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Strategies for Sampling Difficult Archaeological Contexts and Improving the Quality of Radiocarbon Data: The Case of Erimi Laonin Tou Porakou, Cyprus

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 October 2017

C Scirè Calabrisotto ,
M Amadio ,
M E Fedi ,
L Liccioli  and
L Bombardieri
C Scirè Calabrisotto*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Università Ca’Foscari di Venezia, Dorsoduro 3484/D, 30123 Venezia, Italy
M Amadio
Affiliation:
School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science, University of Reading, Reading, United Kingdom
M E Fedi
Affiliation:
INFN Sezione di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy
L Liccioli
Affiliation:
INFN Sezione di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy
L Bombardieri
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Università di Torino, Via S. Ottavio 20, 10141 Torino, Italy
*
*Corresponding author. Email: caterinascire@gmail.com.
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Abstract

After decades of collaborative experience between archaeologists and radiocarbon scientists, with the aim at producing radiocarbon dates capable of answering the most various research questions, it is now widely recognized that an accurate sampling strategy is the cornerstone of a solid 14C-based chronology. In this paper, we discuss the sampling criteria required to obtain good quality 14C data within a challenging archaeological context like the Bronze Age site of Erimi Laonin tou Porakou (Limassol, Cyprus). Following a dedicated sampling strategy, in the productive complex of the settlement, charcoal samples were collected from secure contexts according to stratigraphic examination of excavated strata and analysis of associated features and material culture. Micromorphology was also applied for a more accurate interpretation of individual deposits and reconstruction of depositional and post-depositional processes. In the necropolis, bone samples were selected among the fragmentary and commingled human remains through evaluation of the preservation state and the minimum number of individuals (MNI). A discrepancy between the charcoal and the bone 14C determinations was encountered, probably due to old wood issues. The 14C dates were analyzed using a Bayesian model that incorporates the archaeological information, and a preliminary 14C-based chronology was defined for this site.

Keywords

boneBronze AgecharcoalCyprusmicromorphology
Type
Method Development
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 59 , Special Issue 6: 8th International Symposium, Edinburgh, 27 June – 1 July, 2016 Part 2 of 2 , December 2017 , pp. 1919 - 1930
Copyright
© 2017 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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Footnotes

Selected Papers from the 8th Radiocarbon & Archaeology Symposium, Edinburgh, UK, 27 June–1 July 2016

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