Sedimentation rate in oceans and lakes is usually determined by the ratio of the core length to the incremental age between two horizons. However, the sedimentation rate determined by the above-mentioned method never represents the true value because the core length used in such an estimation is not corrected for the consolidation effect.
In the present paper, the author derives a simple theoretical relationship between the thickness of lacustrine sediments and their ages on the basis of a simple consolidation model and he introduces a rigorous expression for the sedimentation rate at the bottom surface in lakes of the past.