Josep M. Gurt Esparraguera

Unraveling the short‐term behavior of the Earth's past geomagnetic field at regional scales is crucial for understanding its global behavior and, thus, the dynamics of the deep Earth. In this context, obtaining accurate full‐vector geomagnetic field records from regions where archeomagnetic data are absent becomes essential. Here, we present the first full‐vector archeomagnetic data from Central Asia, derived from the analysis of nine archeological kilns sampled in South Uzbekistan, dating back to the period between 200 BCE and 1429 CE. To obtain these new data, we conducted thermal and alternating field demagnetization procedures, along with Thellier‐Thellier paleointensity experiments, including partial thermoremanent magnetization checks, thermoremanent magnetization anisotropy and cooling rate corrections. The comparison between the new data, previous selected data from Central Asia, and available global models reveals important differences between approximately 400 BCE and 400 CE, especially concerning the geomagnetic field intensity element. In order to investigate this in detail, we have developed a regional update of the SHAWQ global models family by incorporating, for the first time, high‐quality data from Central Asia. The results suggest that this deviation is linked to non‐dipolar sources of the geomagnetic field in Central Asia reaching a maximum contribution around the first century BCE. According to the updated global paleoreconstruction, this non‐dipole feature, manifested at the Earth's surface as low intensities, is associated with the presence of a reversed flux patch at the core‐mantle boundary beneath this region.

This paper presents a preliminary use of satellite imagery from the CORONA program in the reconstruction of thearchaeological landscape of two different sites: Ancient Termez (southern border of Uzbekistan) and Khatm Al Melaha(eastern coast of United Arab Emirates in Kalba area). This analysis constitutes the first step of the work carried out in thefield since 2018 at both sites for an analysis of the syntactic interoperability of multi-scale geospatial data for archaeologicalheritage. The aim of this work was to establish an approach for the use of CORONA satellite imagery for archaeologicalDEM reconstruction. The objectives of the reconstruction were conditioned for different reasons: in the case of Termezprior to the anthropic transformation of the site in the Soviet - Afghan War and in the case of Khatm Al Melaha prior to theurban, coastal and road transformation. The results have provided uneven data due to the characteristics of the existingimagery: mission, resolution, overlap, orography and different ground control point distribution. This methodology opens adoor to the reconstruction of archaeological landscapes that have suffered evident deterioration for different reasons bymeans of historical aerial imagery in the last 60 years, practically, in some cases, as a primary and unique source foranalysing this type of change from the past.

We present the archaeological contextualization and the archaeometric characterization of slipped and nonslipped tableware and common wares from Termez in south Uzbekistan. The aims are, first, to evaluate the manufacture of pottery in the city and region (ancient Bactria) after the conquest of Alexander the Great in the late 4th century B.C. so as to detect Hellenistic Mediterranean influences, and, second, to investigate the evolution in pottery manufacturing following the arrival of the Yuezhi nomadic tribes in the mid‐2nd century B.C. X‐ray fluorescence, X‐ray diffraction, and thin‐section analyses were performed on vessels and on various local raw materials to examine the provenance and the technological processes involved in production (raw materials procurement and processing, shaping, and firing). Surface treatments were analyzed by using scanning electron microscopy equipped with an energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectrometer. The study reveals that all the analyzed wares are local/regional wheel‐thrown products, suggesting a high degree of technological standardization in the procurement and processing of raw materials in the period considered. The main difference between the two pottery traditions concerns the shape of the vessels, pointing to new consumption patterns after the nomadic invasion.