Castlepook’s Mammoth Assemblage
Prehistoric chronology needs careful translation. “BP” means before AD 1950, the reference year used by radiocarbon science; a calibrated age converts a radiocarbon measurement into a probability range in calendar years. Neither system licences the apparent precision of a named BCE year. The figure 31,911 BCE is therefore useful as a position on a long timeline, but it should not be mistaken for a securely dated Irish episode.