THE DISTRIBUTION OF AGE DISPARITIES IN CONIFER CHARCOAL FROM ARCHAEOLOGICAL STRUCTURES AND APPLICATIONS FOR TREE-RING-RADIOCARBON DATING

ABSTRACT Age disparities between charcoal samples and their context are a well-known problem in archaeological chronometry, and even small offsets could affect the accuracy of high-precision wiggle-matched dates. In many cases of taphonomic or anthropogenic loss of the outermost rings, sapwood-based methods for estimating cutting dates are not always applicable, especially with charcoal. In these instances, wiggle-matched terminus post quem (TPQ) dates are often reconciled with subjective or ad hoc approaches. This study examines the distribution of age disparities caused by ring loss and other factors in a large dendroarchaeological dataset. Probability density functions describing the random distribution of age disparities are then fit to the empirical distributions. These functions are tested on an actual wiggle-matched non-cutting date from the literature to evaluate accuracy in a single case. Simulations are then presented to demonstrate how an age offset function can be applied in OxCal outlier models to yield accurate dating in archaeological sequences with short intervals between dated episodes, even if all samples are non-cutting dates.

HOARDS OF THE 4th - 3rd CENTURIES BC PANTICAPAEUM BRONZE COINS FROM THE EXCAVATIONS IN THE MANITRA SETTLEMENT (THE EASTERN CRIMEA)

В 2018 г. в ходе раскопок античного поселения Манитра, расположенного в Восточном Крыму, были найдены три клада пантикапейских бронзовых монет IV-III вв. до н. э. Два из них (24 и 62 монеты) относятся к начальной фазе денежного кризиса на Боспоре и были сокрыты в первой четверти III в. до н. э. Третий клад (10 монет) принадлежит более раннему времени, последней трети IV в. до н. э. Публикуемые комплексы являются ценным свидетельством экономического состояния Боспора и денежного обращения на хоре в конце IV - первой четверти III в. до н. э. Дата двух первых кладов ок. 290-275 гг. до н. э. является terminus post quem для жизнедеятельности поселения Манитра. In 2018, three hoards of the 4 and 3 centuries BC Panticapaeum bronze coins were found during excavations in the Settlement of Manitra located in the Eastern Crimea, in Kerch environments. Two of them (consisting of 24 and 62 coins) belong to the initial phase of the monetary crisis on the Bosporus and were concealed in the first quarter of the 3 century BC. The third hoard is dated to the last third of the 4 century BC, consisting of ten coins. The assemblages are the valuable evidence for the Bosporan economic situation and currency in the chora in the late 4 to the first quarter of the 3 century BC. The latest coins in the hoards date to c. 290-275 BC, providing a terminus post quem for the end of the Manitra settlement life.

LOWER DNIESTER (SNAKE) DEFENSIVE RAMPART:TOPOGRAPHY, ARCHAEOLOGY AND DATING

The Lower Dniester (Snake) Defensive rampart on the border of the Roman Empire is one of the largest and most significant objects of the ancient Roman fortification of the Northern Ponticregion but at the same time the most controversial and least known not only to general public but to professional historiansas well. Over the last decade, based on a detailed study of cartographic sources and materials of numerous archaeological surveys it has been possible to reconstruct completely the line of this rampart which turned out to be the longest of all earthen ramparts in Budzhak or Bessarabia (Sapozhnikov 2011; 2013; 2020a). This paper is devoted to such components of this unique monument of military architecture and engineering as topography and archaeology as well as relative and absolute dating both by traditional methods and by the method of soil-genetic chronology. Today we can say that the rampart runs on the right bank of the Dniester from the Sergeevka village near the Black Sea to the right bank of the river Botna near the Plop-Stubei village for 123—125 km, and the total length of this structure (with additional fortifications and protection of the camps) reached 134—136 km. Since the rampart lies on the Late Scythiansettlements Mologa II and Vesele III its terminus post quem can be defined as the early 3rd century AD. Terminus ante quem according to soil-chronological studies by F. N. Lisetsky is limited to the second half of the 3rd century AD. Based on the historical situation in Tyras and its environs during this period the authors concluded that such a significant structure was built by the Romans (or the local population under their leadership) in the first half of the 3rd century AD.

On the chronology of the Anonymous Commentary to Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos: Analysis of the astronomical evidence

In this paper, a proposal is made that the Anonymous Commentary to Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos (Anon. in Ptol.) was composed not before 467 and not after 575 AD. In establishing the terminus post quem and the terminus ante quem, the Author relies on astronomical data provided by the Anonymous himself in his commentary to Ptolemy, Tetrabiblos (=Ptol. Tetr.) II.10 (p. 76, ll. 16-29 Wolf). In this passage, he reports that his master completely succeeded in interpreting the appearance of a celestial beam (δοκός) as a sign of a great loss of trunks, after which a naval battle took place where many ships were sunk; moreover, the master of the anonymous commentator predicted that the comet would remain visible until the end of Mercury’s retrogradation, and so it happened. As will be seen below, it is possible to crosscheck all this data to obtain a precise date of the comet’s appearance: 467 AD, 1 year before the naval battle of Cape Bon (468 AD). These years are also consistent with the dating that can be obtained from one of the horoscopes transmitted by the anonymous commentary (p. 98 Wolf), which corresponds to a birth that actually took place in Lower Egypt on 25 June 448 AD.

The West African Stone Age

In terms of artefacts present, West Africa is not short of evidence relating to human occupation during the Quaternary. The problem hitherto has been one of context and dating; there has been some progress in this regard but poor preservation conditions still restrict the presence of organic remains prior to the beginning of the Late Stone Age (LSA). Nonetheless, an excellent climatic record for the last 520 kya has been established on the basis of cores obtained from Lake Bosumtwi. Stratified Acheulean sites have been excavated at Sansandé and Ravin Blanc on the Falémé River in eastern Senegal. The succeeding Sangoan is an entity for which a consistent and reliable classification remains to be achieved. Despite this, excavations at Anyama in the Ivory Coast have produced a sizeable quantity of material, with a terminus post quem thermoluminescence (TL) date of 254 ± 51 kya. Our knowledge of the Middle Stone Age (MSA) has been transformed by the work carried out at Ounjougou in Mali. More than twenty-five distinct archaeological occurrences have been detected, extending from about 75 to 25 kya. The MSA elsewhere is abundant, and at Adrar Bous is in place beneath the Aterian, but much of it lacks a good stratigraphic context. The following dry period, the Ogolian, must have had a dramatic effect on human settlement, and the majority of LSA sites postdate this episode. There is no apparent link between them and the MSA. Nonetheless, the LSA at Shum Lake in Cameroon does have 14C dates in the range 32,700–12,800 BP. The most significant LSA site is Iwo Eleru, notable for the presence of modern human remains with “archaic” characteristics. A parallel situation has been detected at Ishango in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo both indicating a hitherto unsuspected “deep substructure” in Late Pleistocene African populations.

X-ray computed tomography for non-invasive dendrochronology reveals a concealed double panelling on a painting from Rubens’ studio

Dating the wood from historical art objects is a crucial step to ascertain their production time, and support or refute attribution to an artist or a workshop. Dendrochronology is commonly used for this purpose but requires access to the tree-ring pattern in the wood, which can be hindered by preparatory layers, polychromy, wax, or integrated frames. Here we implemented non-invasive dendrochronology based on X-ray computed tomography (CT) to examine a painting on panel attributed to Rubens’ studio and its presumed dating around 1636 CE. The CT images achieved a resolution of 37.3 micron and revealed a double panelling, which was concealed by oak strips covering all four edges. The back (visible) board is made of deciduous oak (Quercus subg. Quercus), the most common type of wood used in 17th-century Netherlandish workshops, and was dated terminus post quem after 1557 CE. However, the front (original) board used for the painting has been identified through examination of the wood anatomy as a tropical wood, probably Swietenia sp., a species seldom used in Netherlandish paintings, and remains undated. Its very presence attests the global character of 17th-century trade, and demonstrates the use of exotic species in Flemish studios. The date of the oak board refutes previous results and suggests that this board was trimmed to meet the size of the tropical one, having been glued to it for conservation purposes or with deceiving intentions to pretend that the painting was made on an oak panel. These revelations have opened new lines of art historical inquiry and highlight the potential of X-ray CT as a powerful tool for non-invasive study of historical art objects to retrieve their full history.

Islamic Tombstones Reused during the Early Islamic Period from Ramla, Capital of Jund Filastin

In different excavations in Ramla, fragmented Muslim tombstones were uncovered in secondary use, providing a terminus post quem in the mid or late 10th-century AD for their reuse. As showed by the ceramic evidence, the time elapsed between the last interments and the reusing of the tombstones stones as building material was at the most 70 years. Reusing of tombstones is a common archeological occurrence. In most cases, the reutilizing is carried out after a time enough to cut the emotional link between the burial and the builders, or when an ethnical replacement occurred, and new dwellers had no emotional relationship with the previous ones. The phenomenon in Ramla is then an exception. What were the circumstances that led to such an unusual comportment? One possible explanation is the occurrence of a traumatic event, such an earthquake. Following the dates on the stones, it is evident that the event could have occurred only after 961 AD. This could fit the tremor in 1033 AD, two generations after the erection of the tombstones. As for the lifespan of the reconstruction layers, the pottery assemblages related to them, show ceramic types diagnostic to the Fatimid period, not in use in the Crusader period. This, together with the simultaneous abandonment of sites in the city, suggest that the destruction of the reconstruction strata was caused by another catastrophic event, perhaps the 1068 AD tremor. If so, we have a hatch to a well-defined period, limited by two powerful natural catastrophes, that provide termini ante and post quem for the ephemeral reconstruction of the city.

Towards timing and stratigraphy of the Bronze Age burial mound royal tomb (Königsgrab) of Seddin (Brandenburg, northeastern Germany)

This study uses an integrated multi-method geoarcheological and geochronological approach to contribute to the understanding of the timing and stratigraphy of the monumental burial mound royal tomb (Königsgrab) of Seddin. We show that the hitherto established radiocarbon-based terminus post quem time frame for the construction of the burial mound of 910–800 BCE is supported by optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating. The radiocarbon samples were obtained from a substrate directly underneath the burial mound which supposedly represents the late glacial/Holocene soil that was buried below the structure. We use sedimentological (grain-size analyses) and geochemical analyses (element analyses, carbon, pH, and electric conductivity determinations) to reassess and confirm this hypothesis. In addition to the burial age associated with the last anthropogenic reworking during construction of the burial mound, the OSL dating results provide new insights into the primary deposition history of the original substrates used for the structure. In combination with regional information about the middle and late Quaternary development of the environment, our data allow us to provide a synoptic genetic model of the landscape development and the multiphase stratigraphy of the royal tomb of Seddin within the Late Bronze Age cultural group “Seddiner Gruppe” of northern Germany. Based on our initial experiences with OSL dating applied to the sediments of a burial mound – to the best of our knowledge the first attempt in Europe – we propose a minimal invasive approach to obtain datable material from burial mounds and discuss related opportunities and challenges.

Continuity or Rupture? Further Thoughts on the ‘Classical Revolution’ (2500+ Years after Salamis)

In the last half-dozen years, the early fifth-century BC ‘Classical Revolution’ in Greek sculpture and painting has become ‘hot’ again.1 Did it develop gradually, incrementally, and logically out of the Archaic, or emerge quite suddenly (if so, when?), or involve some combination of both? Since chronology drives the debate, as usual in the study of ancient material culture, to restate some basic principles seems appropriate. I. Absolute chronologies, independently derived, should always underpin and guide relative ones. II. In a relative/gradualist chronology, the ‘latest’ feature of an artifact determines its stylistic terminus post quem, and thus its place in the series.2 Nevertheless: III. Such relative dates cannot be turned simply or unproblematically into history.3 IV. Nothing new comes out of nothing (even Athena came from the head of Zeus). Yet: V. Supposed ‘predecessors’ to a revolution on a gradualist chronology often turn out to be hesitant reactions to it when more data emerge.4 In the present case, unfortunately, the Sicyonian, Argive, Aeginetan, and Athenian bronzes celebrated in the texts are all lost, together with all contemporary wall and panel painting; no absolute chronology exists for early fifth-century East Greek sculpture;5 and West Greek sculpture clearly trails that of the mainland. So by default, our spotlight must fall largely on the marble sculpture of Athens, Aegina, and the Cyclades, and on red-figure vase-painting.