Carbon dating technology that could revolutionise field archaeology

Radiocarbon dating is used to determine the age of ancient objects by means of measuring the amount of carbon-14 remaining in a sample. However, it is an expensive process which takes place offsite and typically takes six weeks or more which means that an excavation is likely to be over before the important dating information can be obtained.

The latest technology uses QMS and will reduce the time it takes to obtain data for a bone sample to just two days. The technology can also be utilised onsite, which is the first time this has been attempted.

So far, the technique has been used to analyse both medieval and post medieval bone samples provided by Norton Priory Museum & Gardens.The initial results have been compared with the conventional methods and show an encouraging level of agreement.

Professor Steve Taylor, Department of Electrical Engineering and Electronics, University of Liverpool, who is leading the project, said: “It will be a challenge to develop a portable instrument to achieve the required performance, but thanks to this funding we are in a strong position to make a real attempt.”

Frank Hargrave, Director, Norton Priory, said:  “The potential of this technique is incalculable. Archaeologists will, for the first time, be able to make decisions onsite and within days of sampling. The expense and time consuming nature of conventional methods will also no longer be a barrier and it’s likely that many more samples will be able to be taken with significant benefits to the archaeological record."

“It is fantastic to be involved with the incredible work that the University of Liverpool is doing and we are enormously grateful to Arts Council England for funding the development of such revolutionary equipment at Norton Priory,” added Hargrave.