When seeing how old a spear/ arrow head is how do they know the age of when it was carved/made and not how old the rock itself is?
In: Earth Science
There is a saying in archaeology: If it is outside of a context, it is worthless.
So yes, more or less, it is difficult to date object itself, especially stone one… Sometimes you make an educated guess based on style or material, but in most cases you rely on context.
Most fossils and tools are found at certain levels in the ground.
This is a good starting point for age verification but it’s never 100% perfect which is why we say “dated to be between X age and Z age”
Usually they can find other materials that are buried at the same level that they can to date by measuring decomposition of isotopes in carbon
I was just reading an article in this month’s Smithsonian Magazine. It was about archeological digs in Yellowstone. Ancient cultures going back to over 3000 years ago. It’s more scientific than you think. They can get it to within 30 years. Can’t remember the specifics.
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