Archive: Maguirebridge’s Sedgewater Fauna

31830–31821 BCE

Maguirebridge’s Sedgewater Fauna

Maguirebridge’s Sedgewater Fauna

Radiocarbon years are not identical to calendar years. Measurements on ancient organic material must be calibrated against curves constructed from independently dated records, and the resulting calendar estimates are ranges with statistical uncertainty. This matters especially beyond 30,000 years ago, where the curve is less straightforward than in recent millennia. The modern date 31,826 BCE should therefore be treated as a point within a span of time, not as the precise age of a layer of mud or a bone.