Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-g8jcs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T05:34:15.407Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

High-Precision 14C Measurement of Irish Oaks to Show the Natural Atmospheric 14C Variations of the AD Time Period

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

G W Pearson  and
M G L Baillie
G W Pearson
Affiliation:
Palaeoecology Centre, The Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland
M G L Baillie
Affiliation:
Palaeoecology Centre, The Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

The high-precision 14C measurement of bi-decade and decade samples of Irish Oak for the time period AD 50 to 1830 is presented. The samples were taken from dendrochronologically dated Irish Oak providing an absolute chronology for this period. While the natural atmospheric 14C concentration shows cyclic deviations from a constant value, the amplitudes of such deviations vary considerably. Repeated measurement and interlaboratory checks justify a claim to accuracy in the data given. Comparison of a large number of data sets between Belfast and Seattle show that the different techniques of scintillation counting of 14C6H6 and gas counting of 14CO2 derived from different wood species grown in different continents give no significant bias. Thus, it is justifiable to use this data set as a high-precision calibration curve for the AD period. Over most of this period bi-decade samples were measured giving a slightly reduced resolution of short-term variation when compared to the measurement of decade intervals; however, any difference is not apparent when such curves are compared. It is of much greater importance that a comparison of data sets is without bias if a combined calibration curve is to have sufficient integrity for general use. Averaging the data from Belfast and Seattle would improve the validity of such an AD 14C calibration curve since it would tend to smooth out slight local variations and become internationally more acceptable.

Type
I. Natural 14C Variations
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 25 , Issue 2: 11th International Radiocarbon Conference , 1983 , pp. 187 - 196
Copyright
Copyright © The American Journal of Science 

References

Baillie, M G L, 1973, A recently developed Irish tree-ring Chronology: Tree-ring Bull 33, p 15–28.Google Scholar
Baillie, M G L, 1977, The Belfast oak chronology to AD 1001: Tree-ring Bull 37, p 1–12.Google Scholar
Baillie, M G L, 1982, Tree ring dating and archaeology: London, Croom-Helm.Google Scholar
Baillie, M G L, Pilcher, J R, and Pearson, G W, 1983 Dendrochronology at Belfast as a background to high-precision calibration, in Stuiver, Minze, and Kra, Renee, eds, Internatl radiocarbon conf, 11th Proc: Radiocarbon, v 25.Google Scholar
Bruns, M, Munnich, K O, and Becker, B, 1980, Natural radiocarbon variations from AD 200 to 800, in Stuiver, Minze, and Kra, Renee, eds, Internatl radiocarbon conf, 10th, Proc: Radiocarbon, v 22, no 2, p 273–377.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
de Jong, A F M, Mook, W G, and Becker, B, 1979, Confirmation of Suess wiggles 3200–3700 BC: Nature, v 280, p 48–49.Google Scholar
Klein, J, Lerman, J C, Damon, P E, and Ralph, E K, 1982, Calibration of radiocarbon dates: Tables based on the consensus data of the Workshop on Calibrating the Radiocarbon Time Scale: Radiocarbon, v 24, p 103–150.Google Scholar
Otlet, R L, Walker, A J, Hewson, A D, and Burleigh, Richard, 1980, 14C Interlaboratory Comparison in the UK: Experiment design, preparation, and preliminary results, in Stuiver, Minze, and Kra, Renee, eds, Internatl radiocarbon conf, 10th Proc: Radiocarbon, v 23, no 3, p 936–946.Google Scholar
Pearson, G W, 1979, Precise 14C measurement of liquid scintillation counting: Radiocarbon, v 21, p 1–21.Google Scholar
Pearson, G W, 1980, High-precision radiocarbon dating by liquid scintillation counting applied to radiocarbon time-scale calibration in High-precision radiocarbon dating by liquid scintillation counting applied to radiocarbon time-scale calibration: Radiocarbon, v 22, no 2, p 337–345.Google Scholar
Pearson, G W, Pilcher, J R, and Baillie, M G L, (1983) High-precision 14C measurement of Irish oaks to show the natural 14C variations over the period 200 BC — 4000 BC, in Stuiver, Minze, and Kra, Renee, eds, Internatl radiocarbon conf, 11th Proc: Radiocarbon, v 25.Google Scholar
Pearson, G W, Pilcher, J R, Baillie, M G L, and Hillam, J, 1977, Absolute radiocarbon dating using a low altitude European tree-ring calibration: Nature, v 270, no 5632, p 25–28.Google Scholar
Scott, E M, Baxter, M S, and Aitchison, T C, in press, 14C dating reproducibility. Evidence from a combined experimental and statistical programme, in Internatl symposium on 14C and archaeology, 1st Proc: Groningen, 1981, in press.Google Scholar
Stuiver, Minze, 1982, A high-precision calibration of the AD radiocarbon timescale: Radiocarbon, v 24, p 1–26.Google Scholar
Suess, H E, 1978, La Jolla measurements of radiocarbon in tree-ring dated wood: Radiocarbon, v 20, p 1–18.CrossRefGoogle Scholar