Establishing fire incidence in temperate soils using magnetic measurements

Oldfield, Frank; Crowther, John

doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2007.02.007

Cited by 88 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…It is also possible to experimentally distinguish the enhancement in magnetic susceptibility caused by fire from that produced through weathering and soil formation processes (Oldfield and Crowther 2007).…”

Section: Potential Targets For Archaeological Prospection In Pngmentioning

confidence: 99%

Magnetometer surveys in archaeological research in Papua New Guinea: Keveoki 1, Gulf Province

Moffat

David

Barker

et al. 2011

Archaeology in Oceania

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A magnetometer survey was conducted on the abandoned village site of Keveoki 1, near the Vailala River, Gulf Province, PNG. The survey, using a single sensor proton precession magnetometer, was successful in locating and defining the boundaries of areas confirmed by excavation to contain dense assemblages of pottery. The combination of geophysical and excavation results allowed a broader understanding of the spatial distribution of human occupation at Keveoki 1 than would have been possible based on excavation or visual field walking alone. We suggest this technique should be applied more regularly.

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Section: Potential Targets For Archaeological Prospection In Pngmentioning

confidence: 99%

Magnetometer surveys in archaeological research in Papua New Guinea: Keveoki 1, Gulf Province

Moffat

David

Barker

et al. 2011

Archaeology in Oceania

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“…quartz or feldspar dominated samples) . High χfd% values are known from archaeological sites beyond Australia, typically caused by burning events and pedogenesis Oldfield and Crowther 2007). At GS1, the χfd% (~10%) resembles percentages typical of modern soils rich in organic carbon.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Mechanisms causing magnetic enhancement and thus increases in magnetic susceptibility include anthropogenic activity such as burning (cf. Oldfield and Crowther 2007) or processes such as pedogenesis (cf. Magnetic susceptibility studies are a successful proxy for understanding site formation processes because they can reveal variations in sediment input that may result from these mechanisms and/or processes (cf.…”

Section: Research Objectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other researchers have focused on burnt sediments Linford and Platzman 2004;Oldfield and Crowther 2007), burnt clay ) and hearths (Maki 2005;). More recently mineral magnetics is being used to source archaeological materials such as weakly susceptible cherts, silicified wood or obsidian (Frahm and Feinberg 2013;Thacker and Ellwood 2002) and pigments in rock art (Milani 2010;Mooney et al 2003).…”

Section: Environmental Magnetism -Archaeomagneticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Magnetic domains are generally separated by narrow (ca 0.1 µm) domain walls Mullins 1977), which vary from thermally unstable ultrafine single domains, such as superparamagnetic (SP) grains to stable single domain (SD), to pseudo-single domain (PSD) and finally to large multidomain (MD) grains (Table 2) (Hunt et al 1995). In mineral magnetic studies, two of the most useful parameters for discerning natural soils from culturally modified soils are anhysteretic remanent magnetisation (ARM) and low-field magnetic susceptibility (χ) Oldfield and Crowther 2007). ARM is an artificial magnetic remanence imparted by subjecting a sample to a strong alternating field (i.e.…”

Section: Measuring Magnetic Mineralsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Understanding Australia’s cultural history through archaeological geophysics

Lowe¹

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The aim of this thesis is to develop and apply geophysical methods for Australian archaeology. The methods focus on magnetic susceptibility and ground-penetrating radar (GPR). The techniques are contextualised through application to the following four key archaeological questions: 1) Can magnetic susceptibility assist in resolving questions surrounding the potential downward movement of stone artefacts in rockshelter deposits? 2) Is human occupation persistent through the changing climatic regime associated with the last glacial maximum (LGM) at a Pleistocene-aged rockshelter in interior Australia? 3) How might we identify burials in a geologically complex rockshelter deposit? 4) How might magnetic susceptibility contribute to knowledge about the formation of 'archaeologically instantaneous' shell matrix sites?In exploring these questions, research was conducted at two rockshelters in northern Australia and on three shell mounds in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia. Magnetic susceptibility studies were undertaken at Gledswood Shelter 1 (GS1), a rockshelter occupied at ca 38,000 BP, to understand its history and formation processes. An experimental burning program using off-site samples was conducted to confirm that magnetically enhanced sediments in the cultural deposits were the direct result of anthropogenic burning rather than natural fires, pedogenesis or weathering. This change coincides with the level at which stone artefacts appear in the sedimentary sequence, indicating that they are in situ and have not moved down from higher layers above. Demonstrating that an increase in magnetic susceptibility is associated with human occupation is a crucial development in Australian archaeology. This will provide an opportunity to link sediments and artefacts-and this is critical to comprehending the timing of initial occupation of the continent.Magnetic susceptibility data combined with micromorphology and geoarchaeological data also revealed that occupation was continuous through the LGM at GS1, without any abandonment of the site. GS1 is situated in a region that has been characterised as a potential corridor for early colonists moving into the arid interior. The appearance of stone artefacts in the deposits corresponding with an increase in magnetic susceptibility as well as clay and charcoal coatings on quartz grains in the Pleistocene units in thin section, indicate that the site was occupied through this period, thereby implying that water was at least locally available.Despite the absence of any obvious permanent water sources, water availability at the site is ii reliant on summer rainfall. This suggests that the monsoons driven by the Coral Sea off the northeast Australian coastline may have been active during this time. This has important implications for understanding climatic conditions during that period, and allows one to infer that water must have been available regionally for people to have maintained their use of the site.GPR carried out in advance of archaeological excavations at Madjedbe...

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A 1400 year environmental magnetic record from varved sediments of Lake Xiaolongwan (Northeast China) reflecting natural and anthropogenic soil erosion

Chu

Liu

et al. 2015

Geochem Geophys Geosyst

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Lake sediments can provide high-quality information about human activities. In this study, we investigate a sediment core from Lake Xiaolongwan using magnetic and geochemical methods. The dominant magnetic minerals of this sediment core are stable single domain (SSD) and superparamagnetic (SP) magnetite particles. The increasing amount of SP particles reflected by the rise of magnetic susceptibility and frequency dependent magnetic susceptibility since AD 1500 can be attributed to an increasing influx in pedogenic soil, which is related to a regional-scale increase in the intensity of human activity in Northeastern China. This extends the timing of human activities, which is independent from climate changes and its effects on local ecosystems in Northeastern China significantly.

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Establishing fire incidence in temperate soils using magnetic measurements

Cited by 88 publications

References 21 publications

Magnetometer surveys in archaeological research in Papua New Guinea: Keveoki 1, Gulf Province

Magnetometer surveys in archaeological research in Papua New Guinea: Keveoki 1, Gulf Province

Understanding Australia’s cultural history through archaeological geophysics

A 1400 year environmental magnetic record from varved sediments of Lake Xiaolongwan (Northeast China) reflecting natural and anthropogenic soil erosion

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