Preliminary Results of Speleothem Dating from Tabon Cave, Palawan, Philippines: Moisture increase at the Last Glacial Maximum

  • Helen Lewis University College Dublin
  • Kathleen Johnson University of California, Irvine
  • Wilfredo Ronquillo National Museum of the Philippines,

Abstract

Preliminary study of a thick speleothem layer at Tabon Cave, Palawan, demonstrates the potential such layers hold for dating and for interpretation of local and regional climatic variations during archaeological periods. A layer of gypsum speleothems, previously suggested to be travertine, has produced uranium series dates generally correlating with bracketing radiocarbon dates on charcoal, confirming an increase in moisture around the time of the Last Glacial Maximum. Dating and study of additional speleothems in Tabon and other caves in Island Southeast Asia is recommended as an approach with great potential for archaeological studies and for reconstructing regional climate history in the Pleistocene and Holocene.

Author Biographies

Helen Lewis, University College Dublin
School of Archaeology, University College Dublin; Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.
Kathleen Johnson, University of California, Irvine
Department of Earth System Science, 3206 Croul Hall, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-3100, USA.
Wilfredo Ronquillo, National Museum of the Philippines,
Archaeology Division National Museum of the Philippines, P. Burgos St., Manila 1101, Philippines.
Issue
Vol 12
Section
Articles