Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-b6zl4 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-02-12T10:12:31.357Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

High-precision radiocarbon chronometry of ancient Egypt, and comparisons with Nubia, Palestine and Mesopotamia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Fekri A. Hassan  and
Steven W. Robinson
Fekri A. Hassan
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164, USA
Steven W. Robinson
Affiliation:
United States Geological Survey, Menlo Park, CA, USA
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Radiocarbon dating began in archaeology with ancient Egypt, for it was to the securely dated materials from Egypt that Willard Libby naturally turned when his new radiocarbon method needed verification from reliable historical sources. With this paper the reverse process begins: verifying and correcting the conventional chronology for Egypt and neighbouring regions by calibrated radiocarbon.

This paper compares calibrated radiocarbon dates against historical dates in a manner not well covered by ANTIQUITY's usual convention. So in this paper only uncalibrated radiocarbon dates are denoted by ‘b.p.’, historical dates are denoted by ‘BC’, and calibrated radiocarbon dates by ‘Cal BC’ or simply ‘BC’ when the meaning is clear from the context.

Type
Article
Information
Antiquity , Volume 61 , Issue 231 , March 1987 , pp. 119 - 135
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd. 1987

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Arundale, W.H. 1981. Radiocarbon dating in eastern Arctic archaeology: a flexible approach, American Antiquity 46: 244–71.Google Scholar
Barker, H. 1970. Critical assessment of radiocarbon dating, Phil. Trans. Royal Society Lond. A. 269: 37–45.Google Scholar
Beckerath, J. von. 1975. In Helck, & Otto, 1975.Google Scholar
Berger, R. & Suess, H.E. (ed.). 1979. Radiocarbon dating. Berkeley: California University Press.Google Scholar
Bonnet, C. 1986. Kerma, royaume africain du hante Nubie, Society for Nubian Studies, Sixth International Conference. Uppsala.Google Scholar
Bradley, R.S. 1985. Quaternary paleoclimalology. London.Google Scholar
Callaway, J.A. & Weinstein, J.M.. 1977. Radiocarbon dating of Palestine in the early Bronze Age, Bulletin American School of Oriental Research 225: 1–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clark, R.M. 1978. Bristlecone pine and ancient Egypt: a re-appraisal, Archaeometry 20: 5–17.Google Scholar
Clark, R.M. & Renfrew, C.. 1973. Tree-ring calibration of radiocarbon dates and the chronology of ancient Egypt, Nature 243: 265–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Creel, D. & Long, A.. 1986. Radiocarbon dating of corn, American Antiquity 51: 826–37.Google Scholar
Damon, P.E. 1986. The history of the calibration of radiocarbon dates by dendrochronology, Colloque International du CNRS, manuscript with author.Google Scholar
Damon, P.E., Ferguson, C.W., Long, A., & Wallick, E.I.. 1974. Dendrochronologic calibration of the radiocarbon time scale, American Antiquity 39: 350–66.Google Scholar
Dean, J.S. 1978. Independent dating in archaeological analysis, in Schiffer, M. (ed.), Advances in archaeological method and theory 1: 223–55. New York: Academic.Google Scholar
Derricourt, R.M. 1971. Radiocarbon chronology for Egypt and North Africa, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 30: 271–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Edwards, I.E.S. 1970. Absolute dating from Egyptian records and comparison with carbon-14 dating. Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. Lond. A. 269: 11–18.Google Scholar
Gardiner, A.H. 1959. The Royal Canon of Turin. Oxford: Clarendon.Google Scholar
Haas, H. & Wolfoli, W.. 1986. Extension of the data base for Egyptian chronology, abstract. Society for American Archaeology 51st Annual Meeting. New Orleans.Google Scholar
Hassan, F.A. 1980. Radiocarbon chronology of Archaic Egypt, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 39: 203–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hassan, F.A. 1984. Radiocarbon chronology of Predynastic Nagada settlements, Egypt, Current Anthropology 25: 681–3.Google Scholar
Hassan, F.A. 1985. Radiocarbon chronology of neolithic and Predynastic sites in Upper Egypt and the Delta, African Archaeological Review 3: 95–116.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hassan, F.A. forthcoming. Radiocarbon dating of archaeological events and phases, American Antiquity.Google Scholar
Hayes, W.C. 1964. Chronology, Egypt – to end of Twentieth Dynasty. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Cambridge Ancient History.Google Scholar
Helck, W. 1986. Untersuchungen zu Manetho und den Ägypfischen Königlisten. Berlin.Google Scholar
Helck, W. & Otto, E. (ed.) 1975. Lexikon der Ägyptologie, Band I. Wiesbaden.Google Scholar
Hewson, A.D. 1980. Interpretation and exploitation of an interlaboratory comparison of radiocarbon measurements, Revue d’Archéometrie 4: 58–72.Google Scholar
Kantor, H. 1965. The relative chronology of Egypt and its correlations before the late Bronze Age, in Ehrich, R.E. (ed.). Chronologies in Old World archaeology: 1–46. Chicago: Universiy of Chicago Press.Google Scholar
Kemp, B. 1980. Egyptian radiocarbon dating: a reply to James Mellaart, Antiquity 54: 25–8.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kemp, B. 1983. Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and Second Intermediate Period, in Trigger, B.G., Kemp, B.J., O’Conner, D. and Lloyd, A.B., Ancient Egypt: a social history. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Klein, J., Lerman, J.C.. Damon, P.E. & Ralph, E.K.. 1982. Calibration of radiocarbon dates, Radiocarbon 24: 103–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Krauss, R. 1985. Sothis- und Monddaten. Hildesheim: Gerstenberger Verlag. Hildesheimer Àgyptologische Beitrage 20.Google Scholar
Lerman, J.C. 1972. Carbon-l4 dating: origin and correction of isotope fractionation errors in terrestrial living matter, in Proceedings of the 8th conference on radiocarbon dating 2: 613–24. Wellington: Royal Society of New Zealand.Google Scholar
Libby, W.F. 1955. Radiocarbon dating. Chicago: Chicago University Press.Google Scholar
Libby, W.F. 1980. Archaeology and radiocarbon dating, Radiocarbon 22: 1017–20.Google Scholar
Long, R.D. 1976. Ancient Egyptian chronology, radiocarbon dating and calibration, Zeitschrift für Ägyptische Sprache und Altertumskunde 103: 30–48.Google Scholar
Long, A. & Rippeteau, R., 1974. Testing contemporaneity and averaging radiocarbon dates, American Antiquity 39: 205–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Malek, J. 1982. The original version of the Royal Canon of Turin, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology 68: 93–106.Google Scholar
McKerrell, H. 1975. Correction procedure for C-14 dates, in Watkins, T. (ed.), Radiocarbon: calibration and prehistory: 47–100. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.Google Scholar
Mellaart, J. 1979. Egyptian and Near Eastern chronology: a dilemma, Antiquity 53: 6–22.Google Scholar
Munn-Rankin, M. 1980. Mesopotamian chronology: a reply to James Mellaart, Antiquity 54: 128–9.Google Scholar
Nordstrom, H.-Å. (ed.) 1972. Neolithic and A-Group sites. The Scandinavian joint expedition to Sudanese Nubia 3:1. Uppsala.Google Scholar
O’Connor, D. 1983. New Kingdom and Third Intermediate Period, in Trigger, B.G., Kemp, B.J., O’Connor, D. and Lloyd, A.B., Ancient Egypt: a social history. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Olsson, I.U. (ed.). 1970. Radiocarbon variations and absolute chronology. New York. 12th Nobel symposium.Google Scholar
Olsson, I.U. (ed.). 1972. The C14 age determinations, in Nordstrom 1972: 250–1.Google Scholar
Olsson, I.U. & El-Daoushy, M.F.A.F.. 1979. Radiocarbon variation determined on reeds from Dra Abu El-Naga, in Berger, & Suess, 1979 : 601–12.Google Scholar
Orton, C. 1980. Mathematics in archaeology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Pearson, G.W., Pilcher, J.R. & Baillie, M.G.L.. 1983. High precision 14 C measurements of Irish oaks to show natural atmospheric 14C variations from 200 BC to 4000 BC, Radiocarbon 25: 179–86.Google Scholar
Porada, E. 1965. The relative chronology of Mesopotamia, part I: seals and trade (6000–1600 BC), in Ehrich, R.W. (ed.), Chronologies in Old World Archaeology: 133–200. Chicago: Chicago University Press.Google Scholar
Ralph, E.K., Michael, H.N. & Han, M.C.. 1976. Tree-rings and carbon-14 scale, in Labeyrie, J. and Lalou, C. (ed.), Datations absolues et analyses isotopiques et préhistoire: méthodes et limites: 101–26. Paris.Google Scholar
Read, D. 1979. The effective use of radiocarbon dates in seriation of archaeological sites, in Berger, & Suess, 1979: 89–94.Google Scholar
Robinson, S.W. 1986. A computational procedure for utilization of high-precision radiocarbon curves. Open-File Report, USGS, Menlo Park. Manuscript with author.Google Scholar
Save-Söderbergh, T. & Olsson, I.U.. 1970. C14 dating and Egyptian chronology, in Olsson, 1970: 501–11.Google Scholar
Schiffer, M.B. 1986. Radiocarbon dating and the ‘old wood’ problem: the case of the Hohokam chronology, Journal of Archaeological Science 13: 13–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shaw, I.M.E. 1985. Egyptian chronology and the Irish oak calibration, Journal of Near Eastern Studies 44: 295–317 Google Scholar
Smith, H.S. 1964. Egypt and C14 dating. Antiquity 38: 32–7.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stuiver, M. 1982. A high-precision calibration of the AD radiocarbon time scale. Radiocarbon 24: 271–4.Google Scholar
Stuiver, M., Kromer, B., Becker, B. & Ferguson, C.W.. 1986. Radiocarbon age calibration back to 13,300 years BP and the 14C age mactching of the German Oak and US Bristlecone pine chronologies, Radiocarbon 28 (2B): 969–79.Google Scholar
Stuiver, M. & Reimer, P.J.. 1986. A computer program for radiocarbon age calibration, Radiocarbon 28 (2B): 1022–30.Google Scholar
Suess, H. E. 1970. Bristlecone pine calibration of the radiocarbon time-scale 5200 nc to 1500 BC, in Olsson, 1970: 303–11.Google Scholar
Switsur, V.R. 1984. Radiocarbon dates, in Kemp, B. (ed.), Amarna reports 1. London.Google Scholar
Switsur, V.R. 1986. 884 Cal. BP and all that!. Antiquity 60: 214–16.Google Scholar
Ward, G.K. & Wilson, S.R., 1978. Procedures for comparing and combining radiocarbon age determinations: a critique. Archaeometry 20 19–31.Google Scholar
Waterbolk, H.T. 1971. Working with radiocarbon dates, Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 37: 15–33.Google Scholar
Weinstein, J.M. 1984. Radiocarbon dating in the southern Levant, Radiocarbon 26: 297–366.Google Scholar
Wenke, R.J. 1986. Old Kingdom community organization in the western Egyptian Delta, Norwegian Archaeological Review 19: 15–33.Google Scholar