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The relationship between archaeology and tree-ring dating, or dendrochronology, is reviewed. Until the past decade, the applications of tree-ring dating to archaeological problems had not been thoroughly exploited. Now, in addition to providing the most precise dating control in the world, dendrochronology is making contributions to behavioral archaeology and to the reconstruction of past environments.

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The factor analysis of correspondences has been applied to variations as a function of time of the ring widths of the Aleppo pine (Pinus halepensis Mill.) in the French Mediterranean region. This study, involving rings corresponding to 36 years of growth, demonstrates that a general climatic factor (factor 1) intervenes, as well as the constraint of external factors vis-a-vis individual reactions (factor 2). Numerous factors govern ring width. The factor analysis of correspondences enables the demonstration that an important factor is the rain which falls during the vegetation period preceding the summer drought. The importance of the rainfall factor is conditioned by the date at which the average minimum daily temperature exceeds + 4°C, as well as by the distribution of rain during the period in question and by the multiplying effect of the climate of the preceding year. The important effect of unusually low

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The relations between the width growth of thousand year old larches of the French Maritime Alps (Vallée des Merveilles, north of Nice) and climate are investigated in several ways. A first analysis of tree-ring width compared with meteorological data of the last 21 years (1954-1974) reveals above all an inverse relationship to precipitation and temperature for the months of June and July. Moreover the temperature and rain of the autumn (September in particular) and previous winter seem to affect ring formation as well as the temperature and rain of March and May of the current season. Thus comparison of tree-ring width variations - during the thousand year period of tree growth - with climatic data from various sources (history, chronicle, variations of the glacial front lines, known climatic episodes) shows that climate reconstruction, over several centuries, at the limits of the Mediterranean zone, can be obtained with larch of the French Maritime Alps.

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Cores of red spruce (Picea rubens Sarg.) from three upper-elevation sites in Maine, U.S.A., were X-rayed, and minimum and maximum wood densities as well as ring widths were mechanically recorded. The 200- to 300-year series of maximum densities at the three sites show remarkable inter-site similarity. Maximum density and total ring-width series from one site, Elephant Mt., were standardized. Response functions, which measure tree-growth response to climatic variables, were calculated for each of these two series. The ring-width response function explained 66% total variance, of which 34% was explained by climate. The maximum density response function explained 70% total variance, 67% of which was explained by the same climatic variables. Thus, the climate signal from maximum densities is stronger, and perhaps more season-specific, than that of ring widths.

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The separating distance over which tree-ring chronologies are significantly correlated is investigated. Any chronology occuring within a radius of 161 km of another is estimated to contain at least half of the common variance occurring at zero separating distance. The separating distance of 161 km is used to calculate the number of nonoverlapping chronology equivalents present within the 40 -, 65 -, and 89-chronology western North American grids. The density of chronologies is calculated for these three grids in various ways. The results give conservative density estimates of five, seven, and eight sites per Mkm² for the three different tree-ring grids.