Absolute chronology for the transition to the North Eurasian Late Bronze Age and European Middle Bronze Age

Abstract

The use of historical dates, dendrochronology, and Bayesian statistics to determine archaeological chronology yields comparable results and shorter and more recent intervals compared to radiocarbon analysis. The disadvantage of the latter is the wide confidence intervals, which make it impossible to understand the processes, since the intervals of any two interrelated cultures tend to overlap. However, in steppe Eurasia, the use of dendrochronology and historical chronology is rarely possible. The solution to the problem is to link to the absolute chronology of cultures formed as a result of migration from areas where there is such an opportunity. The main cultural transformations of this period were associated with migrations caused by three major volcanic eruptions, which led to abrupt climate changes for a short time in 1654, 1628 and 1560 BC. These dates may correspond to some cultural transformations during the transition from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age, which makes it possible to obtain shorter intervals for the beginning of some cultures and build a more dynamic scheme of cultural changes of this period.