Archaeomagnetic study of a limekiln in the Les Ferreres Roman aqueduct, World Heritage Site of Tarraco
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(2020) 12:212
ORIGINAL PAPER
Archaeomagnetic study of a limekiln in the Les Ferreres Roman aqueduct, World Heritage Site of Tarraco Lluís Casas 1 & Carlota Auguet 2 & Núria Guasch-Ferré 3 & Miriam Gómez-Paccard 4 & José Luís Prada 5 & Àfrica Pitarch Martí 6 & Marta Badia 1 & Jorge Sanjurjo-Sánchez 7 & Moisés Díaz 8 & Joan Menchon 9 Received: 11 February 2020 / Accepted: 5 August 2020 # Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract The aqueduct of Les Ferreres is a major element of the Archaeological Ensemble of Tarraco. Although the ashlars of the aqueduct are stacked without mortar, lime was used in some parts and lime was certainly used in later repairs. Worthy of note is a coating mortar used in a well-documented restoration (1854–1856). In this study, a limekiln found near the Roman aqueduct has been archaeomagnetically dated to determine if it was used for the construction of the aqueduct or in later repairs. The mean values for the measured archaeomagnetic direction from the limekiln were compared with two different archaeomagnetic models (SCHA.DIF.3k and GUMF1), and both indicate that the limekiln is modern with ages only slightly older than the well-documented restoration. The extensive use of the coating mortar in that restoration is consistent with the need of onsite lime production. Additional archaeomagnetic intensity has not contributed to constrain further the obtained archaeomagnetic age but the intensity datum can be added to archaeomagnetic intensity datasets to enhance geomagnetic intensity field models. The paper illustrates how archaeomagnetic dating can be useful to characterize secondary structures of major cultural heritage monuments. Keywords Archaeomagnetism . Dating . Mortar . Geomagnetic field modeling . UNESCO WH List
Introduction Monuments are a substantial part of cultural heritage and, as such, need to be preserved for future generations. Conservation and protection policies promoted by both local governments and international institutions are fundamental not only to guarantee their preservation but also to study them
* Lluís Casas [email protected]
from both historical and scientific point of views. Possibly the most internationally recognized mechanism to promote preservation and investment on cultural heritage is inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage (WH) List, which works as a kind of franchise contract between the UNESCO and the States Parties (Adie 2017). For any Cultural Heritage site, but in particular for those ranked as WH monument, there is
5
Escola Superior de Conservació i Restauració de Béns Culturals de Catalunya, Carrer d’Aiguablava, 109-113, 08033 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
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Seminari d’Estudis i Recerques Prehistòriques (SERP), Departament d’Història i Arqueologia, Facultat de Geografia i Història, Universitat de Barcelona, Carrer Montalegre, 6, 08001 Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
1
Facultat de Ciències, Departament de Geologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain
2
Departament de F
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