Radiocarbon dating of naturally shed reindeer antlers melted out of retreating and down-wasting ice patches and ice caps in western Norway

Abstract

A rise in summer temperatures, especially since the turn of the 21st century, has caused negative mass balance and marginal retreat of ice caps and ice patches in western Norway. Twentytwo naturally shed reindeer antlers found at retreating and down-melting margins of fourteen retreating ice patches and ice caps on mountain summits in western Norway during the recent decades have been radiocarbon dated. The reindeer antlers show no evidence of being sawed or cut off the skull or any engravings/scrape marks if the antlers had been handled by humans. The oldest reindeer antler in this study dates at 2201-2132 cal. yr BCE. Four dated antlers fall within the age range 2300-2000 cal. yr BCE. Single dates fall within the time ranges 1100 to 1000, 900 to 800, and 500 to 300 cal. yr BCE. Four dated antlers are within the time range 200 BCE to 100 cal. yr CE and two dated antlers fall within the time range 600 to 800 cal. yr CE. Finally, fifteen dates fall within the time range 1300-1900 cal. yr CE, the highest number (n=11) between 1300 and 1600 cal. yr CE. The temperature decline and increased precipitation causing advancing glaciers and ice caps, accompanied by growing ice patches during the Neoglacial period, including the early phase of the Little Ice Age, provided good preservation conditions for the reindeer antlers during the Little Ice Age, with extensive ice and snow cover in the high mountains in western Norway.