Turk_dating

ARHEOLOŠKI VESTNIK (ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA)

ARHEOLOŠKI VESTNIK 54, 2003

Ivan TURK, Dragomir SKABERNE in Žiga ŠMIT:

Reliability of Uranium Series Dating in Divje babe I
Effect of sedimentation gaps on uranium concentrations in sediments and on uranium series dating

Abstract

The contribution deals with four U series (²³⁰Th/²³⁴U) dates from the Divje babe I site in connection with geochemical and other analyses of sediments. We attempt with a combination of data of all analyses to explain the difference between U series and other radiometric ages (¹⁴C AMS and ESR), relating to the same samples or layers.

Absorption of U in bones and sediments of Divje babe I took place in an open system. Its binding did not take place linearly, nor was there early or late uptake after deposition of the bones as models envisage, but we are actually dealing with a combination of all three possibilities. Extended gaps in sedimentation greatly influenced mobilisation and absorption of U. They lead to remobilisation of U, which is the suspected cause of irregularities and inaccuracies in determining age by the U series method, and indirectly also the ESR method.

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