The Doneraile Limestone Assemblage
Radiocarbon ages are not themselves calendar dates. The concentration of carbon-14 in the atmosphere has changed through time, so laboratory measurements require calibration against internationally maintained curves. At this depth of time, calibration carries wider uncertainties than it does for later prehistory. A result should therefore be read as a probability range, not as an anniversary. The phrase “around 31,825 BCE” is useful only as a point on a modern timeline against which to set evidence dated in radiocarbon years BP or calibrated years BP.