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Abstract:
Paleosecular variation (PSV) is a phenomenon that describes how the Earth's magnetic field is constantly changing through time and space. Thermal remanent magnetization (TRM) spot data retained in fired archaeological objects and lavas can be used to create global and/or regional PSV models for the past few thousand years. Numerous regional PSV curves with reasonable resolution were successfully created in several European countries, the United States, Mexico, China, and the Near East. On the other hand, due to a lack of TRM data, several low-latitude regions and the majority of southern hemisphere regions do not currently have comparable models. Egypt is one of these regions without a PSV model, despite having many ancient sites with a wealth of archaeological knowledge. According to the GEOMAGIA50.v3 database, Egypt has 170 intensity, 27 inclination, and 1 declination data points for the past 6,000 years. One conspicuous feature from the previous Egyptian data set is the presence of two intensity peaks (≈80 μT) at ≈1400 BC and ≈500 BC, which are accompanied by steep inclination (>70o). These peaks can be correlated to the so-called Levantine Iron Age geomagnetic anomaly (LIAA), which was proposed for the first time in the Near East around ≈ 980 BCE. In this study, a reference PSV curve for Egypt will be constructed. This reference curve can be used as an effective dating method for ancient Egyptian artefacts. Furthermore, using the curve, it is conceivable to observe how the LIAA has changed across time and space.
