structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Excavations of the remains of the medieval church of Santa Maria di Campogrosso (Sicily) were conducted by the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences as part of scientific cooperation with Soprintendenza per i Beni Culturali ed Ambientali di Palermo. Based on the records of post-medieval historians, the construction of the church was placed in the second half of the 11th century, which contradicts the findings of architectural historians, who dated the building to the 13th-century and even later. As a result of archaeological excavations carried out in 2015–2018, it was possible to locate unknown fragments of the church's structure and the remains of the cemetery adjacent to it. The 14C dating carried out for samples obtained from the walls of the existing building as well as from bone remains from the churchyard in combination with stratigraphic information from archaeological trenches and the chronology of coins indicates a high probability of the church construction in the second half of the 12th century and confirms the end of the monastery complex existence at the end of the 13th century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A zolnik excavated in 2016–2018 at the hillfort identified as the Scythian cultural circle in Chotyniec (southeastern Poland, 8 km west of the current Poland–Ukraine border) provided a very large quantity of archaeological sources and organic materials. From the latter, 17 samples coming from different horizons were selected for dating and were used to build a chronological model of functioning of the zolnik. Absolute dating is particularly important because the discovered artifacts (especially the most common handmade ceramics) do not show large chronological diversity. The use of the zolnik was estimated at 250–300 years, i.e. between 7th/6th and 4th/3rd century BC. Stratigraphic observations and good references of absolute chronology based on artifacts, including imported Greek ceramics, first in this part of Central Europe, proved to be significant. Older radiocarbon dates correspond to typological dating of Greek amphoras (7th/6th–6th century BC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gosan-ri-type pottery (GTP) is a unique plant-fiber-tempered pottery from Korea and has only been found in Early Neolithic sites on Jeju Island. In this study, we conducted radiocarbon (14C) dating for one GTP sample and 10 charcoal samples collected from archaeological structures in which GTP was found in 2012. The measurement conditions, the internal quality assurance test, and the reliability test indicate that each 14C date is very reliable. However, the 14C dates of the charcoal samples were more accurate than that of the GTP sample due to contamination from younger humic acids. From the summary of all 14C dates of charcoal samples using the KDE model, we finally conclude that GTP was manufactured and utilized throughout the period 9610–9490 cal BP (7670–7550 BC) with 95.4% confidence level. This age corroborates the inference that GTP is the oldest known Korean Neolithic pottery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quality control procedures have been developed at the Laboratoire de Mesure du Carbone 14 (LMC14) national laboratory throughout the years of operation. Routine procedures are applied to sample preparation depending on their composition and their size. The tuning of the ARTEMIS AMS facility, hosted by the LMC14 laboratory, uses an accurate procedure. A batch of unknown samples is measured with accompanying samples (primary and secondary standards and blanks), which give a powerful set of data to control the quality of each measurement. A homemade database has been created to store the sample information and study the evolution of the accompanying samples. The LMC14 laboratory participated in the Sixth International Radiocarbon Intercomparison, SIRI. The results are presented here, with statistical tests to assess the quality of the preparations and measurements done at the LMC14 national laboratory. To obtain a reliable radiocarbon (14C) age by AMS, 1 mg of sample is required in routine analysis. Recently, the LMC14 developed a new procedure dedicated to microsamples, allowing the size of samples to be reduced and contributing to opening 14C dating to materials that were previously unreachable. This new procedure has been successfully tested on valuable Cultural Heritage samples: lead white mural paintings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of a short program of landscape, buildings and materials analysis undertaken at Achanduin Castle, Lismore, Scotland (NM 8043 3927) are presented from the pilot phase of the Scottish Medieval Castles & Chapels C14 Project (SMCCCP). The study presents the first independent chronological evidence relating to the construction of this important medieval building, by radiocarbon analysis of a limited assemblage of Mortar-Entrapped Relict Limekiln Fuel (MERLF) fragments. Informed by a wider investigation of structural phasing and sample taphonomy, these measurements are constrained within a series of different Bayesian models, to generate a range of comparative estimates for the building's constructional chronology. The precision with which the construction of this building can now be dated, from other evidence associated with the site, makes the Achanduin Castle study a useful point of reference for wider materials research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bayesian analysis of radiocarbon (14C) dates in North American archaeology is increasing, especially among archaeologists working in deeper time. However, historical archaeologists have been slow to embrace these new techniques, and there have been only a few examples of the incorporation of calendar dates as informative priors in Bayesian models in such work in the United States. To illustrate the value of Bayesian approaches to sites with both substantial earlier Native American occupations as well as a historic era European presence, we present the results of our Bayesian analysis of 14C dates from the earlier Guale village and the Mission period contexts from the Sapelo Shell Ring Complex (9MC23) in southern Georgia. Jefferies and Moore have explored the Spanish Mission period deposits at this site to better understand the Native American interactions with the Spanish during the 16th and 17th centuries along the Georgia Coast. Given the results of our Bayesian modeling, we can say with some degree of confidence that the deposits thus far excavated and sampled contain important information dating to the 17th-century mission on Sapelo Island. In addition, our modeling of new dates suggests the range of the pre-Mission era Guale village. Based on these new dates, we can now say with some degree of certainty which of the deposits sampled likely contain information that dates to one of the critical periods of Mission period research, the AD 1660–1684 period that ushered in the close of mission efforts on the Georgia Coast. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the nature of medieval artifacts and resulting research requirements, a precise temporal classification is essential. It is especially important for the purposes of medieval archaeology in interpreting archaeological finds/finding situations and identifying them with a historical events or figures, for example, to identify skeletal remains of a known historical figure or to establish a chronological sequence of various cultural and architectural changes within an area. Due to the fact that the uncertainties of radiocarbon (14C) analyses have been decreasing in recent years, the applicability of 14C dating for such purposes is now growing. In this work, we aim to demonstrate the current possibilities of the use of AMS 14C analyses on specific cases and confront the results with other available data. 14C data from skeletal remains of members of the oldest Czech ruling dynasty of the Přemyslids (about 880–1306 AD) were obtained in recent years. Archaeological research conducted in the three oldest churches in the Prague Castle discovered skeletal remains of three members of the second, two members of the fourth and two members of the fifth generation. This case study of the application of 14C data has three parts: i) identification of excavated individuals; ii) demonstration of the application using current AMS-based analysis of 14C on medieval osteological material and tests of our preparation method; iii) contributing to discussion and consulting with other problematical 14C age alteration influenced by diet, age of bone collagen or seasonal variation of 14C activity. The obtained results and the issues arising from them clearly highlight the necessity of a multidisciplinary cooperation in this type of study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reversals and plateaus in the radiocarbon (14C) calibration curve lead to similar 14C ages applying to a wide range of calendar dates, creating imprecision, ambiguity, and challenges for archaeological dating. Even with Bayesian chronological modeling, such periods remain a problem when no known order—e.g., a stratigraphic sequence—exists, and especially if site durations are relatively short. Using the reversal/plateau AD 1480–1630 and the archaeology of northeastern North America as our example, we consider possible strategies to improve chronological resolution across such reversal/plateau periods in the absence of stratigraphic sequences, including uses of wood-charcoal TPQs from even very short wiggle-matches, and site phase duration constraints based on ethnohistoric and archaeological evidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]