Dates of Holocene Icelandic volcanic eruptions from tephra layers in Irish peats

Abstract

Tephra from historic and prehistoric eruptions of Oraefajøkull and Hekla, Iceland, have been found in Irish peats. Using a series of stratigraphically related high-precision radiocarbon measure ments, the date of a known-age eruption has been satisfactorily estimated. Based on the same techniques, the calendrical date of the Hekla 4 eruption has been estimated as 2310 ± 20 BC.