Abstract

For geoarchaeologists the use of multiproxy and multimethod integrative approaches has become common for studying the sedimentary context of archaeological materials. In this paper, we introduce a novel approach that combines rock magnetic analysis with micromorphological analysis. We first conduct a brief examination of the magnetic properties of organic resins used in micromorphology to understand the potential impact of the resin and manufacturing process on the magnetic signature. It is crucial to understand the original production of the samples to ensure that endothermic reactions do not compromise the magnetic data. We illustrate the advantages of this approach through a case study of a pit hearth from the Neanderthal archaeological site of El Salt in Alcoi, Spain. This study utilises archived micromorphological samples of a pit hearth (combustion structure H77) initially described by Leierer et al. (J Archaeol Sci 123:105237, 2020). Rock magnetic analysis of multiple magnetic parameters—including magnetic susceptibility, natural remanent magnetization, and progressive isothermal remanent magnetization—reveals that each microfacies type exhibits a unique magnetic pattern, even if there is overlapping in signatures across some magnetic parameters. The interpretation of the magnetic data aligns with the results and microfacies descriptions previously provided by Leierer et al. (J Archaeol Sci 123:105237, 2020), further supporting the interpretation of the combustion feature as being in situ with a history of repeated use. The approach presented here offers an enhanced tool for micromorphologists to better understand the magnetic characteristics of microfacies units in higher resolution and establish direct connections to the micromorphological results.

中文翻译：

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磁微考古学：一种对考古土壤微形态样品进行岩石磁微相分析的方法，以西班牙阿尔科伊埃尔索尔特为例

摘要

对于地质考古学家来说，使用多代理和多方法综合方法来研究考古材料的沉积背景已经变得很常见。在本文中，我们介绍了一种将岩石磁性分析与微形态分析相结合的新方法。我们首先对微形态学中使用的有机树脂的磁性进行简要检查，以了解树脂和制造工艺对磁性特征的潜在影响。了解样品的原始生产过程至关重要，以确保吸热反应不会损害磁性数据。我们通过对西班牙阿尔科伊埃尔索尔特尼安德特人考古遗址坑炉的案例研究来说明这种方法的优点。本研究利用最初由 Leierer 等人描述的坑式炉床（燃烧结构 H77）的存档微形态样本。（考古学杂志 123：105237，2020 ）。对多个磁参数（包括磁化率、自然剩磁和渐进等温剩磁）的岩石磁分析表明，每种微相类型都表现出独特的磁模式，即使某些磁参数的特征存在重叠。磁性数据的解释与 Leierer 等人先前提供的结果和微相描述一致。(J Archaeol Sci 123:105237, 2020 )，进一步支持了对燃烧特征为原位且具有重复使用历史的解释。这里提出的方法为微形态学家提供了一种增强的工具，可以更好地以更高分辨率了解微相单元的磁性特征，并与微形态结果建立直接联系。