Abstract
Charred olive wood is abundant in the archaeological record, especially around the Mediterranean. As the outermost ring closest to the bark is assumed to represent the latest time that the tree was alive, the radiocarbon date obtained from the outermost rings of an olive branch buried during the Santorini volcanic eruption is regarded as crucial evidence for the date of this cataclysmic event. The date of this eruption has far reaching consequences in the archaeology of the Aegean, Egypt and the Levant, and the understanding of their interconnections. We analyzed the radiocarbon concentrations in cross-sections from a modern olive tree trunk as well as from a living branch, and obtained near-annual resolution dates using the radiocarbon “bomb peak”. In both cases we show that radiocarbon dates of the last formed wood along the circumference are not chronologically homogenous, and can differ by up to a few decades. Thus the outermost wood layer does not necessarily represent the date of the last year of growth. These findings challenge the interpretation of the results obtained from dating the olive branch from the Santorini volcanic eruption, as it could predate the eruption by a few decades. In addition, our results are also significant for any future studies based on archaeologically preserved olive wood.
Highlights
One important motivation for investigating whether annual growth rings in olive wood (Olea europaea) are present and can be successfully identified in olive wood arose recently[1,2], as an olive branch was used in dating the colossal volcanic eruption of Santorini[3,4]
We explore the wood of modern olive trees grown in northern Israel, utilizing radiocarbon dating at near-annual resolution, enabled by the “bomb peak”[31]
We first analyzed a living branch, which was bearing other smaller branches with many green leaves from an olive tree growing at a location called Havat Hanania in northern Israel (Fig. 1)
Summary
One important motivation for investigating whether annual growth rings in olive wood (Olea europaea) are present and can be successfully identified in olive wood arose recently[1,2], as an olive branch was used in dating the colossal volcanic eruption of Santorini[3,4] This dating was based on the assumption that the outermost ring was formed just prior to the eruption. A weighted average of 16 measurements by Bronk Ramsey et al.[20] resulted in an uncalibrated radiocarbon age of 3350 ± 10 BP, which when calibrated using the most recent calibration curve[22] translates to between 1683–1617 BCE (2σ range) This is inconsistent with a date during the 16th century BCE. In this study we addressed the question of whether or not the outermost ring in olive trees is produced just prior to the death of the tree
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