Ground-penetrating radar and geo-electrical simulations of data from the Floridablanca archaeological site

Abstract

In this work we characterize the electromagnetic response of archaeological remains of a Spanish fortress situated on the Atlantic coast in Patagonia (Argentina).The fortress, part of the Floridablanca colony, founded in the eighteenth century, has been surveyed with non-invasive electromagnetic techniques (ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and the geo-electric method).The surveys indicate the presence of adobe walls of various sizes and width having different preservation states. Use of inversion algorithms alone to interpret the data has not been conclusive in obtaining a reliable model, because many uncertainties remained.To aid the interpretation, we make use of modelling methods to simulate the low-and high-frequency electromagnetic responses of the structures. The walls can be differentiated in spite of the low resistivity contrast with the surrounding media. The resolution of the 500 MHz antenna allows a satisfactory determination of the location of the walls and their conservation state.Similarly, the geo-electricalresponsehasenough sensitivity to detect theinnerandmajor walls

GPR prospecting in a prehispanic village, NW Argentina

“…Although the geophysical methods have been applied systematically in archaeology during the last decades, their implementation in Argentina is relatively new, having started at the end of the 1990s (e.g., Lascano et al, 2003;De la Vega et al, 2005;Osella et al, 2005). In 2004 we have began an archaeo-geophysical study in Palo Blanco site, NW Argentina.…”