ABSTRACT
Dating techniques in the Quaternary time range fall into three broad categories: methods that provide age estimates, methods that establish age-equivalence, and relative age methods. This chapter considers the use of the amino acids themselves in establishing relative order of antiquity of protein-bearing materials. Many of the dating techniques currently employed in Quaternary research can be applied only to restricted spans of Quaternary time, and each method has its own distinctive set of problems which lead to uncertainties in interpretation. Incremental dating methods are those based on regular additions of material to organic tissue or to sedimentary sequences. Radiometric dating methods are based on the radioactive properties of certain unstable isotopes which undergo spontaneous changes in atomic organisation in order to achieve a more stable atomic form. Potassium-argon dating is a technique that allows the age of volcanic rocks to be established.
