Radiocarbon Intercomparison Program for Chauvet Cave

Abstract

We present the first results of an accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon intercomparison program on 3 different charcoal samples collected in one of the hearths of the Megaceros gallery of Chauvet Cave (Ardèche, France). This cave, rich in parietal decoration, is important for the study of the appearance and evolution of prehistoric art because certain drawings have been 14C dated to the Aurignacian period at the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic. The new dates indicate an age of about 32,000 BP, which is consistent with this attribution and in agreement with the results from the same sector of the cave measured previously at the Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement (LSCE). Six laboratories were involved in the intercomparison. Samples were measured in 4 AMS facilities: Center for Isotope Research, Groningen University, the Netherlands; the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit, UK; the Centre de datation par le carbone 14, Univ. Claude Bernard Lyon 1, France (measured by AMS facilities of Poznań University, Poland); and the LSCE, UMR CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, France (measured by the Leibniz-Labor of Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel, Germany).

Context and dating of Aurignacian vulvar representations from Abri Castanet, France

“…More than 50 dates have been obtained on charcoal samples collected on the soil of the different chambers or on the wall (punctuations and torch rubbings) of the Chauvet cave. Most of the 14 C dates, including the dated drawings, range from 30,000 to 32,500 y BP (uncalibrated), whereas a younger occupation occurred between 26,000 and 28,000 y BP (29)(30)(31). We present here (Table 4) only direct dates on wall paintings that fall within the known range of dates for the Aurignacian culture.…”

Further constraints on the Chauvet cave artwork elaboration

“…Finally, 14 C dating of archaeological layers underlying the rockfall deposits into the cave have shown Aurignacian occupancy phases at the entrance (15). As in Hillaire Room and Megaloceros Gallery (7,8), these archaeological layers are indeed older than 27 cal 14 C ka BP. Rockfall events that expose deeply buried limestone can be directly dated using in situ-produced 36 Cl concentrations accumulated in scar surface samples, because they have been continuously exposed to cosmic rays (17,18).…”

“…The first radiocarbon dates ranging from approximately 30 to approximately 32 14 C ka BP (3, 4) thus disagreed with stylistic analyses such as formalized by Leroi-Gouran (5). Although currently confirmed by 82 radiocarbon dating (6,7), by crossing dating methods (8,9), and supported by the recent discovery of manifestations of sophisticated Aurignacian prehistoric art (40-28 ka BP) in the Swabian Jura (10), it still remains unclear whether the current stylistic framework should be abandoned in favor of radiocarbon chronologies. Additional robust chronological constraints are therefore critical in establishing Chauvet cave as a reliable benchmark in the absence of comparable equivalent (1,11,12).…”

First Direct Radiocarbon Dating of Lower Congo Rock Art (Democratic Republic of the Congo)

“…However, the possibility that leftover material from prior cave occupation has been used cannot be excluded either and must be taken into account (Valladas 2003;Cuzange et al 2007). Nevertheless, it should also be noted that the dates obtained for the Kongo crosses are not surprising, knowing that this design is similar to many objects of Kongo Christian art like crucifixes or tombstones from the same period.…”