A dataset of radiocarbon dates from Holarctic mammal collagen purified with high-quality chemistry

Radiocarbon dates from megafaunal remains provide insights into climatic and anthropogenic factors shaping past ecosystems. Chronologies have advanced through rigorous chemical purification (pretreatment) of fossil vertebrate collagen for accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon dating. We present MEGA14C, a comprehensive dataset of late Quaternary AMS radiocarbon dates for Holarctic large-bodied mammals, based on collagen purified by ultrafiltration (92% of records), XAD-2 purification (7%) and hydroxyproline isolation (1%). MEGA14C includes 11,715 dates spanning 8 orders, 23 families, 78 genera, 133 species and 18 subspecies, 27% from extinct taxa, and dominated by Equus, Bos, Mammuthus, Rangifer, Bison, Ursus, Cervus, Canis, Coelodonta and Sus. Where available, geolocation, genetic and isotopic data are provided. Pretreatment is critical for accurate and reproducible radiocarbon measurements, yet 44% of published dates lack this information. We addressed this gap through over 10,000 personal communications (out of >100,000 emails) with researchers and AMS laboratories among the parties involved in fossil dating. This unique dataset supports (pre)historical research and provides a foundation for future expansion and/or integration into a global radiocarbon repository.