Dating of rock paintings ——A problem needs to be solved urgently in the field of archaeometry
Guo Hong · Wenwu baohu yu kaogu kexue · 2005
China is one of the few countries where rock paintings emerged earliest in the world and it also boasts the richest rock paintings in the world. So far at present,rock paintings have been found in more than 60 counties located in 17 provinces throughout the country. The dating as a preliminary study of rock paintings can lay a solid foundation for further study of their content and style,and some other problems such as who painted them and what social functions they might play. However,the dating of rock paintings has been one of the toughest issues which perplexed researchers for decades,for rock paintings hardly offer any substantial evidences for dating. The author has made a comprehensive study of the current methods including natural science and archaeology used to date rock paintings and the extant problems and proposed that AMS 14C should be the top choice in rock painting dating in the future and mircoerosion should be the best solution to the dating of rock paintings.