I study caves formed in quartzite, and in the region all the caves have layers of sandy sediments alternating with organic matter. Topographically, these caves seem very old, even due to their position in the middle to upper slope. The carbon 14 ages are very recent. I would like other analyses to date these sediments; perhaps stimulated optical luminescence.
Hello.
Be aware of that dating by any method it is always the last event you date, in the case of OSL dating the last time your minerals have seen the sunlight (or other radiation). The fact that your caves are in Quarzite raises a little red flag of contamination.
Can you guaratee that your sediments ar from the outside of the caves and not from inside? There is a big risk that you get far too old dates with this method.
This caveat is of course valid for every method of dating. You have to be very sure what you are doing and what you are looking for. Where your minerals come from and what did they see in their lifetime.
If you are able to find artifacts it would be great.
best regards
Volker Kelm
You are absolutely right! My main problem is to know if the sediments come from outside the cave, or if they are formed inside the cave. I still haven't found a method to solve this question. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks
Hello Alessandra.
Unfortunately i do not have a ready to go answer to your problem of origin of the sediments. I would suggest you look for a possible area outside where they might have their origin and compare the chemical and mineralogical composition.
Please have a look at the quartz grains in the sediment and from the quartzite in the microscope. Different shapes and different grainsize may be an indication of different origin. Thats a nice problem for a geologist like me.
best regards
Volker
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