Contribution of Radiocarbon Dating to the Chronology of Eneolithic in Campania (Italy)

Abstract

The paper presents new and important <sup>14</sup>C data from eight Eneolithic sites in Campania measured at the Centre for Isotopic Research of Cultural and Environmental Heritage (CIRCE) AMS laboratory in Caserta (Italy). Twenty-four <sup>14</sup>C determinations on bone and charcoal are used here for chronological reconstruction of human habitation and dating of some volcanic eruptions affecting the settlement activity. Our research has shed new light on absolute chronology of the whole Campanian Eneolithic, a period of profound cultural transformations triggered by introduction and use of metals, in particular copper.