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Anomalous Radiocarbon Dates from Easter Island

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

Kevin Butler ,
Christine A Prior  and
John R Flenley
Kevin Butler*
Affiliation:
School of People, Environment and Planning, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
Christine A Prior
Affiliation:
Rafter Radiocarbon Laboratory, Institute of Geological & Nuclear Sciences, Lower Hutt, New Zealand.
John R Flenley
Affiliation:
School of People, Environment and Planning, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
*
Corresponding author. Email: [email protected].
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Abstract

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The largest volcanic crater on Easter Island in the South Pacific contains a lake 1 km in diameter with large floating mats of vegetation, mainly Scirpus californicus. A core taken through a mat near the center produced anomalous dates, with older dates above younger ones. The possibility that the mat had become inverted was considered, but palynological evidence refutes this idea because it shows a progressive upward decline of forest pollen, which is well known from other swamp cores on the island. A new series of radiocarbon dates made directly on pollen concentrates was obtained. These dates also produced inconsistencies, particularly when pollen concentrate ages were compared with 14C ages on plant fragments from the same depth. This series of 14C ages seems to indicate that both old and young organic components in the sediment are deposited contiguously and that the depositional history of these cores is more complex than previously known. Previous age determinations on bulk sediments from Easter Island, which also show anomalous dates, may be too simplistic. This paper provides a warning to other researchers dating sediments from Easter Island. We suggest that sample selection and dating procedures be carefully considered for these sediments.

Type
Articles
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 46 , Issue 1: Proceedings of the 18th International Radiocarbon Conference (Part 1 of 2), Conference Editors: Nancy Beavan Athfield, Rodger J Sparks , 2004 , pp. 395 - 405
Copyright
Copyright © 2004 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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