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Radiocarbon Chronology of the Holocene Dead Sea: Attempting a Regional Correlation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 July 2016

Amos Frumkin ,
Galit Kadan ,
Yehouda Enzel  and
Yehuda Eyal
Amos Frumkin*
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91905, Israel
Galit Kadan
Affiliation:
Department of Geology and Environmental Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
Yehouda Enzel
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91905, Israel Institute of Earth Science, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 91904, Israel
Yehuda Eyal
Affiliation:
Department of Geology and Environmental Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
*
Corresponding author. Email: msamos@mscc.huji.ac.il
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Abstract

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Holocene sedimentary and geomorphic sequences from the Dead Sea region, Israel, are compared by correlation of more than 50 radiocarbon dates. The 14C dates provided the chronological basis that enabled us to detect basin-scale events that are hard to ascertain in single-site records. This paper is the first attempt to compare different Holocene records from several sites along the Dead Sea, based on their chrono-stratigraphy. Included is the first publication of the paleoclimatic record of the Nahal Darga ephemeral stream valley. Such a regional compilation is needed, because only the integration and comparative evaluation of several records can produce a reliable climatic history by establishing the height of former Dead Sea levels that may be complicated by tectonics and the rise of Mount Sedom. A relatively high level of the Holocene Dead Sea occurred during the mid-Holocene around 4400 BP or about 3000 cal BCE after calibration. The lake level fell sharply around 4000 BP, i.e. 2500 cal BCE, and later fluctuated close to early 20th century levels. The 14C-based correlation is also used to estimate the rising rates of the Mount Sedom salt diapir that are apparently smaller than 10 mm per year.

Type
Near East Chronology: Archaeology and Environment
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 43 , Issue 3: Proceedings of the 17th International Radiocarbon Conference (Part 3 of 3) , 2001 , pp. 1179 - 1189
Copyright
Copyright © 2001 The Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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