We did not aim in this article to address methodological issues of
radiocarbon dating of ceramics or crust.
The
radiocarbon dates came from preserved organic items such as seeds, animal bones and burned wood from ancient trash deposits at these sites.
The
radiocarbon tests carried out on the parchment of the Birmingham folios yield the strong probability that the animal from which the skin was taken was alive during the lifetime of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) or shortly afterwards.
One reason that the date of the writing may be open to debate is that the
radiocarbon dating analyzed the animal skin on which the words were written.
This means that when objects from today are
radiocarbon dated, they will appear older than they actually are.
Radiocarbon dating has shown they are 5,500 years old which makes them among the earliest human bones found in the county.
The University of Birmingham announced in July that
radiocarbon analysis of the parchment had placed the four-page Koran manuscript close to the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad.
Scientists use
Radiocarbon Dating to confirm the time that something lived or was made.
Professor David Thomas, professor of Christianity and Islam at the University of Birmingham, said: "The
radiocarbon dating of the Birmingham Koran folios has yielded a startling result and reveals one of the most surprising secrets of the university's collections.