With carbon-14 dating, what is the most recent date which can be accurately determined, and why?
Is there an accepted time range, within which, accurate results can be attained using carbon-14 dating? I understand that the method can provide dating up to ca. 50,000 years into the past, but I'm interested in the other end of the time range: is there a point in time when younger (recent) specimens can no longer be dated with accepted accuracy?
I have read sources that place this limit anywhere between 50 and 500 years. I have read that this difficulty in the young-sample range is due to the fact that not enough material has been depleted to calculate accurately. I also understand the concerns with carbon-14 dating regarding the impact of fossil fuels / atomic activity in recent dating attempts. I also am aware of new carbon contamination when sampling.
I am a paintings conservator and have been requested to examine a panel painting from approximately 1550 A.D., and I have dendrochronological evidence which supports this date. Would a carbon-14 analysis be of equal accuracy in this case?
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