Dating sediment deposits on Montalvanian carvings using EPR and TL methods

About 30 years ago a rock shelter with engravings by early settlers was found at Montalvania, northern end of state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Lower part of engravings was covered with thin deposit of calcite mixed with quartz grains, due to occasional flood. This mixture of two minerals was dated by thermoluminescence and electron paramagnetic resonance using in both cases, additive method. The accumulated dose DAC, that is, natural radioactivity and cosmic rays radiation dose that induces TL and EPR signal intensity has been found to be around 50 Gy both by TL and EPR methods. The annual radiation dose rate was estimated to be about 1.027 mGy/a from knowledge of uranium, thorium and potassium content determined by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer system. The age of this calcite plus quartz deposits was estimated to be about 50 ka