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Radiocarbon Dating of Pollen by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Thomas A. Brown ,
D. Erle Nelson ,
Rolf W. Mathewes ,
John S. Vogel  and
John R. Southon
Thomas A. Brown
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
D. Erle Nelson
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
Rolf W. Mathewes
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
John S. Vogel
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
John R. Southon
Affiliation:
Department of Archaeology Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5A 1S6
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Abstract

Radiocarbon dating of bulk sediments has been the standard method for establishing chronologies in the studies of lake sediment cores which have contributed significantly to our knowledge of late Quaternary paleo-environments. These bulk sediment dates are presumed to be direct ageindicators for the speciments (e.g., pollen or macrofossils) which are actually being studied. However, several recent studies have reinforced long-standing apprehensions concerning this presumption. In this study, we demonstrate for the first time the radiocarbon dating of pollen concentrate samples by accelerator mass spectrometry. The dates obtained by this method should provide more reliable radiocarbon chronologies for paleo-environmental studies than have been obtainable by bulk sediment dating.

Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 32 , Issue 2 , September 1989 , pp. 205 - 212
Copyright
University of Washington

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