ORGANIC RESIDUE (FTIR) ANALYSIS AND AMS RADIOCARBON DATING OF SAMPLES FROM SITES 25FT54, 25FT56, 25FT354, AND 25RW1, RED WILLOW CREEK VALLEY, NEBRASKA

Summary

Ceramic sherds (some with visible residue), charcoal, charred corn kernels, and a bone fragment from sites 25FT54, 25FT56, 25FT354, and 25RW1 in the Red Willow Creek Valley of southwestern Nebraska were submitted for organic residue analysis, identification, and/or AMS radiocarbon dating. The ceramics were tested for organic residues using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) to identify probable contents of the residues. Charcoal identification reveals the types of wood burned as fuel. AMS radiocarbon dates were run on ceramic residue, corn kernels, charcoal representing the shortest-lived wood when no annual was available, and a bone fragment. This study was designed to examine whether the AMS radiocarbon dates for maize match those for ceramic residue, since discrepancies in dating annuals and ceramic residues has been reported in the literature (Fischer and Heinermeier 2003) and noted in dates from the Central Plains. Avenues that are currently being explored that might explain these differences include the specific contents of the food residue that is dated. Examination of the food residues using FTIR was expected to provide information concerning food processing. That information can be used to evaluate any differences in dates reported here and will be retained for future work.

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