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Cation-ratio dating of petroglyphs from the Western Great Basin, North America

Abstract

Using a new age-determination technique for rock varnish, cation-ratio dating1, we have obtained absolute dates for varnishes within the pecked surfaces of five petroglyphs from the Coso Range, Inyo County, California. Our age determinations, based on analytical data gathered directly from petroglyphs, revise previously proposed chronologies and suggest a greater antiquity for Great Basin rock art in the western United States.

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Dorn, R., Whitley, D. Cation-ratio dating of petroglyphs from the Western Great Basin, North America. Nature 302, 816–818 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1038/302816a0

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