New Archaeomagnetic Directional Results from Cyprus: Insights on the Levantine Geomagnetic Field Anomaly

We present ten new archaeomagnetic directions from ovens and hearths excavated at five archaeological sites in Cyprus. The age of the baked clay structures ranges from 2000 BCE to 1400 CE. The magnetic mineralogy was determined through Isothermal Remanent Magnetization acquisition curves, hysteresis loops and thermomagnetic curves, and points to the presence of a magnetite-type mineral as the main magnetic carrier. All directions are well defined and can be added to the literature data from Cyprus and the Middle East. Quality selection criteria were applied to assemble the most reliable data located within a circular area of 600 km from Lefkosia (Nicosia) and a new time-continuous directional Secular Variation (SV) curve was computed for the last four millennia. This new directional curve for the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East shows several periods characterized by abrupt directional changes while a maximum change in curvature is clearly observed around 900 BCE. It confirms the hypothesis that during the Levantine Iron Age Anomaly, apart from the extreme intensity values, the geomagnetic field was characterized by steep inclinations and important directional change.