Plant Remains and AMS: Dating Climate Change in the Aeolian Islands (Northeastern Sicily) During the 2nd Millennium BC

Aeolian Islands experienced fluctuating rainfall intensity during the 2nd millennium BC, with evidence pointing to significant short-term climate variability. This finding emerges from a study analyzing stable carbon isotope ratios (δ13C) and radiocarbon dating (14C) of archaeological plant remains from three protohistoric sites in the archipelago. The research reveals that changes in rainfall patterns, inferred from isotopic signatures, align with shifts in regional vegetation cover, as corroborated by pollen data. By integrating these climate signals with the history of Aeolian communities, the study also assesses the resilience of early settlers to environmental stress. This approach combines paleoclimatological and archaeological methods to reconstruct past climatic conditions and their societal impacts.

Caracuta, V., Fiorentino, G., & Martinelli, M. C. (2012). Plant Remains and AMS: Dating Climate Change in the Aeolian Islands (Northeastern Sicily) During the 2nd Millennium BC. Radiocarbon, 54(3-4), 689–700. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0033822200047354