Skip to main content
Earth, Planets and Space
Download PDF

Volume 61 Supplement 1

Special Issue: Magnetism of Volcanic Materials-Tribute to Works of Michel Prévot

Magnetic properties and archeointensity determination on Pre-Columbian pottery from Chiapas, Mesoamerica

Earth, Planets and Space volume 61, pages 83–91 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

As part of the effort to establish an archeointensity variation curve for Mesoamerica, 13 archeologically well-identified pottery samples belonging to the Ocozocoautla site (Chiapas) were studied. Analyzed samples consist of ‘ofrenda type’ pottery fragments found in several caves. Three archeological intervals are involved: 450-100 B.C., 200–550 A.D. and 550–900 A.D. The Thellier method in its modified form was applied to small fragments previously embedded in salt pellets. Raw intensity values were further corrected for cooling rate effects. The common time-consuming TRM anisotropy correction protocol was substituted by an alternative approach during the paleointensity experiments. Forty-two specimens, belonging to six samples, yielded high-quality Thellier determinations. The NRM fraction f used for paleointensity determination ranges between 0.42 to 0.99, and the quality factor q (Coe et al., 1978) varies from 4 to 59, being normally greater than 5. These results correspond to data of good quality. The mean archeointensity values per pottery fragments range from 14.6±1.5 to 59.5±13.8 μT, while the corresponding virtual axial dipole moments range from 2.5±0.3 to 10.0±2.4 × 1022 A m2. These new data, although not numerous, are of high quality and definitively contribute to the Mesoamerican, still insipient, archeointensity database.

References

  • Adams, R. M., Report on an archeological reconnaissance in the Central Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico, Project of the Department of Anthropology of the University of Chicago, Chicago, 1959.

    Google Scholar 

  • Agrinier, P., Mound 9 and 10 at Mirador, Chiapas, Mexico, Papers of the New World Archeological Foundation, Provo, Utah, 39, 1975.

  • Aitken, M. J., L. J. Pesonen, and M. Leino, The Thellier paleointensity technique: Minisamples versus standard size, J. Geomag. Geoelectr., 43, 325–331, 1991.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bőhnel, H., J. Morales, C. Caballero, L. Alva, G. McIntosh, S. González, and G. Sherwood, Variation of Rock Magnetic Parameters and Paleoin-tensities over a Single Holocene Lava Flow, J. Geomag. Geoelectr., 49, 523–542, 1997.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bőhnel, H., A. J. Biggin, D. Walton, J. Shaw, and J. A. Share, Microwave paleointensities from a recent Mexican lava flow, baked sediments and reheated pottery, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 214, 221–236, 2003.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowles, J., J. Gee, J. Hildebrand, and L. Tauxe, Archeomagnetic intensity results from Californiaand Ecuador: evaluation of regional data, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 203, 967–981, 2002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bryant, D. D., J. E. Clark, and D. Cheetham, Ceramic Sequence of the Upper Grijalva Region, Chiapas, México, New World Archeological Foundation, Provo, Utah, No. 67, 2005.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bucha, V., R. E. Tylor, R. Berger, and E. W. Haury, Geomagnetic intensity: Changes during the past 3000 years in the western hemisphere, Science, 168, 111–114, 1970.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chauvin, A., A. Garcia, Ph. Lanos, and F. Laubenheimer, Paleointensity of the geomagnetic field recovered on archaeomagnetic sites from France, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 120, 111–136, 2000.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, J. and D. Cheetham, La cerámica del Formativo en Chiapas, in: B. Carrion y A. García, La Producción Alfarera en el México Antiguo Vol. I, Colección Científica INAH, México, 285–243, 2005.

    Google Scholar 

  • Coe, R. S., Paleo-Intensities of the Earth’s Magnetic Field Determined from Tertiary and Quaternary Rocks, J. Geophys. Res., 72(12), 3247–3262, 1967.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coe, R., S. Grommé and E. A. Mankinen, Geomagnetic paleointensity from radiocarbon-dated flows on Hawaii and the question of the Pacific nondipole low, J. Geophys. Res., 83, 1740–1756, 1978.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Culbert, P. T., The ceramic history of the Highlands of Chiapas, Papers of the New World Archeological Foundation, Provo, Utah, No. 19, 1965.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dixon, K. A., Ceramic from two preclassic periods at Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas, Mexico, Papers of the New World Archeological Foundation, Orinda, Ca, No. 5, 1959.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dunlop, D. and O. Özdemir, Rock-Magnetism, fundamentals and frontiers, Cambrige University Press, 573pp, 1997.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Genevey, A. and Y. Gallet, Intensity of the geomagnetic field in western Europe over the past 2000 years: New data from ancient French pottery, J. Geophys. Res., 107(B11), 2285, doi:10.1029/2001JB000701, 2002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gonzalez, S., G. Sherwood, H. Böhnel, and E. Schnepp, Paleosecular variation in Central Mexico over the last 30 000 years: the record from lavas, Geophys. J. Int., 130, 201–219, 1997.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Korte, M. and C. G. Constable, Continuous geomagnetic field models for the past 7 millenia: 2. CALS7K, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 6, Q02H16, doi:10.1029/2004GC000801, 2005.

  • Korte, M., A. Genevey, C. G. Constable, U. Frank, and E. Schnepp, Continuous geomagnetic field models for the past 7 millenia: 1. A new global data compilation, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 6, Q02H15, doi:10.1029/2004GC000800, 2005.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, S. S., Secular variation of the intensity of the geomagnetic field during the past 3,000 years in North, Central and South America, Ph.D. thesis, University of Oklahoma, Norman, 1975.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, T., Mound 4 Excavations at San Isidro, Chiapas, Mexico, Papers of the New World Archeological Foundation, Provo, Utah, No. 34, 1974.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, C, M. Jackson, and B. Ellwood, Magnetic anisotropy in the Trenton limestone: results of a new technique, anisotropy of anhysteric susceptibility, Geophys. Res. Lett., 12, 333–336, 1985.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McElhinny, M. W. and W. E. Senanayake, Variations in the geomagnetic dipole 1: the past 50,000 years, J. Geomag. Geoelectr., 34, 39–51, 1982.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morales, J., A. Goguitchaichvili, and J. Urrutia-Fucugauchi, A rock-magnetic and paleointensity study of some Mexican volcanic lava flows during the Latest Pleistocene to the Holocene, Earth Planets Space, 53(9), 893–902, 2001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morales, J., L. M. Alva-Valdivia, A. Goguitchaichvili, and J. Urrutia-Fucugauchi, Cooling rate corrected paleointensities from the Xitle lava flow: Evaluation of within-site scatter for single spot-reading cooling units, Earth Planets Space, 58(10), 1341–1347, 2006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagata, T., K. Kobayashi, and E. J. Schwarz, Archeomagnetic intensity studies of South and Central America, J. Geomag. Geoelectr., 17, 399–405, 1965.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schumann, E. A., A recent visit to southern, Mexico. Maya Res., 3(3–4), 296–305, 1936.

    Google Scholar 

  • Selkin, P. A., J. S. Gee, L. Tauxe, W. P. Meurer, and A. J. Newell, The effect of remanence anisotropy on paleointensity estimates: a case study from the Archean Stillwater Complex, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 183, 403–416, 2000.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shook, E. M., An archeological reconnaissance in Chiapas, Mexico, Papers of the New World Archeological Foundation, Orinda, Ca, No. 1, 1956.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tauxe, L., T. A. T. Mullender, and T. Pick, Pot-bellies, wasp-waists and su-perparamagnetism in magnetic hysteresis, J. Geophys. Res., 95, 12337–12350, 1996.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thellier, E. and O. Thellier, Sur l’intensité du champ magnétique terrestre dans le passé historique et géologique, Ann. Geophys., 15, 285–376, 1959.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weiant, C. W, An introduction to the ceramic of Tres Zapotes, Bulletin 139, Bureau of American Ethnology, Washington, 1943.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yang, S., H. Odah, and J. Shaw, Variations in the geomagnetic dipole moment over the last 12 000 years, Geophys. J. Int., 140, 158–162, 2000.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zananiri, I., C. M. Batt, Ph. Lanos, D. H. Tarling, and P. Linford., Archaeo-magnetic secular variation in the UK during the last 4000 years and its application to archaeomagnetic dating, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 160, 97–107, 2007.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. Avto Goguitchaichvili

    Present address: Departamento de Geologia y Mineralogia, Instituto de Investigaciones Metalurgicas, Universidad Michoacana San Nicolas de Hidalgo, México

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Geofísica, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, 04510, MEXICO DF, México

    Juan Morales, Avto Goguitchaichvili, Tomas González-Moran & Luis Alva-Valdivia

  2. Laboratorio Interinstitucional de Magnetismo Natural, Instituto de Geofísica, Sede Michoacán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Morelia, Michoacán, México

    Juan Morales & Avto Goguitchaichvili

  3. Instituto de Investigaciones Antropológicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, 04510, MEXICO DF, México

    Guillermo Acosta

  4. Laboratorio de Arqueometría del Occidente, INAH-Morelia, Michoacán, México

    Jasinto Robles-Camacho

  5. Instituto de Geología, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, 04510, MEXICO DF, México

    Ma. del Sol Hernández-Bernal

Authors
  1. Juan Morales
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Avto Goguitchaichvili
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Guillermo Acosta
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Tomas González-Moran
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Luis Alva-Valdivia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Jasinto Robles-Camacho
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Ma. del Sol Hernández-Bernal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Juan Morales.

Rights and permissions

Open Access  This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made.

The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.

To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Morales, J., Goguitchaichvili, A., Acosta, G. et al. Magnetic properties and archeointensity determination on Pre-Columbian pottery from Chiapas, Mesoamerica. Earth Planet Sp 61, 83–91 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03352887

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03352887

Key words