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Obsidian Hydration Dating Update

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Irving Friedman  and
Fred Trembour
Irving Friedman
Affiliation:
U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225
Fred Trembour
Affiliation:
U.S. Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225
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Abstract

The obsidian hydration dating technique has been refined since its invention in 1960. The hydration process slows down as it proceeds and appears to follow the relation: hydration thickness is proportional to the square root of time. The variables that influence the hydration rate are mainly the temperature experienced by the object to be dated and its chemical composition.

Methods of estimating effective integrated field temperatures and composition variables of obsidians are discussed.

Information

Type
Reports
Information
American Antiquity , Volume 48 , Issue 3 , July 1983 , pp. 544 - 547
Copyright
Copyright © The Society for American Archaeology 1983

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References

References Cited

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