The National 1 MV Accelerated Mass Spectroscopy (AMS) Laboratory of TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center Earth and Marine Sciences Institute (YDBE) that was opened in 2016 has served in the dating of more than two thousand objects.
Support was provided to more than two hundred projects with Carbon-14 analyses.
Owing to the laboratory that was established with a view to satisfy the need in earth sciences, archeology, environmental sciences and forensics, more than two hundred projects were supported with Carbon-14 analyses for dating purposes.
In line with the agreement with Bilecik Municipality, the Project on the “Investigation of Neolithic Era Remnants found in Bilecik Bahçelievler Excavation” started in 2021. As part of the project conducted by TÜBİTAK MAM research specialists, it is aimed to investigate and date the materials found in the Bilecik Bahçelievler Neolithic Settlement Excavation of Bilecik Municipality, at the AMS laboratory of TÜBİTAK MAM YDBE. 15 measurable organic remnants found in the excavation will be subjected to dating analyses during the project.
As part of the project, TÜBİTAK MAM project team will conduct Carbon-14 dating analyses, Bilecik Museum will head the excavation and Assoc. Prof. Erkan Fidan will advise the excavation. It is the first project in Turkey conducted jointly by Carbon-14 lab specialists with an excavation team. Radiocarbon studies are costly studies. If radiocarbon specialists are not involved in excavation studies where precise dating by Carbon-14 is critical, improper sample collection may affect the studies adversely.
With this project, owing to the know-how on radiocarbon (Carbon-14) and support to be provided to the excavation team, it will be possible to obtain maximum data with minimum material. So, the efficiency of dating analyses in the excavation will be enhanced.
Why is dating this area important?
In Bahçelievler, which is the oldest known settlement of Western Anatolia, village life started 9000 years ago and continued for around 1000 years. Excavations have unearthed round or oval shaped hut-like houses, tools made of baked clay, bone or stone and thousands of ceramic objects, used by the community that is estimated to make their living on farming and stockbreeding. Archeological findings include a bone musical instrument, an amulet, terracotta animal figurines and spindle whorls for spinning wool, marble and serpentine axes and 11 human skeletons buried in yards between houses.
