Dating Pollen

Pollen grains are highly suitable for radiocarbon dating as they contain a closed pool of carbon derived from the atmosphere via photosynthesis, are highly resilient in a range of sedimentary environments, and can be identified in terms of the source vegetation types. Dating pollen requires the preparation of pollen concentrates in the laboratory, typically including a combination of digestion, washing, density separation, and sieving stages. During the preparation stages, attention should be paid to avoiding contamination in the handling of small samples. Careful inspection of the content of the pollen concentrates is necessary to aid the interpretation of the resulting radiocarbon determinations and to rule out the possibility of reworking and reservoir effects.