Magnetic surveys locate Late Bronze Age corrals

A new type of livestock enclosure from the Late Bronze Age has been discovered. Stone walls outline a pair of circular or oval areas that may be up to 50 m in diameter. The stone walls are invisible at the surface; they were discovered in north‐western Crimea and only with the aid of remote sensing and geophysical surveys. In the period 2007–2020, over two dozen of these structures were found; none has ever been noted before. The locations of these sites were first suggested in satellite imagery, often as areas with unusually green vegetation. Then, large‐area magnetic surveys delineated the buried stone enclosures, for there was a good contrast between the non‐magnetic limestone walls and the rather magnetic soil. The features can be identified by the unique pattern of the walls: An almost‐complete circular arc that is connected to a full circle or oval. The soil within the features has a high level of urease enzyme activity and a high concentration of thermophilic microorganisms. This suggests the composting of animal dung and plant residues; therefore, these were corrals and the raising of livestock was a part of the economy. Only one of the doubled enclosures is found at most settlements; the livestock were probably owned by all of the inhabitants. Each settlement had several dwellings, and these had earthen basins whose edges were lined with vertical stone slabs. Several small‐area excavations exposed corral walls. Magnetic measurements of the soil and rock were the basis for magnetic models; the calculated anomalies agree with the measurements of the magnetic maps.