Mineral magnetism and archaeology at Galson on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland

Coastal erosion is cutting a section through a complex later prehistoric ar chaeological site at Galson. 168 samples from individual features e.g. midd ens and hearths, and also from several continuously-sampled vertical profil es were collected from the site. A range of mineral magnetic measurements, including susceptibilities, and laboratory induced remanent magnetisations have been carried out on the samples. The strong magnetic signal of the hea rth material can be traced in selected floors and middens giving an indicat ion of the anthropogenic use within the dwellings. The magnetic data also h ighlight differences between visually similar soils. The variation of susce ptibility with temperature, measured at 2cm intervals in a vertical profile through a hearth in one of the dwellings, has revealed two distinct magnet ic mineralogies, with varying domain states, possibly reflecting different fuel sources. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.