Thermoluminescence dating of terrazzo from the monastery church of Tegernsee (Bavaria, Germany) using the 210°C TL peak of quartz

Abstract 

Thermoluminescence (TL) is one of the most important physical methods used in archaeometry for dating ceramics. In this study the newly developed procedures based on the use of the 210°C TL peak of quartz were applied to well-dated bricks of the church of the Tegernsee monastery in Bavaria. The resulting TL ages obtained from these well-dated bricks were used as a reference for selection of the suitable measurement procedure and to test the precision of the measurements and the accuracy of the technique. The optimized procedure was applied to the terrazzo fragments from the monastery church. The TL results provide a new understanding of the architectural history of the church. The improved measurement procedure including various dose evaluation techniques and the components of the annual dose assessment are described.