Optical dating of prehistoric and historic anthropogenic features at Ninove Doorn Noord (East Flanders, Belgium)

Archaeological excavations prior to the construction of the new Business Park “Doorn Noord” (Ninove, East Flanders, Belgium) revealed a complex of traces of human activity and occupation, spanning several millennia. The oldest traces are burial mounds and pits dating from the Final Neolithic / Metal Ages, followed by various remains of a Roman settlement; the youngest traces are the remains of three camps, dating from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. While a broad chronological framework for the site could be established on the basis of archaeological evidence, 14C and archaeomagnetic dating, and historical sources, this remains either circumstantial and/or lacks precision.In this case study, we report on the potential of quartz-based optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of unheated and heated sediments that are associated with the archaeological traces. Given the availability of independent age information, we consider it a test of both accuracy and precision. At the same time, our study seeks to contribute to the development of methodologies that may aid in an improved understanding and care of the regional heritage.Samples were collected from the infills of both a circular ditch surrounding a relict burial mound and a loam extraction pit, and from the heated sedimentary remains of fireplaces. We first document the OSL characteristics of sand-sized (63-250 m) quartz and evaluate the performance of a single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol for equivalent dose (ED) determination through laboratory procedural tests in the usual manner (e.g. dose recovery). We then examine the distribution of ED in all samples using small 2 mm diameter aliquots. In most samples, the majority of the results appears to belong to a single dose population of which the average is then used to obtain the optical age. The resulting OSL dates are confronted with the available independent age, demonstrating that no inaccurate conclusions were drawn from the ED distributions. In terms of both accuracy and precision, the results are most promising for the heated sediments associated with post-Medieval encampments. For 6 samples from 3 features optical ages of around 1750 ± 30 CE were obtained, where independent information dates them to 1745 CE. As all features are comparable, and sources of systematic uncertainty are (largely) shared, this implies the possibility of distinguishing them with a time-resolution that is governed by measurement uncertainties only; for the investigated samples that is on timescales of 5 - 10 years.Archaeological excavations prior to the construction of the new Business Park “Doorn Noord” (Ninove, East Flanders, Belgium) revealed a complex of traces of human activity and occupation, spanning several millennia. The oldest traces are burial mounds and pits dating from the Final Neolithic / Metal Ages, followed by various remains of a Roman settlement; the youngest traces are the remains of three camps, dating from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. While a broad chronological framework for the site could be established on the basis of archaeological evidence, 14C and archaeomagnetic dating, and historical sources, this remains either circumstantial and/or lacks precision.In this case study, we report on the potential of quartz-based optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of unheated and heated sediments that are associated with the archaeological traces. Given the availability of independent age information, we consider it a test of both accuracy and precision. At the same time, our study seeks to contribute to the development of methodologies that may aid in an improved understanding and care of the regional heritage.Samples were collected from the infills of both a circular ditch surrounding a relict burial mound and a loam extraction pit, and from the heated sedimentary remains of fireplaces. We first document the OSL characteristics of sand-sized (63-250 m) quartz and evaluate the performance of a single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol for equivalent dose (ED) determination through laboratory procedural tests in the usual manner (e.g. dose recovery). We then examine the distribution of ED in all samples using small 2 mm diameter aliquots. In most samples, the majority of the results appears to belong to a single dose population of which the average is then used to obtain the optical age. The resulting OSL dates are confronted with the available independent age, demonstrating that no inaccurate conclusions were drawn from the ED distributions. In terms of both accuracy and precision, the results are most promising for the heated sediments associated with post-Medieval encampments. For 6 samples from 3 features optical ages of around 1750 ± 30 CE were obtained, where independent information dates them to 1745 CE. As all features are comparable, and sources of systematic uncertainty are (largely) shared, this implies the possibility of distinguishing them with a time-resolution that is governed by measurement uncertainties only; for the investigated samples that is on timescales of 5 - 10 years.C