One of the more important advances in radiocarbon dating has been the ability to date small and short-lived samples such as cereal grains and pollen. The problem with using wood from , say, a doorway is that C14 is only absorbed by the wood when it is alive. The C14 date tells us when the tree was cut down: we have no way of knowing how long that particular board was used in the doorway. It could have lasted a century or two. How often to you replace parts of your doorways?
But with cereal grains or pollen (or olive pits...another biggie) you get an item which comes into existence, grows, dies and is consumed in a relatively short time giving a much more precise date. Thus, what was a valid criticism of C14 dating has been rendered obsolete by advances in the technique itself.
But with cereal grains or pollen (or olive pits...another biggie) you get an item which comes into existence, grows, dies and is consumed in a relatively short time giving a much more precise date. Thus, what was a valid criticism of C14 dating has been rendered obsolete by advances in the technique itself.
