Project updates
June 2024: Fieldwork at Caours, France
Members of EQuaTe recently visited the on-going archaeological excavations at the key MIS 5 tufa section at Caours. Once again joined by colleagues Nicole Limondin-Lozouet and Julie Dabkowski, sediment samples were collected for both amino acid and luminescence dating of biogenic calcite.
June 2024: Research meetings in Czechia
EQuaTe members met with malacological colleagues in Czechia in early June, including visits to Brno and Prague to discuss a number of on-going collaborative research projects. (L to R: Michal Horsák, Dustin White, Richard Preece, Jeff Nekola)
May 2024: Fieldwork at La Celle and Resson, France
In May members of EQuaTe visited the tufa sections at La Celle and Resson in France, joined by colleagues Nicole Limondin-Lozouet and Julie Dabkowski. Sediment samples were collected for both luminescence and amino acid dating of biogenic calcite.
May 2023: Fieldwork at Kärlich and Schöningen, Germany
Back in May, we had the opportunity to collect biomineral samples from two well known archaelogical sites in Germany. The first was the Kärlich Clay Pit, situated in the Central Rhineland of Germany. Members of EQuaTe spent five days collecting bulk sediments samples for both amino acid dating and thermoluminescence dating of biogenic calcite. We were hosted at the MONREPOS Archaeological Research Centre, which not only provided us with very comfortable accommodation, also granted us permission to sample enamel from their faunal collection.
Schöningen
Following a six hour long car journey across Germany, we spent the day at the site Schöningen, known for the Schöningen spear horizon. We were given a tour of the museum, before spending the day collecting bulk sediment samples for amino acid dating.
January 2023: Fieldwork at Easton Wood, UK
Following recent erosion along the Suffolk coast, EQuaTe team members Richard Preece and Dustin White joined colleagues Tim Holt-Wilson and Mathew Jeffries in sampling fossils from an exposed submarine shell bank of the Norwich Crag. Samples of Nucella, Arctica islandica, Mya arenaria and Macoma obliqua were collected for a number of on-going research projects.
December 2022: Netherlands
In December members of the project travelled to the Netherlands to meet Leen Hordijk at the Zuurland coring site to collect samples from his latest borehole, Zuurland-23! The trip also included visits to the quarry sections at Maalbeek and Hoher Stahl. Our hosts Frank Wesselingh (Naturalis) and Freek Busschers (TNO) also gave us tours of their research labs where interesting discussions took place regarding upcoming research collaborations. Members of EQuaTe plan to return to the Netherlands for more field sampling in 2023.
September 2022: UK Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Dating Meeting
Members of the EQuaTe team attended the 2022 UK Luminescence and Electron Spin Resonance Meeting hosted at Royal Holloway, University of London. These annual meetings provide a forum for presenting and discussing the latest research in trapped charge dating. Debra presented experimental work "Investigating the low temperature thermoluminescence peak from calcite for monitoring thermal reproducibility".
July 2022: Suffolk Fieldwork
Members of the EQuaTe team visited Barnham Pit in the summer of 2022 to discuss the progress of the excavations and to collect additional samples, as well as taking measurements for thermoluminescence dating from the centre of the palaeolake. Marc was able to join the team at Barnham for 2 weeks to help with the excavations.
June 2022: Fieldwork at Kärlich & Miesenheim I, Germany
As part of a collaboration with MONREPOS Archäologisches Forschungszentrum, the EQuaTe team visited the sites of Kärlich and Miesenheim I to collect sediment samples for macrofossil analyses, focusing specifically of the examination of the malacological record and the recovery of calcitic biominerals such as slug plates and worm granules. The team plans to return to the sites in Spring 2023 to continue this research with colleagues Olaf Jöris and Elaine Turner.
May 2022: Pathways to Ancient Britain
The EQuaTe team attended the Pathways to Ancient Britain workshop, hosted at Queen Mary's University, London. This workshop highlighted recent work into human presence on the British Isles, from the earliest occupation to the emergence of modern humans. Two members of the EQuaTe team presented their work. Marc presented "AAR dating using tooth enamel" and Geoff "Luminescence from biogenic calcite to date the entire Quaternary".
March 2022: A trip to the Norfolk Coast, UK
Members of the EQuaTe team traveled to Norfolk with the aim of collecting samples for thermoluminescence dating from crucial horizons within the British Quaternary record. We were fortunate to be joined by local experts of the area's geology and fossil record, Martin Warren and Jon Stewart, along with project collaborators Richard Preece and Simon Parfitt.
December 2021: First in-person project meeting!
As the project started at the beginning of the covid-19 pandemic, we have had very few opportunities to meet in real life. So, it was with much excitement, that the York team travelled to Aberystwyth. They were treated to a tour of the luminescence labs and the amazing view from the top floor of the Geography Department. We were able to discuss initial results from both the amino acid geochronology and thermoluminescence dating work and make plans for the up-coming year.
September 2021: Geoff gives keynote talk at DEUQUA
Geoff was invited to give the keynote talk at the virtual DEUQUA 2021 conference. His talk titled: "Seeing the past in a new light: how advances in luminescence geochronology are shaping our understanding of the hominin record" summarised how luminescence dating has contributed to our understanding of human evolution and introduced the potential of TL dating biogenic calcite to expand the range of luminescence to the entire duration of the Quaternary.
August 2021: Fieldwork at Devereux's Pit, UK
In collaboration with the Pathways to Ancient Britain (PAB) project, the EQuaTe team visited the site of Deveraux's Pit to collect borehole samples both for palaeoecological analyses and to assist in developing a chronological model for the site through paired amino acid and thermoluminescence analyses of Bithynia tentaculata opercula. The site will continue to be a focus of research over the coming years as the archaeological excavations progress.
June-July 2021: Fieldwork at Barnham & Beeches Pit, UK
During the summer of 2021 the team travelled down to a disused clay pit near the village of Barnham, Suffolk, where annual excavations of the site were taking place. Excavations at Barnham Pit have produced flint tools and plant and animal remains dating back 400,000 years, which are helping us to better understand past human populations as well as enabling reconstruction of the habitats and climate at the time. The team took measurements, collected samples and Marc was able to spend 3 weeks helping to excavate the site.
