Lecture and Workshop Dendrochronology with Dr. Maegan Rochner
On Friday, April 3, the Department of Historic Preservation welcomes Dr. Maegan Rochner of the University of Louisville. Dr. Rochner is a nationally known dendrochronologist, whose work uses tree-ring data in a variety of contexts to help answer questions related to archaeology, geomorphology, ecology, and other fields. Along with these areas, tree-ring dating can help to establish the age of wood used in historic structures.
Dr. Rochner will be leading two events: at 9:00 a.m., she will give a lecture introducing the fundamental principles of dendrochronology (tree-ring dating). Following the lecture at 10:00 a.m., she will lead an all-day workshop covering the basic techniques and software used to date historic wood. Tree-ring dating can be extremely helpful for learning the age of historic wooden structures, supporting or challenging stories that have become associated with those structures over time. Students will take cores from a historic timber of indeterminate age, and will use state-of-the-art analytical techniques to unlock its secrets.
The lecture is open to the public. The workshop is limited to 10 students and requires advance registration. Lunch will be provided for workshop participants.
