Definition
Deposits of secondary carbonate minerals (usually calcite or aragonite consisting of CaCO3) that formed in caves containing artefacts or other evidence of past human or hominid occupation
Introduction
U-series dating such as U-Th (or 230Th/U) is a well-established, accurate, and precise method with a wide range of applications in earth sciences, palaeoclimate research, and archaeology (Bourdon et al., 2003). U-series dating can be used to determine the age of materials that formed with a well-constrained radioactive disequilibrium between U and its daughter isotopes, including precipitates of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in cave environments, i.e., speleothems like stalagmites, stalactites, or flowstones. U-series dating is essential for palaeoclimate research using speleothems but is less commonly used for archaeological applications. However, cave environments are often associated with archaeology and archaeological finds. Excavations in caves often exhibit stratigraphic...
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Hoffmann, D. (2015). Carbonates, Speleothem Archaeological (U-Series). In: Jack Rink, W., Thompson, J.W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Scientific Dating Methods. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6304-3_243
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6304-3_243
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