Brzezie in the Pleszew region was first mentioned in archaeological literature, as the location where a treasure of gold artifacts dating back to the 3rd period of the Bronze Age was discovered in 1876. Archaeological research has been conducted there almost continuously since 1985. The result of many years of fieldwork is the discovery of 363 late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age graves, as well as 50 burials of the Przeworsk culture from the era of Roman influence. In the last few years, further research has been conducted by archeologist Grzegorz Szczurek. After comprehensive geophysical prospecting, the extent of the necropolis was established, and more graves were excavated. For the first time, materials for radiocarbon and luminescence dating were also collected to determine the absolute chronology for this archaeological site. Four samples were dated in the Poznań radiocarbon laboratory, and five luminescence tests were conducted in the Gliwice luminescence laboratory. Due to the complete thermo-destruction of collagen in human bones, age determination was based on carbonate fractionation. In one case, a piece of charcoal was selected for dating purposes. Considering uncertainties and the fact that both methods date different events, the results reveal concurrence, giving a 1000–500 BC range.

We combine the results of a radiocarbon (14C) dating program with archaeogenetic, osteological and sparse stratigraphic data, to construct a Bayesian chronological model for a multi-generational sequence situated entirely on a plateau in the 14C calibration curve. Calibrated dates of individual human bones from the Late Neolithic gallery grave at Niedertiefenbach, Hesse, Germany, span the entire calibration plateau in the late 4th millennium (ca. 3350–3100/3000 cal BC), but our model restricts the overall period of burial to 3–6 generations centered on the later 3200s, and provides narrower absolute date ranges for specific individuals and associated events. We confirm the accuracy and robustness of this model by sensitivity tests of each of its components. Beyond providing a more dynamic narrative for the formation of the heterogenous burial population at Niedertiefenbach, our results show that calibration plateaus are suitable periods for Bayesian chronological modeling of even relatively brief sequences, provided that all the information employed is correct. Prior information constraining both the order of events, and of potential date differences between them, is essential for the model to give accurate, unimodal estimates of the dates of these events.

In 1989 an ancient burial consisting of a skeleton and a few objects was discovered at the Monte dei Cappuccini Monastery, in Torino (Italy). Anthropological analysis of the skeleton revealed that it belonged to a young man, and the archaeometric characterization of the objects suggested that most of them are compatible with the Medieval period. As a proper archeological survey was not conducted at the time of the finding, due to the religious nature of the site, a high-precision radiocarbon (14C) dating has been performed. The samples were processed with three different methods: besides the ultrafiltration (UF) treatment, we applied the “collagen” (COL) and the Longin-base (LB) methods. While UF and COL treatments provided compatible results, LB method returned ages older with respect the UF one, with significant disagreements in some cases and this evidence is supported by several measurements on the same individual. Thanks to the reduction of the uncertainty with the high number of measured samples and the availability of historical evidence, the possible age of the burial has been limited to the time interval 1464–1515 cal AD.

The reliability of radiocarbon dates for Palaeolithic human burials is of utmost importance for prehistoric archaeologists. Recently obtained dates for several such burials in central Russia raise important interrelated issues concerning site taphonomy and the precise radiocarbon-dating technique employed, with implications for the ‘true’ age of the burials. A critical review of the dating of the Sungir and Kostenki burials calls into question the reliability of employing ultrafiltration or single amino acids for the radiocarbon dating of Upper Palaeolithic bones.

In 2016, a burial chamber hewn into limestone was discovered at Khirbet Aqabet Al Qadi on the northwestern slope of Mount Ebal, 2km north of the city center of Nablus. The floor of the chamber is 3.15 × 2.9 m and the height averages 1.8 m. A movable closure at the entrance consists of a limestone slab. The burial chamber houses four sarcophagi. The aim of this case study is to give information not only on the burial chamber but also, for the first time in the region, on human remains. Stable isotope analysis of a human bone sample enabled us to obtain dietary information on one individual. Due to low collagen content, the sample did not allow precise dating but it can be placed between 50 BC and 50 AD. Systematic illegal excavation and looting at funerary sites in the Nablus area has caused material for potential information to be missing at the site. Nonetheless, the dietary information obtained supports other material finds indicating Mediterranean agricultural use of the land. Our evidence demonstrates that the site dates to between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD.

Biological studies on Mesolithic human remains from the Polish region are a rare subject of scientific research due to the limited number of these relics and their poor state of preservation. From the project titled “Old material with new methods: Using the latest bio-chemical analysis in studies of Mesolithic human remains from the Polish areas,” the radiocarbon (14C) dating of bones using accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) has been performed. For these experiments, the gelatin was extracted from bones, and its quality evaluated by the C/Nat ratio and the stable isotope composition of both carbon and nitrogen. The 14C results have been obtained for 11 bone samples from 5 sites, and throughout this work the results of two preparation methods are compared. The simple gelatin extraction provided material with unsatisfactory collagen quality indicators, while additional alkali treatment allowed us to obtain much more reliable, and generally older, results. Additionally, analysis on VIRI/SIRI samples were conducted to test the developed method. Only seven of the investigated bone samples yielded ages within Mesolithic period, and the most reliable dates range from 5800 to 6800 cal BC. One sample was not datable, and two were shown to be much younger than expected.

This study aims at comparing the reliability of different types of apatite fractions for which collagen cannot be dated. We focused on the remains of individuals found at the necropolis of Porta Nocera near Pompeii, and for which the date of burial can be assessed independently. The dated human samples range between 1805±49 and 5570±120 14C yr BP and can display a large (up to 1200 14C yr) intra-individual age variability. We show that while a marine diet or an old-wood effect could explain the smallest age shifts, they are not able to explain the largest ones, and propose diagenesis as the main cause. The 14C depletion is likely due to the influence of the 14C-free CO2 emissions of the nearby Vesuvius volcano and the Campi Flegrei volcanic system on the age of secondary carbonate incorporated into the bone and enamel crystallites during diagenesis. This study demonstrates that in volcanic contexts, a large deviation from expected age can be measured, even in calcined apatites. Our calculations indicate that while the absolute amount of contamination is lower in calcined bones than in burnt bone and enamel apatite, its impact on the 14C age of the sample can be much higher due to the low carbon content of calcined bones.

A Late Antique burial in central-western France contained the skull and long bones of two individuals, overlaid by the parts of an equid carcass. What are we to make of such a deposit? Clearly it does not relate to an ethnic or ritual norm. The authors lead us through the ways that such a rite might be decoded.

It is widely recognized that when marine resources form a significant proportion of the human diet, this results in radiocarbon ages for human remains that are significantly older than the contemporary atmosphere. While there has been widespread assessment of marine 14C reservoir ages, there has been little study of the freshwater equivalent. However, recent analyses of human bone from archaeological sites in the Danube Valley have confirmed the existence of a large freshwater 14C reservoir effect.