Provenancing 16th and 17th century CE building timbers in Denmark-combining dendroprovenance and Sr isotopic analysis

Dendrochronology (tree-ring analysis) allows us to precisely date and identify the origin of timber from historic contexts. However, reference datasets to determine the origin can include timber of non-local origin. Therefore, we have applied Sr isotopic on timbers from three buildings in Jutland, Denmark, mostly dating from the late 16(th) and early 17(th) centuries CE to improve and refine the provenance identification. The dendrochronology suggested that some timbers analysed were imported from the Swedish side of Oresund/Kattegat while others were local, and others again might be from south Norway. By adding the Sr isotopic analysis, a far more detailed interpretation of the origin of these timbers can be presented for non-Danish timbers. In this paper we suggest that Danish ports in the provinces of Halland and Skane played a major role in the timber trade between the Danish and Swedish parts of the Danish kingdom. For Danish timbers dendroprovenancing proved better than Sr isotopic analysis. Furthermore, a small number of Sr isotopic analyses were performed to contribute to the base-line along the Gota-river in Southern-Sweden.

Automated summary

Dendrochronology is used to date and identify the origin of timber, but reference datasets may include timber from non-local sources. In this study, Sr isotopic analysis was applied to timber from three historic buildings in Jutland, Denmark, to improve provenance identification. The results showed that some timbers were imported from Sweden, while others were local or from south Norway. The combination of dendrochronology and Sr isotopic analysis provided a more detailed interpretation of the origin of non-Danish timbers.