Outlines some of the problems inherent in conventional ₁₄C dating techniques which arise from the size of sample required and the great age of some samples. Work carried out on enrichment of the ₁₄C content of samples to allow small and very old samples to be dated is described. The ₁₄C content of formaldehyde synthesized from the sample is enriched by laser photolysis when subjected to the output beam from a monochromatic turable laser. A method for measuring ₁₄C content which uses a tandem Van de Graaf generator linked to a mass spectrometer to count ₁₄C ions is also described. -- AATA