The magnetic remanence of hematite-bearing murals

We report on a series of experiments designed to test the ability of hematite-bearing colors to record the direction of the ambient magnetic field. Plasterboards accurately oriented with respect to the Earth’s magnetic field were painted with red tempera colors prepared with hematite pigments. Magnetic measurements indicate that the color film retains a remanent magnetization and acquires a well developed magnetic fabric. The remanence direction is close to, yet slightly deviated from the Earth’s magnetic field. The deviation is interpreted to result from preferential alignment of the pigment grains parallel to the plasterboard surface and depends on both its orientation with respect to magnetic north and the degree of magnetic anisotropy of the color film, which in turn varies according to the pigment used. Investigation of the magnetic remanence of murals may complement archaeomagnetic information derived from traditional materials such as baked and fired structures.