Magnetic Susceptibility Detection of Small Protohistoric Sites in the Raganello Basin, Calabria (Italy)

Abstract

This paper presents pilot geophysical investigations carried out in 2005-2006 by the Groningen Institute of Archaeology in northern Calabria, Italy. The aim of this work was to find out if and how surface magnetic susceptibility (MS) measurements might be of use to correct significant visibility biases in the results of earlier large-scale systematic and intensive field-walking, in particular for unobtrusive rural protohistoric sites. It was found that MS yields encouraging results under specific geopedological conditions, but that a better understanding of post-depositional site histories and large-scale geomorphology-driven MS variations is needed before an effective MS-based detection protocol in support of large-scale field-walking can be developed; follow-on studies are now being conducted by the authors to this end.