Radiocarbon Dating (C-14)
Definition
Age determination from the ratio of radioactive carbon-14 to stable carbon-12 in organic material. Atmospheric C-14 spiked during nuclear testing (1950s-1960s), allowing ivory or tissue formed after c. 1955 to be dated to within 1-2 years using the bomb-curve calibration.
Related terms
- Lines of Arrested Growth (LAGs)
- Alternating dense and loose concentric rings in bone cortex visible in histological cross-section, analogous to tree rings. Each LAG marks a period...
- Population Assignment
- A genetic method that compares a specimen's microsatellite or SNP profile to reference databases of known-origin individuals, assigning the specimen to the...
- Skeletochronology
- Age estimation from growth rings (lines of arrested growth, LAGs) in bone cross-sections. Reliable in reptiles and fish; less so in mammals....
- Stable Isotope Analysis
- A technique that measures the ratio of stable (non-radioactive) isotopes of elements such as strontium, oxygen, and carbon in a biological sample....
- Tusk Weight-Age Curve
- A species- and sex-specific regression of tusk mass against age, derived from known-age wild elephant records. Allows investigators to estimate the age...
Explained in
- Ageing, Sexing, and Geographic Provenance of SpecimensAge determination from the ratio of radioactive carbon-14 to stable carbon-12 in organic material. Atmospheric C-14 spiked during nuclear testing (1950s-1960s)...