Russian archaeologists to be supplied with 'age teller'

Russian scientists of the Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics have created a spectrometer to establish the exact age of archaeological finds.

The device has passed all necessary tests and is ready for use.

It enables archaeologists to determine the age of organic substances throughout a time span of over 70,000 years.

Unlike the old, Carbon14-based method which required several dozen grams of matter in order to determine its age, the new spectrometer needs no more than a few milligrams.

In the past, obtaining dozens of grams of archaeological material was not common, so the age of many archaeological finds, including ceramics, metals and fossilized wood, remained undefined.

TASS