Abstract
Obsidian hydration dating (OHD) originally promised to be a rapid, inexpensive, simple and reliable method for dating obsidian artefacts. The perceived elegance of OHD resulted in rapid acceptance and widespread application despite questions concerning its theoretical rigor. With increased usage it has become evident that, while economical, simple and fast, OHD is unreliable. Here results of a secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) study of obsidian and synthetic glass artefacts are presented that explain why OHD has not lived up to expectations. The results suggest that the standard OHD equations are inappropriate and that traditional optical measurements are inherently flawed. Although significant refinement will be needed, the results suggest that both chronological and palaeoclimatic data might be obtained from glass hydration rims through an improved analytical methodology and more rigorous treatment of the data.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 735-752 |
Number of pages | 18 |
Journal | Journal of Archaeological Science |
Volume | 26 |
Issue number | 7 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 1999 |
Funding
The authors would like to acknowledge the following individuals for contributions of samples or data or for reviewing an earlier draft of this report: Christopher M. Stevenson, Archaeological Research Consultants, Inc. Columbus, OH; Michael D. Glascock and Hector NeV, Missouri University Research Reactor, Columbia, MO; Kathleen Slane and Jane Biers, Museum of Art History and Archaeology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO; C. Vance Haynes, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ; Craig E. Skinner, Northwest Research Obsidian Studies Laboratory, Corvallis, OR; Charles Faulkner, Lyle Konigsberg and Jan F. Simek, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN; Susan Frankenberg, McClung Museum, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN; James S. Bogard, Carlos Bamberger, Charles Forsberg and Ted Nolan, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN; Tom Chacko, University of Alberta; Robert H. Doremus, Rensselaer Polytechnic University, NY; Rosanna Ridings, Washington University, St. Louis, MO; and they especially thank the late Mary Hodge, University of Houston-Clear Lake, Houston, TX for her contribution of the Chalco, Mexico samples. Research sponsored by the Division of Engineering and Geosciences, and the Division of Chemical Sciences, OYce of Basic Energy Sciences, and the Geothermal Technology Program, OYce of Energy EYciency and Renewable Energy, U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05-96OR22464 with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, managed by Lockheed Martin Energy Research Corporation., and by National Science Foundation grant SBR-98-04350 to the University of Tennessee.
Keywords
- Anisotropy
- Becke line
- Chalco
- Copan
- Diffusion
- Finite difference modelling
- Glass
- Hydration dating
- Matano interface
- Mesoamerica
- Obsidian
- Secondary ion mass spectrometry
- Sims
- Xaltocan