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Cited by 67Tree-ring climate responsesArchaeology and ancient environmental studiesGeology and Paleoclimatology Research

Securing timelines in the ancient Mediterranean using multiproxy annual tree-ring data

Open access
Pearson, Charlotte, Salzer, Matthew, Wacker, Lukas, Brewer, Peter, Sookdeo, Adam, Kuniholm, Peter·2020·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
DOI 10.1073/pnas.1917445117PMC PMC7165418
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Abstract

Significance: This study demonstrates how different lines of evidence from tree rings in widely spread growth locations can combine to fix an approximately dated tree-ring record from the East Mediterranean Bronze–Iron Age to an exact calendar-dated range. This tree-ring record is of high importance for regional chronology and spans the time period in which the major volcanic eruption of Thera (Santorini) occurred. Exact dating of this eruption is important because it provides a prominent marker horizon through which ancient timelines of the East Mediterranean, Egypt, and the Levant can be synchronized. Chemical analysis of the dated tree-ring sequence identifies a chemical change in their growth environment around 1560 BC, which while requiring further substantiation, may be evidence of the Thera eruption.

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Crossref · 10.1073/pnas.1917445117

Cites

14 of 14 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • AA 14C data overall for 1,700-1,480 BCE are older than the consensus (IntCal20) or in direct comparisons with ETH by around ~6 to 7 14C years.

    “Second, AA 14C data overall for this period38,39,43 are older than the consensus (IntCal20) or in direct comparisons with ETH by around ~ 6 to 7 14C years39.”

    From Radiocarbon offsets and old world chronology as relevant to Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia and Thera (Santorini) (2020) · cites this paper as [38]

    The Results report that annual data differ from IntCal13 over 1650–1540 BCE, and the Fig. 2 caption identifies AA and ETH data as closely agreeing. The paper does not establish that AA dates are older than ETH or IntCal20 by approximately 6–7 radiocarbon years; it says IntCal20 had yet to be released. (LLM, conf=0.76)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Recent work has better defined the 14C calibration curve 1700-1500 BCE.

    “Recent work has much better defined the 14 C calibration curve 1700-1500 BCE [12,41] (Fig 1) reducing the discrepancy and leading to compromise suggestions of a mid to later 16 th century BCE date [12,42]”

    From Second Intermediate Period date for the Thera (Santorini) eruption and historical implications (2022) · cites this paper as [42]

    The paper compares annual radiocarbon measurements across 1700–1500 BCE, and the Results describe finer curve detail than was available in IntCal13 (page not provided). But the Fig. 2 discussion says improved recalibration would follow the release of IntCal20; this study did not itself produce a better-defined calibration curve. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • In several instances including this one, detailed new measurements of time intervals with AMS 14C have indicated slightly older 14C ages.

    “As noted, in several instances including this one, detailed new measurements of time intervals with AMS 14C have indicated slightly older 14C ages1,2,10,38,39,43–48.”

    From Radiocarbon offsets and old world chronology as relevant to Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia and Thera (Santorini) (2020) · cites this paper as [38]

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Cites

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Research works printed but not linked: 20

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  8. [24]Pearson C. L., Dendrochemical analysis of a tree-ring growth anomaly associated with the Late Bronze Age eruption of Thera. J. Archaeol. Sci. 36, 1206– 1214 (2009).
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  10. [26]Wiener M. H., “ Dating the Theran eruption: Archaeological science versus nonsense science” in Israel’s Exodus in Transdisciplinary Perspective: Text, Archaeology, Culture, and Geoscience, Levy T. E., Schneider T., Propp W. H. C., Eds. (Springer, Cham, Switzerland, 2015), pp. 131– 143.
  11. [33]Miyake F., Nagaya K., Masuda K., Nakamura T., A signature of cosmic-ray increase in AD 774–775 from tree rings in Japan. Nature 486, 240– 242 (2012). 22699615
  12. [34]Büntgen U., Tree rings reveal globally coherent signature of cosmogenic radiocarbon events in 774 and 993 CE. Nat. Commun. 9, 3605 (2018). 30190505 PMC6127282
  13. [35]Sigl M., Timing and climate forcing of volcanic eruptions for the past 2,500 years. Nature 523, 543– 549 (2015). 26153860
  14. [41]Salzer M. W., Pearson C. L., Baisan C. H., Dating the methuselah walk bristlecone pine floating chronologies. Tree-Ring Res. 75, 61– 66 (2019).
  15. [42]Baillie M. G., Proposed re-dating of the European ice core chronology by seven years prior to the 7th century AD. Geophys. Res. Lett. 35, L15813 (2008).
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  18. [48]Pearson C. L., Dale D., Lombardo K., An investigation of fire scars in pseudotsuga macrocarpa by scanning X-ray fluorescence microscopy. For. Ecol. Manag. 262, 1258– 1264 (2011).
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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Pearson, C., Salzer, M., Wacker, L., Brewer, P., Sookdeo, A., & Kuniholm, P.
Affiliations
  • University of Arizona (US)
  • ETH Zurich (CH)
Corresponding author
Pearson, Charlotte
ORCID
Venue
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Publisher
National Academy of Sciences
Published
2020-03-30
Volume
117
Issue
15
Pages
8410-8415
ISSN
  • 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
  • 1091-6490
DOI
10.1073/pnas.1917445117
PMC
PMC7165418
OpenAlex
W3013389684
Cited by
67
References
14
Citations by year
2026: 9 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 8
FWCI
4.10
Type
journal article
Language
en
Update notices
correction (2020-08-04)
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Repository for Publications and Research Data (ETH Zurich) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • ETH Zürich Research Collection
Funders
  • Malcolm H Wiener Foundation (ICCP)
  • National Science Foundation (1625738, 1902625)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Atmospheric Science › Tree-ring climate responses
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Archaeology and ancient environmental studies
  • Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Atmospheric Science › Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
Keywords
tree-ring chronology, Thera eruption, Santorini, Bronze Age, Iron Age, Eastern Mediterranean, regional chronology, marker horizons, Levant, Egypt

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