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1
Finkelstein, Israel, and Eli Piasetzky. "Recent radiocarbon results and King Solomon." Antiquity 77, no. 298 (December 2003): 771–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00061718.
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Radiocarbon dating and stratigraphy here offer a new chronological structure for the Iron Age in the Levant. The credit for the construction of massive public monuments in the northern part of Israel is here wrested from David and Solomon and attributed to the later Omride dynasty. The early Israelite monarchs actually ruled over a small kingdom in the highlands around Jerusalem rather than a great empire.
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Nawrocka, Danuta Michalska, Danuta Joanna Michczyńska, Anna Pazdur, and Justyna Czernik. "Radiocarbon Chronology of the Ancient Settlement in the Golan Heights Area, Israel." Radiocarbon 49, no. 2 (2007): 625–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200042521.
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Carbonate binders from mortars and plasters as well as charcoal fragments sampled at the ancient settlement of Hippos (Sussita) have been subjected to radiocarbon dating by gas proportional counting (GPC) and accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). Hippos is situated on the east coast of the Sea of Galilee (32°46′N, 35°39′E) at the top of a hill in the Golan Heights area, Israel. According to historical-archaeological data, the town had functioned since the 3rd century BC until AD 749, when it eventually crumbled into ruins after an earthquake. The appropriate sample selection and preparation based on the results of petrographic observations permitted us to distinguish different phases involved in the expansion of the settlement. More than 200 samples were taken from the settlement and subjected to petrographic and chemical analyses. Of the 200 total samples, about 20 were selected for dating. Here, we present the first 10 results of 14C dating carried out for Hippos. The oldest sample dated thus far gave an age corresponding with the 2nd century BC to 1st century AD—probably indicating an old Roman temple, on the base of which the North-West church (NWC) was later erected. The next dates extend up to the 8th century AD, the age related to the last phase of settlement inhabitation. Research is continuing as new excavations take place.
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Rogojin, Vasily, Israel Carmi, and Joel Kronfeld. "14C and 234U-Excess Dating of Groundwater in the Haifa Bay Region Israel." Radiocarbon 40, no. 2 (1997): 945–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200018919.
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Radiocarbon activities and uranium isotopic disequilibria were measured in water samples from both the sandy Pleistocene coastal aquifer and within the upper Cretaceous Judea Group carbonate aquifer of northwestern Israel. The samples in both aquifers exhibit a decrease in 14C activity that is concomitant to the growth in 234U-excess. This suggests that under specific conditions, 234U-excess dating of groundwater can be used to corroborate 14C dates, while offering the possibility of extending the range of dating of groundwater beyond that of 14C.
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Rech, Jason A., Alysia A. Fischer, Douglas R. Edwards, and A. J. Timothy Jull. "Direct dating of plaster and mortar using AMS Radiocarbon: a pilot project from Khirbet Qana, Israel." Antiquity 77, no. 295 (March 2003): 155–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00061457.
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The authors demonstrate the potential for dating structures in Near Eastern archaeology by applying AMS radiocarbon to organic inclusions found in mortar and plaster. The method was successfully applied to date and sequence excavated walls and floors, and to spot-date structures exposed in surveys.
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Webster, Lyndelle C., Omer Sergi, Sabine Kleiman, Oded Lipschits, Quan Hua, Geraldine E. Jacobsen, Yann Tristant, and Yuval Gadot. "Preliminary Radiocarbon Results for Late Bronze Age Strata at Tel Azekah and Their Implications." Radiocarbon 60, no. 1 (September 14, 2017): 309–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/rdc.2017.85.
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AbstractThis article presents the first radiocarbon (14C) results from the Late Bronze Age levels of Tel Azekah (Israel). The results testify to the long and prosperous occupation of the site during this period, commencing at least in LB IIA and ending with a severe destruction at the close of LB III. In the extra-mural quarter (Area S2), a pre-monumental building phase (S2-6) dates to the 14th or early 13th century BCE. Two sub-phases of a public building constructed above this yielded dates in the second half of the 13th century and first two-thirds of the 12th century BCE, suggesting that occupation persisted through the “Crisis Years” of the eastern Mediterranean region. On the top of the mound, in Area T2, the destruction of the final LB III level (T2-3) most likely occurred near the end of the 12th century BCE. The preliminary Azekah results are in good agreement with existing data from Lachish and Megiddo, but seem at odds with results from nearby Tel es-Safi/Gath.
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Savage, Stephen H. "Towards an AMS Radiocarbon Chronology of Predynastic Egyptian Ceramics." Radiocarbon 43, no. 3 (2001): 1255–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200038534.
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The wide and varied connections between Israel and Egypt during the Early Bronze Age/Predynastic are frequently calibrated through ceramics that depend to a large degree on two seriation methods developed for Predynastic Egypt. Petrie's seriation technique and Kaiser's Stufe dating method utilize whole forms from mortuary contexts. Because of the ways they were developed and deployed in Predynastic research, a logical tautology exists that makes their usage highly problematic. Radiocarbon dating of the Predynastic is vital if we are to untangle existing ceramic chronologies. But up to now, almost all 14C dates have come from domestic contexts where whole vessels are not usually found and which differ significantly from cemeteries in their ceramic assemblages. A 14C-based chronology of whole forms in the Petrie Corpus is thus highly desirable, but has proven elusive until now. Samples of organic materials and Black-Topped Red Ware vessels from over 100 graves in the Predynastic Cemetery, N7000, at Naga-ed-Dêr have recently been submitted for dating with AMS methods, providing the first comprehensive 14C chronology of a Predynastic cemetery. The results are compared to a suite of recalibrated dates from Upper Egyptian Predynastic domestic contexts, which allows the 14C chronology for the region to be further refined. Absolute date ranges for a number of ceramic forms can be estimated for the first time, and results of early analysis are discussed.
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Toffolo, Michael B., Eran Arie, Mario A. S. Martin, Elisabetta Boaretto, and Israel Finkelstein. "Absolute Chronology of Megiddo, Israel, in the Late Bronze and Iron Ages: High-Resolution Radiocarbon Dating." Radiocarbon 56, no. 1 (2014): 221–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.2458/56.16899.
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Megiddo (Israel) is a key site for the study of the stratigraphy, chronology, and history of the Bronze and Iron ages in the Levant. The article presents a Bayesian chronological model for seven ceramic typology phases and 10 stratigraphic horizons at this site, covering the Late Bronze and much of the Iron Age. The model is based on 78 samples, which provided 190 determinations—the most thorough set of radiocarbon determinations known so far in a single site in the Levant. This set of data provides a reliable skeleton for the discussion of cultural processes and historical events in the region and beyond, including the periods of the Egyptian Empire in Canaan and the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
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van der Plicht, Johannes, Hendrik J. Bruins, and Albert J. Nijboer. "The Iron Age Around the Mediterranean: A High Chronology Perspective from the Groningen Radiocarbon Database." Radiocarbon 51, no. 1 (2009): 213–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200033786.
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In this paper, we present an overview of radiocarbon dating contributions from Groningen, concerning 9 sites from around the Mediterranean region: Israel, Sinai (Egypt), Jordan, Spain, Tunisia, and Italy. Full date lists of the 9 sites are presented. Our 14C dates are discussed in terms of present actual chronological debates. We show that all our 14C dates coherently support a “high chronology” for the Iron Age in each respective area of the Mediterranean region.
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Anderson, Roger W. "Southern Palestinian Chronology: Two Radiocarbon Dates for the Early Bronze Age at Tell El-Hesi (Israel)." Radiocarbon 48, no. 1 (2006): 101–7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200035426.
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Several articles reporting radiocarbon dates of Early Bronze Age (EB) material from excavations in the southern Levant have been published over the last 30 yr. The excavations conducted at Tell el-Hesi have produced material from which 2 additional 14C dates have been extracted to date. The 2 samples confirm the EB dating of Field VI material and suggest EB III settlement at Hesi might be earlier than previously reported based on pottery typology.
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Weinstein-Evron, M., J. C. Vogel, and J. Kronfeld. "Further Attempts at Dating the Palynological Sequence of the Hula L07 Core, Upper Jordan Valley, Israel." Radiocarbon 43, no. 2B (2001): 561–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200041217.
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The palynological sequence of the Hula L07 core was previously correlated with the global oxygen isotope stages 3–5, based on a radiocarbon age determination and comparison with other Levantine paleoclimatological curves. An attempt was made to validate this correlation with Th/U dating. Unlike typical European peat, which is acidic, the soil pH of the Hula peat is mildly basic. Not only does this contribute to the oxidation of palynomorphs, but it also helps to preserve the carbonate material that can be a variable mixture of allogenic, endogenic, and authigenic components. Each component may represent a different degree of uranium series disequilibrium. The thorium (232Th) concentrations of the carbonate are low. Total digestion or acid leach of the sample may not always enable the proper correction for initial thorium. The dating derived from a NaOH-extraction of the organic material, while giving apparently better ages, also suffers from the presence of the carbonate admixture. It appears that, while 14C dating can be considered suitable for the younger portions of the core, techniques based upon the U-series may not be as efficacious in dating this important record of climatic change.
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Facorellis, Yorgos, Panagiotis Karkanas, Thomas Higham, Fiona Brock, Maria Ntinou, and Nina Kyparissi-Apostolika. "Interpreting Radiocarbon Dates from the Paleolithic Layers of Theopetra Cave in Thessaly, Greece." Radiocarbon 55, no. 3 (2013): 1432–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200048360.
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Theopetra Cave is a unique prehistoric site for Greece, as the Middle and Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic periods are present here, bridging the Pleistocene with the Holocene. During the more than 20 yr of excavation campaigns, charcoal samples from hearths suitable for 14C dating were collected from all anthropogenic layers, including the Paleolithic ones. Most of the samples were initially dated using the ABA chemical pretreatment protocol in the Laboratory of Archaeometry of NCSR Demokritos, Greece, and the Radiocarbon Dating and Cosmogenic Isotopes Laboratory of the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. The 14C results, which were not always consistent versus depth, showed that the earliest limit of human presence is ∼50,000 yr BP, thus reaching the age limits of the 14C dating method. However, 10 TL-dated burnt flint specimens unearthed from the lower part of the Middle Paleolithic sequence of the cave gave ages ranging between ∼110 and 135 kyr ago. These results are in disagreement with the 14C dates, as they support a much later date for these layers. In order to clarify the situation further, charcoal samples originating from hearths were conventionally dated in the Laboratory of Archaeometry of NCSR Demokritos using the ABA pretreatment. Additionally, hand-picked charcoal fragments also underwent 14C dating by AMS in the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit using the acid-base wet oxidation (ABOX-SC) pretreatment protocol. The 14C dates from the cave's Paleolithic layers obtained by both pretreatment protocols suggest a probable charcoal diagenesis affecting the 14C results of these very old samples. However, the dates obtained with ABOX-SC pretreatment are considered more reliable and in the younger stratigraphic part produced consistent results with the TL dating.
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Bowman, D., H. J. Bruins, and J. van der Plicht. "Load Structure Seismites in the Dead Sea Area, Israel: Chronological Benchmarking with 14C Dating." Radiocarbon 43, no. 3 (2001): 1383–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200038625.
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The Dead Sea is a terminal lake located in the seismically active zone of the Syro–African Rift Valley. The water level of the Dead Sea has been receding dramatically during the last decades, resulting in significant entrenchment of wadis towards its shores. Exposed sections in fan deltas reveal abruptly changing facies of alluvial fan, beach, and shallow lacustrine environments. Our study focuses on soft sediment deformations of the load-structure type. Though of limited lateral extent, their field characteristics concur with the widely accepted criteria that define seismites. This paper demonstrates the potential of load-structures as seismic-chronological benchmarks through radiocarbon dating. We present the first evidence of 14C correlation between two types of seismites in different locations: load structure and mixed layer.
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Asscher, Yotam, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "Absolute Time Ranges in the Plateau of the Late Bronze to Iron Age Transition and the Appearance of Bichrome Pottery in Canaan, Southern Levant." Radiocarbon 61, no. 1 (November 9, 2018): 13–37. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/rdc.2018.58.
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ABSTRACTThe Late Bronze Age to Iron Age transition in the Levant includes the appearance of new material culture that is similar in styles to the Aegean world. In the southern Levant, the distribution of early styles of Aegean-like pottery, locally produced, is limited to the coastal areas of Canaan, making synchronization with the rest of the region difficult. Radiocarbon (14C) dating provides a high-resolution absolute chronological framework for synchronizing ceramic phases. Here, absolute14C chronologies of the Late Bronze to Iron Age transition in the sites Tel Beth Shean, Tel Rehov, Tel Lachish, and Tel Miqne-Ekron are determined. Results show that the ranges of transitions vary in an absolute time frame by 50–100 years between different sites and that the range of the Late Bronze Age to Iron Age transition in Canaan spans the 13th–11th centuries BC plateau. These chronologies, based on a site-by-site approach for dating, show that the change between early types of Aegean-like pottery (Monochrome) to developed types (Bichrome), occurred over 100 years in Canaan and that the transition occurred in southern sites prior to sites in the north. These ranges show that not only is the Late Bronze to Iron Age not contemporaneous, but also synchronization between sites based on their ceramic assemblages is problematic.
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Mazar, Amihai, and Israel Carmi. "Radiocarbon Dates from Iron Age Strata at Tel Beth Shean and Tel Rehov." Radiocarbon 43, no. 3 (2001): 1333–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200038571.
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We discuss the significance of 32 radiocarbon dates from the archaeological sites of Tel Beth Shean and Tel Rehov in northern Israel. All dates are from Iron Age I and II archaeological contexts (12th–8th centuries BCE). Most of the dates were done on short-lived samples (seeds and olive pits), while some are on charred timber. The samples are organized in several homogeneous clusters according to their context. This series is one of the largest groups of 14C dates from the Iron Age in the Levant. The paper discusses the correlation between the 14C dates and the traditional archaeological dates of the same context. Results from two laboratories and two calibration curves are compared, showing some significant differences in one case. We conclude with an evaluation of the relevance of 14C dating for the current debate about the chronology of the Iron Age in Israel, and in historical periods in general.
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Goring-Morris, Nigel, Uri Baruch, Anna Belfer-Cohen, and Steve Rosen. "Epipalaeolithic occupations in Nahal Neqarot Rockshelter, Negev, Israel: Radiocarbon dating and identification of charred wood remains." Geoarchaeology 13, no. 2 (February 1998): 219–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/(sici)1520-6548(199802)13:2<219::aid-gea6>3.0.co;2-7.
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Boaretto, Elisabetta, A. J. Timothy Jull, Ayelet Gilboa, and Ilan Sharon. "Dating the Iron Age I/II Transition in Israel: First Intercomparison Results." Radiocarbon 47, no. 1 (2005): 39–55. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200052188.
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Nearly a decade ago, a different chronology than the conventional absolute chronology for the early Iron Age in Israel was suggested. The new, lower chronology “transfers” Iron Age I and Iron Age IIA contexts in Israel, traditionally dated to the 11th and 10th centuries BCE, to the 10th and 9th centuries, respectively. Thus, it places the Iron I|IIA transition at about 920–900 BCE. This alternative chronology carries important implications for Israelite history, historiography, and Bible research, as well as for the chronologies of other regions around the Mediterranean. Relevant radiocarbon data sets published to date, which were measured at different sites by different laboratories, were claimed to be incompatible. Therefore, the question of agreement between laboratories and dating methods needs to be addressed at the outset of any study attempting to resolve such a tight chronological dilemma. This paper addresses results pertaining to this issue as part of a comprehensive attempt to date the early Iron Age in Israel based on many sites, employing different measuring techniques in 2 laboratories. The intercomparison results demonstrate that: a) the agreement between the 2 laboratories is well within the standard in the 14C community and that no bias can be detected in either laboratory; and b) calculating the Iron I|IIa transition in 3 different ways (twice independently by the measurements obtained at the 2 labs and then by combining the dates of both) indicates that the lower chronology is the preferable one.
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Sharon, Ilan, Ayelet Gilboa, A. J. Timothy Jull, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "Report on the First Stage of the Iron Age Dating Project in Israel: Supporting a Low Chronology." Radiocarbon 49, no. 1 (2007): 1–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200041886.
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The traditional chronology of ancient Israel in the 11th–9th centuries BCE was constructed mainly by correlating archaeological phenomena with biblical narratives and with Bible-derived chronology. The chronology of Cyprus and Greece, and hence of points further west, are in turn based on that of the Levant. Thus, a newly proposed chronology, about 75–100 yr lower than the conventional one, bears crucial implications not only for biblical history and historiography but also for cultural processes around the Mediterranean. A comprehensive radiocarbon program was initiated to try and resolve this dilemma. It involves several hundreds of measurements from 21 sites in Israel. Creating the extensive databases necessary for the resolution of tight chronological problems typical of historical periods involves issues of quality control, statistical treatment, modeling, and robustness analysis. The results of the first phase of the dating program favor the new, lower chronology.
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Brock, F., and T. F. G. Higham. "AMS Radiocarbon Dating of Paleolithic-Aged Charcoal from Europe and the Mediterranean Rim Using ABOx-SC." Radiocarbon 51, no. 2 (2009): 839–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200056149.
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Radiocarbon dating of charcoal >25–30 kyr can be problematic due to contamination from exogeneous carbon and the variable effectiveness of 14C pretreatments to remove it. Bird et al. (1999) developed the ABOx-SC (acid-base-oxidation-stepped combustion) method for removing contaminants from older charcoal samples, which involves a harsher treatment than traditional acid-base-acid (ABA) pretreatments. This method has been shown to considerably improve the reliability of dating old charcoal from sites in Australia, South Africa, Brazil, and Malaysia (Bird et al. 1999, 2003; Turney et al. 2001; Santos et al. 2003; Higham et al. 2009a). Here, we apply the technique to material from 5 Paleolithic sites from Europe and the Mediterranean Rim. For 2 of the sites (Kebara Cave, Israel and Taramsa Hill, Egypt), the ABOx-SC and ABA methods produced similar dates. However, in the case of 1 site, the Grotta di Fumane in Italy, ABOx-SC pretreatment produced significantly older results from those of ABA methods, requiring substantial reinterpretation of the archaeological sequence of the site. The rigorous nature of the technique resulted in a high failure rate for sample pretreatment, and insufficient material survived the pretreatment for dating from Grotte des Pigeons, Morocco or Gorham's Cave, Gibraltar.
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Toffolo, Michael, Aren M. Maeir, Jeffrey R. Chadwick, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "Characterization of Contexts for Radiocarbon Dating: Results from the Early Iron Age at Tell Es-Safi/Gath, Israel." Radiocarbon 54, no. 3-4 (2012): 371–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200047159.
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The reliability of a radiocarbon date depends in part on the degree of precision and accuracy of the measurement. While analytical precision and accuracy can be improved by careful sample cleaning procedures and high laboratory standards, accuracy also depends upon the certainty to which the sample can be attributed to a specific material culture or event in the past. This might be questionable when based only on partial archaeological information. As a consequence, it is very difficult to date clear-cut chronological transitions within specific periods. This issue is particularly apparent in the case of Mediterranean Iron Age chronology, where 2 somewhat different perspectives are proposed, the “High Chronology” and the “Low Chronology,” which differ by ∼50 yr. Here, we present the preliminary results of an ongoing project that aims to characterize Iron Age archaeological contexts from the eastern Mediterranean, and to identify those contexts that are suitable for dating, in order to improve the accuracy of 14C dates. This study involves the analysis of sediments by means of FTIR spectrometry, soil micromorphology, phytolith and phosphate extraction, all of which provide insights into the site-formation and postdepositional processes at the different sites under investigation. These techniques, applied at Tell es-Safi/Gath (Israel), enabled us to better identify a secure context for dating.
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Rebollo, N. R., S. Weiner, F. Brock, L. Meignen, P. Goldberg, A. Belfer-Cohen, O. Bar-Yosef, and E. Boaretto. "New radiocarbon dating of the transition from the Middle to the Upper Paleolithic in Kebara Cave, Israel." Journal of Archaeological Science 38, no. 9 (September 2011): 2424–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2011.05.010.
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Burg, Avihu, Michael Zilberbrand, and Yoseph Yechieli. "Radiocarbon Variability in Groundwater in an Extremely Arid Zone—The Arava Valley, Israel." Radiocarbon 55, no. 2 (2013): 963–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200058112.
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Radiocarbon values of groundwater in main aquifers of the extremely arid Negev Desert and the Arava Valley, southern Israel, are used for studying the underground flow regime, particularly the complex connections between different aquifers and mixing of water bodies. The study shows that 14C can serve as a hydrological tracer in arid environments and that groundwater dating may be possible (although not very accurate) even in this extremely arid environment (precipitation, <50 mm/yr), where there is almost no vegetation. There are several aquifers in this region, some of which are deep (deeper than 500 m) and regional and contain mainly fossil water, while others are local and restricted to the Arava, much shallower (50–200 m) and are thought to contain historical to recent waters. Most of the current recharge to these shallow unconsolidated aquifers comes from flash floods that flow from the mountains rising on both sides of the valley. The groundwater in the deep aquifers has low 14C values (usually <5 pMC), implying old ages (preliminary ages >26,000 yr). Groundwater in the shallow aquifers characterized by higher 14C values (up to 60–70 pMC) imply younger ages and faster groundwater flow (recent recharge). This is also supported by the presence of tritium in some of the samples. A few exceptional values are explained by the unique mixing of water from different sources; another is due to a technical failure in the well.
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Yizhaq, Meirav, Genia Mintz, Illit Cohen, Hamudi Khalaily, Steve Weiner, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "Quality Controlled Radiocarbon Dating of Bones and Charcoal from the Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) of Motza (Israel)." Radiocarbon 47, no. 2 (2005): 193–206. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s003382220001969x.
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Radiocarbon dating of early Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) deposits at the site of Motza, Israel, was achieved by first prescreening many charcoal and bone samples in order to identify those that are in the most suitable state of preservation for dating. For assessing bone preservation, we determined the collagen contents, and by infrared spectroscopy the collagen purity. The collagen samples of the best preserved bones were then further characterized by their C/N ratios and amino acid compositions. Prescreening of the charcoal samples involved monitoring the changes in infrared and Raman spectra during the acid-alkali-acid treatments. In some samples, we noted that the clay content increased with additional alkali treatments. These samples were rejected, as this could result in erroneous dates. No differences were observed in the 14C dates between charcoal and bone collagen samples. The dates range from 10,600–10,100 cal BP, which is consistent with dates for the early PPNB from other sites. This is of much interest in terms of better understanding where and when domestication of animals began in this period, and how agriculture spread throughout the Levant.
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Boaretto, Elisabetta. "Radiocarbon and the Archaeological Record: An Integrative Approach for Building an Absolute Chronology for the Late Bronze and Iron Ages of Israel." Radiocarbon 57, no. 2 (2015): 207–16. http://dx.doi.org/10.2458/azu_rc.57.18554.
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The establishment of an absolute chronology for the Late Bronze and Iron Ages in the southern Levant would make it possible to use changes in material culture in order to study the impact of trade, dissemination of knowledge, and the impact of climate on historical processes. To achieve this, a detailed absolute chronology is needed for individual sites and on a regional scale with a resolution that can differentiate events within a century. To realize this challenging goal, only samples from well-established primary contexts ought to be studied. Such primary contexts (with “dating assemblages”) can be identified by combining macroscopic with microscopic observations. Chronological studies at the sites of Qubur el-Walaydah, Tel es-Safi, and in particular, Megiddo, demonstrate that high-resolution dating can be achieved, with very few outliers in the data sets. The major limitation on applying this approach is the fact that we are currently constrained to dating short-lived samples (charred seeds and olive pits) and collagen from bones. Thus, an immediate goal of radiocarbon research is to develop the ability to date other short-lived materials, such as organic material occluded in siliceous plant phytoliths, wood ash, and possibly organic residues preserved in pottery vessels.
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Guttman, J., J. Kronfeld, and I. Carmi. "Dating of Groundwater Recharge in Two Small Adjacent Aquifers in Israel and Their Initial 14C Activities." Radiocarbon 53, no. 1 (2011): 137–49. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s003382220003441x.
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Radiocarbon and tritium determinations were carried out in 2 adjacent small aquifers in Israel. These aquifers have small storage capacities and good hydraulic properties. Darcy calculations suggest that the aquifers contain young waters, ≃50 yr in age. 14C concentrations in the Pleistocene aquifer are between 23–60 pMC, with the lowest activity related to contamination by petroleum-based fertilizers with no 14C. 14C concentrations in the Judea Group aquifer range from 62 to 95 pMC. An apparent difference of ≃1000 yr is indicated for the average recharge age between the 2 aquifers. The tritium data suggests that the water in both aquifers is quite young. The 1000-yr difference is an artifact of initial isotopic fractionation differences through the unsaturated zone as established elsewhere for these 2 aquifers. When these individual fractionation factors (0.54 for the Pleistocene and 0.62 for the Judea Group) are used, it is revealed that both aquifers contain young water, in agreement with the Darcy calculation, which was recharged at the beginning of the period of thermonuclear atmospheric testing in the early 1960s.
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Weinstein-Evron, Mina, Reuven Yeshurun, Daniel Kaufman, Eileen Eckmeier, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "New 14C Dates for the Early Natufian of El-Wad Terrace, Mount Carmel, Israel." Radiocarbon 54, no. 3-4 (2012): 813–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200047469.
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The Natufian culture of the southern Levant played an integral role in the transition from simple huntergatherers to food-producing societies of the Neolithic, but the major Natufian hamlets are currently poorly dated. Moreover, none of these complex, continuously occupied base camps have delivered an adequate number of dates to enable an in-depth delineation of intra-Natufian developments. This paper presents the first results of our dating program at el-Wad terrace, Mount Carmel (Israel), one of the major Natufian hamlets of the “core area” of this culture. Thirteen accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon age determinations were obtained from 46 bone (both ungulate and human) and charcoal samples, originating in Early Natufian living surfaces, dwellings, and burials. The obtained dates are largely in agreement with the cultural affiliation of the samples (13–15 kyr cal BP). Two series of dates from different locations show good agreement with the stratigraphy. The ages of the burials clearly point to their being younger than the living surfaces seemingly associated with them. Presently, no burials may be linked with the major architectural phase of Early Natufian el-Wad. Our ongoing dating program and the processing of additional samples from refined contexts will help shed important light on the initial phases of the Natufian culture, habitation duration, intensity, and continuity, as well as the relationships between site features and stratigraphy.
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Regev, Johanna, Joe Uziel, Nahshon Szanton, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "Absolute Dating of the Gihon Spring Fortifications, Jerusalem." Radiocarbon 59, no. 4 (June 6, 2017): 1171–93. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/rdc.2017.37.
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AbstractOne of the most impressive structures in Jerusalem’s ancient landscape is the tower that was built to surround and protect the Gihon Spring, Jerusalem’s perennial water source. The structure, first discovered by Reich and Shukron (2004), encompasses the cave in which the spring sprouts from, with walls 7 m thick built of large boulders. The Spring Tower, along with the other features relating to it, were all attributed to the Middle Bronze Age II, based on their architectural and stratigraphical relationship, the type of architecture, and the pottery found. In the continued excavations carried out by the Israel Antiquities Authority along the outer, eastern face of the Spring Tower, it was noted that at least the northeast side of the tower was not built on bedrock, but rather on layers of sediment, which were sealed by the massive boulders at the base of the tower. In order to provide an absolute dating for the structure, two sections were sampled for radiocarbon (14C) dating beneath the foundation stones at two locations. Scenarios for the construction of the tower during Middle Bronze Age (MB) and Iron Age II are considered, based on the new 14C data, yielding a series of dates, the latest of which falls in the terminal phases of the 9th century BCE, alongside previous excavation data.
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Eckmeier, Eileen, Reuven Yeshurun, Mina Weinstein-Evron, Eugenia Mintz, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "14C Dating of the Early Natufian at El-Wad Terrace, Mount Carmel, Israel: Methodology and Materials Characterization." Radiocarbon 54, no. 3-4 (2012): 823–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200047470.
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The Natufian (15–11.5 kyr BP) sites in the southern Levant are characterized by a lack of macrobotanical remains, including charcoal, and poor preservation of bone collagen. As a result, only about 30 reliable radiocarbon dates are available for building a chronology of the Natufian period. Here, we present new 14C data from the Natufian site of el-Wad terrace that fall in the range of the Early Natufian period. Using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis, we investigated the environmental factors that influenced the preservation of material for 14C dating of the site, and we tested a modified pretreatment method for poorly preserved charcoal samples. The normal pretreatment protocol for 14C samples (W-ABA) removed more charcoal material than the modified method, which omits the first acid treatment (W-BA). This first acid step seems to enhance the extraction of humic substances during the subsequent base step. We found that the poor preservation of charcoal could be attributed to the presence of calcite, and therefore an alkaline pH of sediments. The most important factor determining bone collagen preservation may have been the hydrological setting, i.e. fluctuating water levels due to oversaturation of the dense sediments after rainfall.
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Lorentzen, Brita, Sturt W. Manning, and Yaacov Kahanov. "The 1st Millennium AD Mediterranean Shipbuilding Transition at Dor/Tantura Lagoon, Israel: Dating the Dor 2001/1 Shipwreck." Radiocarbon 56, no. 2 (2014): 667–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.2458/56.17445.
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During the 1st millennium AD, a fundamental set of changes in ship design, building methods, and sequence of construction took place in the Mediterranean. This process is known as the “Transition in Construction.” Before the Transition, ship hull design was based longitudinally on the ship's strakes (“shell-first”). By about the mid-1st millennium AD, the concept and construction of ship hulls had changed and were based on the ship's frames (“frame-based”). The Transition was a complex, nonlinear evolution. High-precision dating of the construction and service period of ships built during the 1st millennium is essential for elucidating the Transition process. Such dating precision is possible using radiocarbon wiggle-matching and Bayesian analysis techniques. The following study uses these techniques to determine the construction, launch, and final voyage (wrecking) dates of Dor 2001/1, a Byzantine shipwreck from northern Israel that was built based on frames. The results indicate that Dor 2001/1 was likely constructed and launched in the first third of the 6th century AD and was wrecked no later than AD 540. This is one of the earliest frame-based ships found in the Mediterranean so far. Dor 2001/1 is therefore an important shipwreck in understanding the Transition, since it provides evidence that frame-based hulls were already being built by the mid-1st millennium AD, about 500 yr earlier than has been commonly accepted.
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Lorentzen, Brita, Sturt W. Manning, and Yaacov Kahanov. "The 1st Millennium AD Mediterranean Shipbuilding Transition at Dor/Tantura Lagoon, Israel: Dating the Dor 2001/1 Shipwreck." Radiocarbon 56, no. 02 (2014): 667–78. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200049705.
Full textAbstract:
During the 1st millennium AD, a fundamental set of changes in ship design, building methods, and sequence of construction took place in the Mediterranean. This process is known as the “Transition in Construction.” Before the Transition, ship hull design was based longitudinally on the ship's strakes (“shell-first”). By about the mid-1st millennium AD, the concept and construction of ship hulls had changed and were based on the ship's frames (“frame-based”). The Transition was a complex, nonlinear evolution. High-precision dating of the construction and service period of ships built during the 1st millennium is essential for elucidating the Transition process. Such dating precision is possible using radiocarbon wiggle-matching and Bayesian analysis techniques. The following study uses these techniques to determine the construction, launch, and final voyage (wrecking) dates of Dor 2001/1, a Byzantine shipwreck from northern Israel that was built based on frames. The results indicate that Dor 2001/1 was likely constructed and launched in the first third of the 6th century AD and was wrecked no later than AD 540. This is one of the earliest frame-based ships found in the Mediterranean so far. Dor 2001/1 is therefore an important shipwreck in understanding the Transition, since it provides evidence that frame-based hulls were already being built by the mid-1st millennium AD, about 500 yr earlier than has been commonly accepted.
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Nawrocka, Danuta, Justyna Czernik, and Tomasz Goslar. "14C Dating of Carbonate Mortars from Polish and Israeli Sites." Radiocarbon 51, no. 2 (2009): 857–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200056162.
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The presented research involves the analysis and radiocarbon dating of 2 different groups of carbonate mortars, from Kraków, Poland and Hippos, Israel. Differences in composition of the mortars are reflected in different rates of their acid leaching. The Israeli mortars contain carbonate-basaltic aggregates, which may cause overestimation of 14C age. Preliminary processing of these samples (choice of selected grain-size fraction and collection of CO2 released during the first phase of the acid-leaching reaction), enabled us to obtain good agreement between the 14C dates and the age derived from historical contexts. A similar method of preliminary processing was applied to the carbonate mortars of the Medieval building in Kraków. The Polish samples represent carbonate mortars with some admixture of quartz aggregates, suggesting that they would be an ideal material for 14C dating. However, these samples contained white lumps of carbonates, the structure of which differed from that of the binder. These admixtures, possibly related to the hydrological conditions at the site and to the character of the ingredients, appeared modern, and if not removed prior to acid leaching, they could cause underestimation of the age of samples. The 14C dates of the mortars from the walls of the Small Scales building in Kraków are the first obtained for this object, and their sequence does not contradict archaeological indications on several phases of the building construction.
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Bruins, Hendrik J., Johannes van der Plicht, and Mordechai Haiman. "Desert Habitation History by 14C Dating of Soil Layers in Rural Building Structures (Negev, Israel): Preliminary Results from Horvat Haluqim." Radiocarbon 54, no. 3-4 (2012): 391–406. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200047160.
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Traditional archaeological approaches in the central Negev Desert used to employ excavation techniques in post-prehistoric periods in which stratigraphy is based on architecture, while material culture forms the basis for dating assessment and chronology. Such an approach was understandable, as it focused on the most visible remains of past human habitation. However, the detailed habitation record is in the soil rather than in the walls. Moreover, ceramics and stone tools in desert cultures often have limited time resolution in terms of absolute chronology. The rural desert site of Horvat Haluqim in the central Negev yielded 2 habitation periods with the traditional methodology: (1) Roman period, 2nd–3rd centuries CE; (2) Iron Age IIA, 10th century BCE. We have conducted at Horvat Haluqim initial excavations in small building remains that were never excavated before. Our excavation methodology focuses on detailed examination of the archaeological soil in building structures, coupled with accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating for chronology, and micromorphology of undisturbed soil samples to study stratigraphy and soil contents at the microscopic scale. Here, we report preliminary results, concentrating on the 14C dates. These suggest a much longer habitation history at the site during the Iron Age. The 14C dates obtained so far from these building remains cover Iron Age I, II, III, and the Persian period. The oldest calibrated date (charred C4 plants) in a rectangular building structure (L100) is 1129–971 BCE (60.5%, highest relative probability). The youngest calibrated date in a round building structure (L700) is 540–411 BCE (57.9%, highest relative probability). This excavation methodology provides additional “eyes” to look at past human habitation in the Negev Desert, seeing more periods and more detail than was possible with traditional schemes and ceramic dating.
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Poduska, Kristin M., Lior Regev, Francesco Berna, Eugenia Mintz, Ianir Milevski, Hamudi Khalaily, Steve Weiner, and Elisabetta Boaretto. "Plaster Characterization at the PPNB Site of Yiftahel (Israel) Including the Use of 14C: Implications for Plaster Production, Preservation, and Dating." Radiocarbon 54, no. 3-4 (2012): 887–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200047536.
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The Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) site of Yiftahel, Israel, contains abundant plaster floors. We surveyed the states of preservation of the plasters using an infrared spectroscopic assay that characterizes the extent of disorder of the atoms in the calcite crystal lattice. We identified the 3 best-preserved plaster samples that had disorder signatures most similar to modern plaster. We then studied the surface layers, fine-grained matrices, and large aggregates of these samples using micromorphology, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) microscopy, stable carbon and radiocarbon concentrations. Even though some of the plaster components have a geogenic appearance in micromorphology slides and in FTIR spectra, the 14C analyses show that all components were exposed to high temperatures and as a result were equilibrated with the 14C content of the atmosphere ∼10,000 yr ago. This implies that the plasters at Yiftahel were produced entirely from heat-altered calcite. We also show that these plasters have undergone significant diagenesis. The plaster component with the most disordered atomic signature, and hence the most similar in this respect to modern plaster, did indeed produce a 14C date close to the expected age.
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Shahack-Gross, Ruth, and Israel Finkelstein. "Iron Age Agriculture in the Negev Highlands? Methodological and Factual Comments on Bruins and van der Plicht 2017a (Radiocarbon Vol. 59, Nr. 1)." Radiocarbon 59, no. 4 (July 31, 2017): 1227–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/rdc.2017.56.
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AbstractThis is a reply to a rejoinder to our work in the Negev Highlands (Shahack-Gross and Finkelstein 2015) recently published by Bruins and van der Plicht in this journal (2017a). It addresses archaeological method and practice related to the way evidence for the timing of dry farming in the arid Negev Highlands, Israel, has been obtained. We highlight issues related to phytolith assemblages and livestock dung found in Negev Highlands sites as an indicator for presence/absence of cereal crops, and briefly discuss methods with which terraced agricultural plots in the region have been dated. We touch upon issues at the core of the scientific method, especially the need for proper controls and the importance of reporting full sets of data. Based on the new data presented by Bruins and van der Plicht (2017a, 2017b) we propose an alternative interpretation for their dating of a single terrace at Horvat Haluqim.
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Mazar, Amihai, and Christopher Bronk Ramsey. "14C Dates and the Iron Age Chronology of Israel: A Response." Radiocarbon 50, no. 2 (2008): 159–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200033506.
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Boaretto et al. (2005) published 68 radiocarbon dates relating to 30 samples from 10 Iron Age sites in Israel as part of their Early Iron Age Dating Project. Though the main goal of their paper was an interlaboratory comparison, they also presented results of Bayesian models, calculating the transition from Iron Age I to Iron Age II in Israel to be about 900 BCE instead of the conventional date of about 1000 BCE. Since this date has great importance for all of Eastern Mediterranean archaeology, in this paper we examine the results in light of the dates published in the above-mentioned article. Our paper was revised in light of new data and interpretations published by Sharon et al. (2007).Following a survey of the contexts and specific results at each site, we present several Bayesian models. Model C2 suggests the date range of 961–942 BCE (68% probability) for the transition from Iron Age I to Iron Age II, while Model C3 indicates a somewhat later date of 948–919 BCE (compare the date 992–961 BCE calculated at Tel Rehov for the same transition). In our Model D, we calculated this transition date at Megiddo as taking place between 967–943 BCE. Finally, we calculated the range of dates of major destruction levels marking the end of the Iron Age I, with the following results: Megiddo VIA: 1010–943 BCE; Yoqne'am XVII: 1045–997 BCE; Tell Qasile X: 1039–979 BCE; Tel Hadar: 1043–979 BCE (all in the 68.2% probability range). Figure 4 indicates that the transition between Iron I and II probably occurred between these above-mentioned destruction events and the dates achieved in our Models C2 or C3, namely during the first half of the 10th century BCE.This study emphasizes the sensitivity of Bayesian models to outliers, and for reducing or adding dates from the models. This sensitivity should be taken into account when using Bayesian models for interpreting radiometric dates in relation to subtle chronological questions in historical periods.
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Hazan, N., M. Stein, A. Agnon, S. Marco, D. Nadel, J. F. W. Negendank, M. J. Schwab, and D. Neev. "The late Quaternary limnological history of Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee), Israel." Quaternary Research 63, no. 1 (January 2005): 60–77. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.yqres.2004.09.004.
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The freshwater Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) and the hypersaline Dead Sea are remnant lakes, evolved from ancient water bodies that filled the tectonic depressions along the Dead Sea Transform (DST) during the Neogene–Quartenary periods. We reconstructed the limnological history (level and composition) of Lake Kinneret during the past ∼40,000 years and compared it with the history of the contemporaneous Lake Lisan from the aspect of the regional and global climate history. The lake level reconstruction was achieved through a chronological and sedimentological investigation of exposed sedimentary sections in the Kinnarot basin trenches and cores drilled at the Ohalo II archeological site. Shoreline chronology was established by radiocarbon dating of organic remains and of Melanopsis shells.The major changes in Lake Kinneret level were synchronous with those of the southern Lake Lisan. Both lakes dropped significantly ∼42,000, ∼30,000, 23,800, and 13,000 yr ago and rose ∼39,000, 26,000, 5000, and 1600 yr ago. Between 26,000 and 24,000 yr ago, the lakes merged into a unified water body and lake level achieved its maximum stand of ∼170 m below mean sea level (m bsl). Nevertheless, the fresh and saline water properties of Lake Kinneret and Lake Lisan, respectively, have been preserved throughout the 40,000 years studied. Calcium carbonate was always deposited as calcite in Lake Kinneret and as aragonite in Lake Lisan–Dead Sea, indicating that the Dead Sea brine (which supports aragonite production) never reached or affected Lake Kinneret, even during the period of lake high stand and convergence. The synchronous level fluctuation of lakes Kinneret, Lisan, and the Holocene Dead Sea is consistent with the dominance of the Atlantic–Mediterranean rain system on the catchment of the basin and the regional hydrology. The major drops in Lake Kinneret–Lisan levels coincide with the timing of cold spells in the North Atlantic that caused a shut down of rains in the East Mediterranean and the lakes drainage area.
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Joy Kagan, Elisa, Dafna Langgut, Elisabetta Boaretto, Frank Herald Neumann, and Mordechai Stein. "Dead Sea Levels during the Bronze and Iron Ages." Radiocarbon 57, no. 2 (2015): 237–52. http://dx.doi.org/10.2458/azu_rc.57.18560.
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The history of lake-level changes at the Dead Sea during the Holocene was determined mainly by radiocarbon dating of terrestrial organic debris. This article reviews the various studies that have been devoted over the past 2 decades to defining the Dead Sea levels during the Bronze and Iron Ages (≃5.5 to 2.5 ka cal BP) and adds new data and interpretation. In particular, we focus on research efforts devoted to refining the chronology of the sedimentary sequence in the Ze'elim Gully, a key site of paleoclimate investigation in the European Research Council project titled Reconstructing Ancient Israel. The Bronze and Iron Ages are characterized by significant changes in human culture, reflected in archaeological records in which sharp settlement oscillations over relatively short periods of time are evident. During the Early Bronze, Intermediate Bronze, Middle Bronze, and Late Bronze Ages, the Dead Sea saw significant level fluctuations, reaching in the Middle Bronze an elevation of ≃370 m below mean sea level (bmsl), and declining in the Late Bronze to below 414 m bmsl. At the end of the Late Bronze Age and upon the transition to the Iron Age, the lake recovered slightly and rose to ≃408 m bmsl. This recovery reflected the resumption of freshwater activity in the Judean Hills, which was likely accompanied by more favorable hydrological-environmental conditions that seem to have facilitated the wave of Iron Age settlement in the region.
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Ruan, J., F. Kherbouche, D. Genty, D. Blamart, H. Cheng, F. Dewilde, S. Hachi, L. R. Edwards, E. Régnier, and J. L. Michelot. "Evidence of a prolonged drought ca. 4200 yr BP correlated with prehistoric settlement abandonment from the Gueldaman GLD1 Cave, N-Algeria." Climate of the Past Discussions 11, no. 4 (July 3, 2015): 2729–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/cpd-11-2729-2015.
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Abstract. Middle Holocene cultures have been widely studied round the E-Mediterranean basin in the last 30 years and past cultural activities have been commonly linked with regional climate changes. However, in many cases such linkage is equivocal, in part due to existing climatic evidence that has been derived from areas outside the distribution of ancient settlements, leading to uncertainty from complex spatial heterogeneity in both climate and demography. A few high-resolution well-dated paleoclimate records were recently established using speleothems in the Central and E-Mediterranean basin, however, the scarcity of such records in the western part of the Mediterranean prevents us from correlating past climate evolutions across the basin and deciphering climate–culture relation at fine time scales. Here we report the first decadal-resolved Mid-Holocene climate proxy records from the W-Mediterranean basin based on the stable carbon and oxygen isotopes analyses of two U/Th dated stalagmites from the Gueldaman GLD1 Cave in N-Algeria. Comparison of our records with those from Italy and Israel reveals synchronous (multi) centennial dry phases centered at ca. 5600, ca. 5200 and ca. 4200 yr BP across the Mediterranean basin. New calibrated radiocarbon dating constrains reasonably well the age of rich anthropogenic deposits (e.g., faunal remains, pottery, charcoal) excavated inside the cave, which allows the comparison between in situ evidence of human occupation and of climate change. This approach shows that the timing of a prolonged drought at ca. 4400–3800 yr BP blankets the onset of cave abandonment shortly after ca. 4403 cal yr BP, supporting the hypothesis that a climate anomaly may have played a role in this cultural disruption.
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Ruan, J., F. Kherbouche, D. Genty, D. Blamart, H. Cheng, F. Dewilde, S. Hachi, R. L. Edwards, E. Régnier, and J. L. Michelot. "Evidence of a prolonged drought ca. 4200 yr BP correlated with prehistoric settlement abandonment from the Gueldaman GLD1 Cave, Northern Algeria." Climate of the Past 12, no. 1 (January 15, 2016): 1–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-1-2016.
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Abstract. Middle Holocene cultures have been widely studied around the Eastern-Mediterranean basin in the last 30 years and past cultural activities have been commonly linked with regional climate changes. However, in many cases such linkage is equivocal, in part due to existing climatic evidence that has been derived from areas outside the distribution of ancient settlements, leading to uncertainty from complex spatial heterogeneity in both climate and demography. A few high-resolution well-dated paleoclimate records were recently established using speleothems in the Central and Eastern-Mediterranean basin, however, the scarcity of such records in the western part of the Mediterranean prevents us from correlating past climate evolutions across the basin and deciphering climate–culture relation at fine timescales. Here we report the first decadal-resolved Mid-Holocene climate proxy records from the Western-Mediterranean basin based on the stable carbon and oxygen isotopes analyses of two U/Th dated stalagmites from the Gueldaman GLD1 Cave in Northern Algeria. Comparison of our records with those from Italy and Israel reveals synchronous (multi) centennial dry phases centered at ca. 5600, ca. 5200 and ca. 4200 yr BP across the Mediterranean basin. New calibrated radiocarbon dating constrains reasonably well the age of rich anthropogenic deposits (e.g., faunal remains, pottery, charcoal) excavated inside the cave, which allows the comparison between in situ evidence of human occupation and of climate change. This approach shows that the timing of a prolonged drought at ca. 4400–3800 yr BP blankets the onset of cave abandonment shortly after ca. 4403 cal yr BP, supporting the hypothesis that a climate anomaly may have played a role in this cultural disruption.
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Mazar, Amihai, and Nota Kourou. "Greece and the Levant in the 10th–9th centuries BC. A view from Tel Rehov." Opuscula. Annual of the Swedish Institutes at Athens and Rome, no. 12 (November 2019): 369–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.30549/opathrom-12-12.
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Tel Rehov in the Beth Shean Valley, northern Israel, yielded 14 Greek (mainly Euboean and Attic) pottery sherds from the Late Protogeometric to Middle Geometric periods. This is the largest number of Greek sherds from these periods found at a single site in the Southern Levant in stratigraphic contexts. Since the Tel Rehov strata, well-dated by a large number of 14C dates, yielded some of the richest assemblages of finds from the 10–9th centuries BC in this region, the Greek sherds provide an opportunity to examine both their absolute dating in context and to discuss the nature of the relations between the two regions. Six of the 14 sherds were published previously (Coldstream & Mazar 2003); in the present paper, we describe the finds from Tel Rehov and other sites in the Southern Levant according to five chronological divisions, update previous discussions, and add new data and discussion based on a revised understanding of the site’s stratigraphy and interpretation of the radiocarbon data. To a large degree, the results confirm the chronological framework established by Nicolas Coldstream in 1968, although in a few cases some changes may be suggested which depend on interpretation of the radiometric data. As to the nature of the relations between Greece, in particular Euboea, and the Levant in this period, we refer to earlier ideas concerning these relations and emphasize new avenues of research raised by the discovery that copper from the Arabah Valley mines, which operated until the mid-9th century BC, served for producing ceremonial cauldrons in Greece. It is suggested that Tel Rehov played a role in such an international trading system, involving a route through Transjordan and the Jordan Valley.
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Enzel, Yehouda, Revital Bookman (Ken Tor), David Sharon, Haim Gvirtzman, Uri Dayan, Baruch Ziv, and Mordechai Stein. "Late Holocene climates of the Near East deduced from Dead Sea level variations and modern regional winter rainfall." Quaternary Research 60, no. 3 (July 2003): 263–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.yqres.2003.07.011.
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AbstractThe Dead Sea is a terminal lake of one of the largest hydrological systems in the Levant and may thus be viewed as a large rain gauge for the region. Variations of its level are indicative of the climate variations in the region. Here, we present the decadal- to centennial-resolution Holocene lake-level curve of the Dead Sea. Then we determine the regional hydroclimatology that affected level variations. To achieve this goal we compare modern natural lake-level variations and instrumental rainfall records and quantify the hydrology relative to lake-level rise, fall, or stability. To quantify that relationship under natural conditions, rainfall data pre-dating the artificial Dead Sea level drop since the 1960s are used. In this respect, Jerusalem station offers the longest uninterrupted pre-1960s rainfall record and Jerusalem rains serve as an adequate proxy for the Dead Sea headwaters rainfall. Principal component analysis indicates that temporal variations of annual precipitation in all stations in Israel north of the current 200 mm yr−1 average isohyet during 1940–1990 are largely synchronous and in phase (∼70% of the total variance explained by PC1). This station also represents well northern Jordan and the area all the way to Beirut, Lebanon, especially during extreme drought and wet spells. We (a) determine the modern, and propose the past regional hydrology and Eastern Mediterranean (EM) climatology that affected the severity and length of droughts/wet spells associated with multiyear episodes of Dead Sea level falls/rises and (b) determine that EM cyclone tracks were different in average number and latitude in wet and dry years in Jerusalem. The mean composite sea level pressure and 500-mb height anomalies indicate that the potential causes for wet and dry episodes span the entire EM and are rooted in the larger-scale northern hemisphere atmospheric circulation. We also identified remarkably close association (within radiocarbon resolution) between climatic changes in the Levant, reflected by level changes, and culture shifts in this region.
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Whiting, Charlotte. "Telling it as it was in the southern Levant: a task of biblical proportions? - Thomas E. Levy & Thomas Higham (ed.). The Bible and Radiocarbon Dating: Archaeology, Text and Science. xii+450 pages, 64 illustrations, 30 tables. 2005. London/Oakville: Equinox; 1-84553-057-8 paperback £24.99 & $39.95 & 1-84553-056-X hardback £75 & $135. - Israel Finkelstein & Neil Asher Silberman. David and Solomon: In Search of the Bible's Sacred Kings and the Roots of the Western Tradition. viii+344 pages, 16 figures, tables. 2006. New York: Free Press/Simon & Schuster; 0-7432-4362-5 hardback £17.99. - Raz Kletter. Just Past? The Making of Israeli Archaeology. xx+362 pages, 34 illustrations, 6 tables. 2006. London: Equinox; 1-84553-085-3 hardback £35 & $50." Antiquity 81, no. 311 (March 1, 2007): 210–13. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0003598x00094977.
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Vogel, J. C., and M. A. Geyh. "Radiometric dating of hillslope calcrete in the Negev Desert, Israel." South African Journal of Science 104, no. 11/12 (November 1, 2008). http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/s0038-23532008000600025.
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The radiometric dating of calcrete is often problematical because impurities and open system conditions affect the apparent ages obtained. By applying both radiocarbon and uranium-series dating to calcrete in colluvium, it is shown that such conditions can be identified. In correlation with the stratigraphy, it is found that partial recrystallization severely decreases the radiocarbon ages of the upslope and shallower samples further down, whereas incorporation of limestone fragments from bedrock significantly increases the apparent ages of some of the uranium-series samples. It is concluded that the hillslope calcrete at the study site near Sede Beker in the Negev Desert, Israel, mainly developed shortly after 40 kyr ago, at a time when the Jordan Valley was being inundated to form the fossil Lake Lisan. Since their formation would have required higher rainfall than today, the results provide further evidence that the whole region was experiencing an increase in precipitation.
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"The impact on archaeology of radiocarbon dating by accelerator mass spectrometry." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Mathematical and Physical Sciences 323, no. 1569 (August 25, 1987): 23–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsta.1987.0070.
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Radiocarbon dating by accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) differs fundamentally from conventional 14 C dating because it is based on direct determination of the ratio of 14 C : 12 C atoms rather than on counting the radioactivity of 14 C. It is therefore possible to measure much lower levels of 14 C in a sample much more rapidly than the conventional technique allows. Consequently, minimum sample size is reduced approximately 1000-fold (from ca . 1 g to ca . 1 mg) and the datable time span of the method can, theoretically, be doubled (from ca . 40 ka to ca . 80 ka). As yet, extension of the time span has not been achieved, because of the effects of sample contamination, but the great reduction in sample size is already having a major impact on archaeology by extending the range of organic remains that can be dated, and, especially, by allowing the archaeologist and the radiocarbon chemist to adopt more selective sampling strategies. This greater selectivity, in the field and the laboratory, is the most important archaeological attribute of AMS 14 C dating. It allows on-site chronological consistency to be tested by multiple sampling; archaeological materials to be dated that contain too little C, or are too rare or valuable, to be dated by the conventional method; and the validity of a date to be tested by isolating and independently dating particular fractions in chemically complex samples. AMS laboratories have only been processing archaeological samples since 1982, but already several, notably those at Oxford, Toronto, and Tucson, Arizona, have made substantial contributions to archaeological dating. The Oxford laboratory has, since 1983, processed ca. 1200 samples and published over 500 archaeological dates. Particular attention is therefore paid in this paper to the archaeological significance of the dates obtained at Oxford. The ams 14C technique can contribute to archaeological dating in two complementary ways: (i) by testing prevailing assumptions about the antiquity of indirectly dated objects and materials, i.e. verification or falsification dating; and (ii) by dating new or existing archaeological sequences in greater detail than can be achieved by the conventional 14 C technique, i.e. the building of new and more detailed chronologies. In this paper, recent archaeological applications of the new technique are reviewed under these two headings: verification dating applied to the origin and spread of anatomically modern humans in Europe and the Americas, to putative evidence for early (pre-Neolithic) agriculture in Israel and Egypt, and to the dating of rare Palaeolithic and later artefacts; and the building of new and more-detailed chronologies illustrated by reference to Upper Palaeolithic sequences in Europe, Mesolithic—Neolithic sequences in Southwest Asia, and Neolithic-Bronze Age chronologies in Britain. It is concluded that the development and application of the ams technique represents a revolution in 14 C dating that will have a profound impact on many aspects of archaeological research.
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Thomas, Zachary. "The Political History of Megiddo in the Early Iron Age and the Ambiguities of Evidence." Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History, May 27, 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/janeh-2020-0020.
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Abstract This article reviews the major problems in the political history of Megiddo during the early Iron Age (Iron Age I–IIA), at the time of the early monarchic period in Israel (eleventh–ninth centuries BCE). Megiddo has been central to an ongoing debate over the nature of the early monarchic period in Israel and the exact chronology of the Iron Age I–IIA periods. This importance derives both from the extensive excavations of the relevant strata at Megiddo (VIA, VB and VA-IVB) as well as Megiddo’s appearance in relevant historical sources, namely the Hebrew Bible, which claims that Solomon “built” Megiddo, and its appearance in the campaign list of pharaoh Sheshonq I. Though the fragment of a stela of Sheshonq I was found at Megiddo, it was only found after having been discarded and so its stratigraphic attribution is unclear. Radiocarbon dating from these strata has assisted to some degree but still left dating and historical questions quite open. This article will demonstrate that the political history of Megiddo during the early Iron Age is beset with ambiguities in the evidence, which have been divided into seven ambiguities for the purpose of the discussion here. When these ambiguities are taken into account, it becomes clear that the interpreter has much latitude in making their reconstruction, specifically in how they date strata and associate them with putative historical developments. Different cases can be made for associating particular strata and their termination with Solomon, Sheshonq or even later kings, but none can claim to objectively be the correct or superior reconstruction.
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Shamir, Orit. "Garments and Shrouds of Egyptian and Nubian Pilgrims from Qasr el-Yahud, Ninth Century CE." BAF-Online: Proceedings of the Berner Altorientalisches Forum 1 (March 22, 2017). http://dx.doi.org/10.22012/baf.2016.21.
Full textAbstract:
Qasr el-Yahud, situated on the west bank of the Jordan River nearby Jericho, features the Monastery of Saint John the Baptist, believed to be the traditional site of the Baptism of Jesus1 and has a centuries-long tradition of ‘washing of the lepers’. Byzantine and Medieval authors attributed the waters of the Jordan river a special power to heal lepers who bathed in them, especially at the spot where Jesus was baptized.After the site became sacred, traditions developed that were associated with the holy features of the water and its curative properties. When the emperor Constantius became ill, he asked to bath in the Jordan. In 1983 a rescue excavation at the site revealed thirty-four skeletons, probably representing a hospital population with cases of tuberculosis, leprosy and facial disfigurement. Such individuals travelled enormous distances, attracted to the site in the hope of washing away their illness. Anthropological evidence indicates that the individuals were probably Egyptian in origin, while structural analysis of the skulls proved that some were Nubian. They were buried in a Christian manner, lying on their backs, facing the rising sun. Some of the burial customs at this site, such as placing seeds from the Egyptian Balsam tree (Balanites Aegyptiaca) in the hands of the deceased, conform to Egyptian traditions.The arid climate of the Judean Desert helped to preserve 250 textiles, among them many examples comprising two different textiles or more sewn together or patched one on another. Radiocarbon dating of the textiles placed the date in the eighth to ninth centuries (787–877 CE). The textiles are made of linen and cotton, sometimes decorated with wool tapestry, brocade and selfbands. They include many cut-to-shape tunics except one which is woven-to-shape, head coverings, bandages and shrouds. This research combines historic sources, anthropological and botanic evidence, burial practices with the textiles. The material is of great importance because it gives us idea about the burial costumes used by Christians at the late Islamic period. In addition, those are the only textiles from this period found in Israel.