ARCHAEOLOGICAL DATING TECHNIQUE

摘要

The present invention relates to a method of archaeological dating of ceramics materials. Dating methods are of paramount importance in the earth and environmental sciences, palaeontology, archaeology and art history. Laboratory based dating of any material depends on identifying and measuring a physicochemical property which changes in a predictable way with time, thus providing the material with an internal clock (as in radiometric dating). We disclose a modified method of determining the age of ceramic artefacts. Using our novel method, the measurement of mass gain kinetics together with total mass gain since manufacture (obtained by reheating) provides an accurate self-calibrating method of archaeological ceramic dating.