TY - JOUR
T1 - Comparative Radiocarbon dating of Lignite, Pottery and Charcoal samples from Babeldaob Island, Republic of Palau
AU - Anderson, Atholl
AU - Chappell, John
AU - Clark, Geoffrey
AU - Phear, Sarah
PY - 2005
Y1 - 2005
N2 - It is difficult to construct archaeological chronologies for Babeldaob, the main island of Palau (western Micronesia), because the saprolitic clays of the dominant terraced-hill sites and associated ceramic sherds often contain old carbon that originated in lignites. This has implications, as well, for chronologies of sedimentary sequences. Comparative analysis of the dating problem using lignite, pottery, and charcoal samples indicates that, in fact, there are both old and young sources of potential contamination. It is concluded that radiocarbon samples from Babeldaob need to be tested for appropriate carbon content rather than relying solely upon material identification.
AB - It is difficult to construct archaeological chronologies for Babeldaob, the main island of Palau (western Micronesia), because the saprolitic clays of the dominant terraced-hill sites and associated ceramic sherds often contain old carbon that originated in lignites. This has implications, as well, for chronologies of sedimentary sequences. Comparative analysis of the dating problem using lignite, pottery, and charcoal samples indicates that, in fact, there are both old and young sources of potential contamination. It is concluded that radiocarbon samples from Babeldaob need to be tested for appropriate carbon content rather than relying solely upon material identification.
M3 - Article
SN - 0033-8222
VL - 47
SP - 1
EP - 9
JO - Radiocarbon
JF - Radiocarbon
IS - 1
ER -