Palaeotemperature estimation of the pyroclastic deposit covering the pre-Minoan palaeosol at Megalochori Quarry, Santorini (Greece): Evidence from magnetic measurements

Thermal remanent magnetization analyses were carried out on ceramic fragments and lithic clasts embedded in the first pumice fall deposits of the Minoan eruption. The aim of this study is to estimate the equilibrium temperature after deposition of these pyroclastic fall deposits and their thermal effect on the pre-Minoan surface. A total of 30 samples from 22 independent ceramic fragments and 20 samples from 14 lithic clasts have been studied. Samples were collected from the Megalochori Quarry, located at the southern part of Santorini island. Stepwise thermal demagnetization reveals that the ceramics were mostly re-heated at temperatures around 140–180°C; in few ceramics a higher temperature component is also present, probably related to the original heating or the use of the ceramics before the eruption. Thermal demagnetization of the lithic clasts shows similar results with slightly higher re-heating temperatures, around 180–240°C. The estimated temperatures represent the equilibrium temperatures obtained after the deposition of the pumice fall and show that the pyroclastic fall deposits at a distance of around 6 km from the eruption vent maintained a temperature high enough to re-heat the buried ceramics at temperatures around 140–180°C.