Tree-Ring Dating of Colorado River Driftwood in the Grand Canyon

Abstract

The development of tree-ring chronology for bristlecone pine (Pinus aristata), stretching over 8,200 years, has been used to calibrate the radiocarbon time scale. An extensive deposit of driftwood in Stanton's cave in the grand canyon was estimated to have been deposited on the cave floor about 12,000 years ago on the basis of the 4,095-year radiocarbon age of a split-twig figurine on the surface of the cave floor. However, the initial driftwood specimen gave the surprising C-14 age of 35,000 years. A tree-ring dating study was therefore undertaken on driftwood in the grand canyon in order to: (1) evaluate the driftwood deposit in Stanton's cave; (2) provide a basis for interpreting c-14 dates from canyon archaeological sites; and (3) document a technique for deriving some concept of pre-dam hydrology, especially maximum high water levels. The percentage of dated specimens found indicated that the approach was feasible. A likely interpretation of the seemingly early c-14 dates at archaeological sites is that prehistoric man used old driftwood, as does modern man in the canyon. Tree-ring dates from wood above the pre-dam high water mark indicate that maximum 100-year flood evidence can be obtained.