Abstract
The210Pb dates from a salt-marsh sediment sequence at Tites Point, Severn Estuary, southwest England, were compared with the results of three other independent dating techniques. These methods are inspection of dated topographic maps for the presence of absence of the salt marsh, dating of artifacts in a well-defined horizon within the sequence, and counting annual bands. All four sets of dates showed good agreement to about 30 cm depth from the present marsh surface; thereafter, dates from the210Pb method are earlier than those from the other methods, which are themselves in agreement. It is concluded that a wide range of methods can be successfully used for dating salt-marsh sediments (e.g., radiometric techniques, topographic maps, archaeological evidence, annual banding). Where possible, it is important to confirm dates using at least two independent techniques.
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Reading University, Postgraduate Research Institute for Sedimentology Contribution No. 186.
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Allen, J.R.L., Rae, J.E., Longworth, G. et al. A comparison of the210Pb dating technique with three other independent dating methods in an oxic estuarine salt-marsh sequence. Estuaries 16, 670–677 (1993). https://doi.org/10.2307/1352803
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1352803