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Radiocarbon Fluctuations During the Third Millennium BC

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

J C Vogel
Affiliation:
NPRL, CSIR, Pretoria, South Africa
Annemarie Fuls
Affiliation:
NPRL, CSIR, Pretoria, South Africa
Ebbie Visser
Affiliation:
NPRL, CSIR, Pretoria, South Africa
Bernd Becker
Affiliation:
Institut für Botanik, Universität Hohenheim, Stuttgart, FRG
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Abstract

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Precision 14C analyses have been performed on samples comprising 1 to 4 annual rings from the south-central European dendrochronologic sequence of sub-fossil oak wood covering the period 1930 to 3100 bc. Apart from a major deviation in the 29th century bc, the 14C fluctuations have amplitudes of ca 10‰ and a possible periodicity of 90 years. A 14C peak at 2190 bc has a rise- and decay-time of <20 years indicating rather abrupt changes in the production rate of 14C. The 14C calibration curve derived from these data can be used for precise dating of the Early Bronze Age in the Near East.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The American Journal of Science 

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