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Collecting and Caring for Tree-Ring Samples in the Southwest

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 January 2017

Ronald H. Towner
Ronald H. Towner*
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, 1215 E Lowell, Tucson, AZ 85721, (rht@email.arizona.edu)
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Abstract

Dendrochronology is the most precise and accurate dating technique available to archaeologists, with resolution to the year and sometimes season. As biological specimens from human-produced contexts, dendroarchaeological samples inherently contain three kinds of information: chronological, behavioral, and environmental. The purpose of this short article is to educate archaeologists on how to avoid degrading any of these three types of information through improper sample selection, collection, preparation, or transportation techniques. Dendroarchaeology is not without limitations. First and foremost, it is dependent on the behaviors of people who built structures, made artifacts, and burned wood for fuel. If past people did not use wood, or used undateable tree species, dendrochronology will simply not be useful. In some cases, people used dateable species, but their selection criteria did not meet one of the four basic criteria necessary for successful dating. The second most important factor in successful tree-ring dating of archaeological materials is the behavior of archaeologists. Finally, preservation plays an important role in successful dating and the nature of the derived dates, but the paucity of long-lived old trees and degradation of “legacy” wood on the ground have hampered the development of millennia-long chronologies in more mesic areas.

La dendrocronología es la técnica de datación más precisa y exacta disponible a los arqueólogos, con una resolución al año y a veces a la temporada. Tal como las muestras biológicas sacadas de contextos humanos, las muestras dendroarqueológicas contienen inherentemente tres tipos de información: cronológica, conductual y ambiental. El propósito de este breve trabajo es educar y garantizar que los arqueólogos no degradan ninguno de los tres tipos de información a través de una selección inadecuada de la muestra o por sus técnicas de recolección, preparación, o transporte. La dendroarqueología no está sin limitaciones. En primer lugar, ella depende de los comportamientos de las personas que construyeron las estructuras, hicieron los artefactos, y quemaron la madera como combustible. Si la gente del pasado no hizo uso de la madera, o utilizó especies de árboles imposibles de datar, la dendrocronología simplemente no será útil. En algunos casos, la gente utilizó especies fechables, pero sus selecciones no cumplieron con los cuatro criterios básicos necesarios para la datación exitosa. El segundo factor más importante en la datación provechosa por medio de los anillos de los árboles de los materiales arqueológicos es el comportamiento de los arqueólogos. Por último, la preservación juega un papel importante en la datación válida y la naturaleza de las fechas derivadas, pero la escasez de árboles longevos y la degradación de la madera “legada” en el terreno han obstaculizado el desarrollo de cronologías de duración de milenios en las zonas más mésicas.

Type
Research Article
Information
Advances in Archaeological Practice , Volume 3 , Issue 4 , November 2015 , pp. 397 - 406
Copyright
Copyright © Society for American Archaeology 2015

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