The Lower Pecos Canyonlands was the first study area where the method of plasma oxidation was employed to extract organic material from prehistoric rock paintings for accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dating. During the developmental phase of this method, Rowe's laboratory at Texas A&M University obtained 32 radiocarbon measurements for Lower Pecos rock art: 29 dates for 16 paintings of the Pecos River style, and 3 additional dates for paintings of other styles found within the region. We evaluate these legacy dates based on contextual, compositional, and measurement elements, concluding that these experimental results are problematic and should not be used to draw archaeological conclusions. Building on knowledge gained during the development of the technique, Rowe established field and laboratory methods to address issues impacting the reliability and precision of radiocarbon results. Steelman's laboratory at Shumla Archaeological Research & Education Center has implemented these and additional protocols, including: (1) proper documentation of sampling locations so that the provenience of the sample is known (contextual); (2) analysis of unpainted control background samples to identify the presence or lack of contaminants in the rock substrate (compositional); (3) chemical pretreatment with base to remove any potential humic acid contamination (compositional); and (4) improved laboratory procedures to ensure that laboratory contamination is avoided (measurement). Using this methodology, Steelman's laboratory has obtained eleven radiocarbon results for four rock art sites in the region: 6 dates for Pecos River style paintings; 1 date for a red zigzag painting of another style; and 4 oxalate minimum/maximum ages. Three of these AMS measurements are from a single composition and pass a χ²-test consistent with being coeval. To our knowledge, this data also presents the first minimum, direct, and maximum age for a single pictograph. This review suggests that future dating research in the region will produce a refined chronology for age comparisons between different rock art sites, painting styles, and even sub-styles – adding to our knowledge of the hunter-gatherers who lived in this painted landscape.

下佩科斯峡谷地（Lower Pecos Canyonlands）是第一个使用等离子氧化方法从史前岩画中提取有机物以进行加速器质谱放射性碳测年的研究区域。在此方法的开发阶段，得克萨斯州A＆M大学的Rowe实验室获得了32下Pecos岩画的放射性碳测量值：29幅Pecos River风格的绘画的日期，另外3幅用于该地区发现的其他风格的绘画的日期。我们根据上下文，组成和度量元素评估了这些遗留日期，得出的结论是这些实验结果存在问题，不应该用来得出考古结论。建立在技术开发过程中获得的知识的基础上，Rowe建立了现场和实验室方法来解决影响放射性碳结果可靠性和精度的问题。Shumla考古研究与教育中心的Steelman实验室已实施了这些协议和其他协议，其中包括：（1）正确记录采样位置，以使样品的来源已知（相关）；（2）分析未上漆的对照本底样品，以确定岩石底物中是否存在污染物（成分）；（3）用碱进行化学预处理，以去除任何潜在的腐殖酸污染（成分）；（4）改进实验室程序，以确保避免实验室污染（测量）。使用此方法，Steelman的实验室获得了该地区四个岩石艺术遗址的11个放射性碳的结果：佩科斯河（Pecos River）风格的绘画有6个日期；一幅日期为另一种风格的红色锯齿形绘画的时间；和4个草酸盐的最小/最大年龄。这些AMS测量中的三个来自单一组成并通过χ^2-测试与世代相符。据我们所知，此数据还表示了单个象形文字的第一个最小，直接和最大年龄。该评论表明，该地区未来的约会研究将为不同的岩石艺术遗址，绘画风格甚至子样式之间的年龄比较提供精确的年表，从而增加我们对生活在这种绘画景观中的狩猎采集者的了解。