•  
  •  
 

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW: REFINING CHRONOLOGIES IN NORTHWEST INDIA THROUGH RADIOCARBON

Abstract

Although hundreds of sites with Ahar white painted black and red ware have been identified across northwest India, only about 40 have been excavated, and few these have published radiocarbon dates. This paper systematically reviews both older published dates and newer recently processed dates and examines the contexts from which they come. After eliminating many dates due to incomplete publication data, mixed contexts, or other complications, dates were analyzed to order to re-assess and refine the accepted chronology for the Ahar Culture, which is associated with the pottery. All previously published dates were recalibrated using the INTCAL 13 Northern Hemisphere calibration curve and a subset of dates was further refined through basic phase and series models using OxCal 4.3.2 software. The results shift the chronology of the Ahar Culture, suggesting that it may be later than commonly accepted, which challenges the very definition of the culture.

Acknowledgements

Varsha Pilbrow at University of Melbourne, Fullbright Belgium

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS