RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article
T1 Three archaeomagnetic applications of archaeological interest to the study of burnt anthropogenic cave sediments
A1 Carrancho Alonso, Ángel
A1 Herrejón Lagunilla, Ángela
A1 Vergés, Josep Maria .
K1 Fumiers
K1 Holocene
K1 Thermoremanent magnetization
K1 Secular variation
K1 Ashes
K1 Bronze Age
K1 Physics
K1 Paleontology
K1 Física
K1 Paleontología
AB Recent archaeomagnetic studies carried out on Mid-to Late Holocene burnt anthropogenic cave sedimentshave shown that under certain conditions, these materials are suitable geomagnetic field recorders.Archaeomagnetic analyses carried out on these contexts constitute a rich source of informationnot only for geophysical purposes -in terms of reconstructing the variation of Earth's magnetic field inthe past- but also from the archaeological point of view, for example by archaeomagnetic dating. Here,we report three different archaeomagnetic applications to the study of burnt cave sediments: (i)archaeomagnetic dating; (ii) determining palaeotemperatures and (iii) assessing post-depositionalprocesses. The first case study is a dating attempt carried out on a Late Holocene (Bronze Age) burntlevel from El Mirador Cave (Burgos, Spain). Using the directional European secular variation curve,several dating intervals were obtained for the last burning of this combustion feature. Considering thearchaeological evidence and the independent radiometric (14C) dating available the possible ages obtainedare discussed. This is the first archaeomagnetic dating obtained in these contexts so far. Thesecond case study is an application of the method to determine the last heating temperatures reached bythe carbonaceous facies of these fires. Stepwise thermal demagnetization of oriented samples can beused to quantitatively estimate heating temperatures. An intermediate normal polarity componentinterpreted as a partial thermo-remanence (pTRM) with maximum unblocking temperatures of 400e450  C was systematically identified, revealing the last heating temperatures experienced by this facies.These temperatures were confirmed with partial thermomagnetic curve experiments. Finally, archaeomagneticanalyses on a partially bioturbated burning event were performed in order to evaluate untilwhat spatial extent the burnt sediments were affected by post-depositional mechanical alteration processes.For each case study, the archaeological implications are discussed highlighting the potential ofarchaeomagnetic methods to retrieve archaeological information.
PB Elsevier
SN 1040-6182
YR 2016
FD 2016-09
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10259/4594
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10259/4594
LA eng
NO MINECO projects CGL2012-32149 and CGL2012-38481
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Burgos
RD 23-nov-2024