Paleointensity of twenty-two radiocarbon-dated strata in Tel Megiddo (Armageddon), Israel: synchronizing the archaeomagnetic clock

Abstract:

Paleomagnetic data from burnt archaeological artifacts provide one of the most important sources of information on the past behavior of the geomagnetic field. From paleointensity perspective, pottery is a significant source material due to the wide occurrence of potsherds and the ability to link ceramic typology to specific archaeological periods. Nevertheless, frequently, coeval paleointensity datasets derived from pottery collected from nearby locations display significant contradictions, hampering precise reconstruction of high-resolution secular variations curve. This can result from age biases caused by stratigraphic uncertainties, usage of different terminologies for archaeological periods, and limited radiocarbon dating.

In an effort to refine and improve the archaeointensity compilation of the Levant, we present here paleointensity data from twenty-two radiocarbon-dated strata from Tel-Megiddo Israel. From each stratum, we obtained paleointensity estimates from 3-8 pottery vessels. Data were acquired using two methods – the Thellier-IZZI-MagIC method with anisotropy and cooling rate corrections, and the Triaxe method. The two methods were tested and cross-calibrated with each other. The Tel Magiddo dataset anchors the paleointensity curve of the Levant to well-defined points in time, and enables assessment of chronological uncertainties in archaeological dating through archaeomagnetic correlation. The paleointensity data, spanning from the beginning of the third millennium BCE to the end of the 8^th century BCE illustrate some periods with fast paleointensity changes, and depicts the details of the evolution of the Levantine Iron Age Anomaly, which reached its peak between the 10^th and the 8^th centuries BCE.