Capabilities and limits of radiocarbon dating with a focus on untypical archaeological samples

Abstract

Radiocarbon dating is an established method that helps to determine the absolute age of archaeological finds. This topical review presents the basic principles of the radiocarbon method, conventions for selecting samples from archaeological contexts, how to handle samples before sending them to the radiocarbon laboratory, laboratory methods for sample preparation, the AMS measurement procedure, and the calibration of results. Factors that limit the results of radiocarbon dating, particularly radiocarbon plateaux and the reservoir effect, are explained along with the ways how to recognise and eliminate their influence. The main aim of the paper is to critically evaluate the application of radiocarbon dating to less common archaeological samples (lipids preserved in the pores of pottery, charred bone, dental calculus, iron objects and iron slags, mortar, pollen and phytolith concentrates extracted from sediments or soils). Their dating opens new possibilities for the chronological determination of past natural and cultural processes or events.