First Reported Samples from the Radiocarbon Laboratory of the University of Tennessee Center for Archaeometry and Geochronology: Dates from the McCrosky Island Archaeological Site (40SV43), Sevier County, Tennessee, USA

Abstract

This study presents the results of archaeological samples submitted for dating at the recently constructed University of Tennessee Center for Archaeometry and Geochronology (UTCAG) radiocarbon dating laboratory (Knoxville, Tennessee, USA). The samples selected for this initial study were obtained from excavations at the McCrosky Island site (40SV43) in Sevier County, Tennessee, USA. Three of the samples dated were split between the UTCAG laboratory and another laboratory to assess the UTCAG laboratory protocols. In an effort to further validate the laboratory methods employed, several other samples were submitted without prior knowledge of contextual data. The dates obtained for these samples were then compared to their association with recovered artifacts and/or archaeological context.