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How do thermoluminescent dating and magnetic dating help date ceramic objects?

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kouros — Art fraud Kouros of uncertain provenance, formerly on display with the label “about 530 bc or modern forgery,” dolomitic marble; in the J. Paul Getty Museum, Villa Collection, Malibu, California.

In the context of detecting art fraud, technical analysis provides objective methods to verify the age of ceramic objects. Both thermoluminescent and magnetic dating are valuable tools for this purpose:

Thermoluminescent dating: This method relies on the fact that all matter, including clay, sustains slight damage from the faint nuclear radiation naturally present in the earth. Over time, this radiation causes electron displacements within the crystal lattice of the material. When a ceramic object is heated to high temperatures—such as during its original firing in a kiln—these trapped electrons are released as light energy. By measuring the intensity of this light emission, scientists can determine the length of time that has passed since the object was last fired, helping to distinguish ancient artifacts from modern forgeries.12
Magnetic dating (Archaeomagnetism): This technique is based on the slow, perceptible shift of the Earth's magnetic field over centuries. Magnetic particles within clay align themselves with the direction of the Earth's magnetic field at the time the object undergoes intense heating. By analyzing this residual magnetism, researchers can correlate the object's magnetic orientation with known historical shifts in the Earth's poles to estimate its age.13