Large Archaeological Sites Research Articles

Large-scale medieval urbanism traced by UAV-lidar in highland Central Asia.

Aerial light detection and ranging (lidar) has emerged as a powerful technology for mapping urban archaeological landscapes, especially where dense vegetation obscures site visibility1,2. More recently, uncrewed aerial vehicle/drone lidar scanning has markedly improved the resolution of three-dimensional point clouds, allowing for the detection of slight traces of structural features at centimetres of detail across large archaeological sites, a method particularly useful in areas such as mountains, where rapid deposition and erosion irregularly bury and expose archaeological remains3. Here we present the results of uncrewed aerial vehicle-lidar surveys in Central Asia, conducted at two recently discovered archaeological sites in southeastern Uzbekistan: Tashbulak and Tugunbulak. Situated at around 2,000-2,200 m above sea level, these sites illustrate a newly documented geography of large, high-altitude urban centres positioned along the mountainous crossroads of Asia's medieval Silk Routes (6th-11th centuryCE (Common Era)4,5. Although hidden by centuries of surface processes, our pairing of very-high-resolution surface modelling with semiautomated feature detection produces a detailed plan of monumental fortifications and architecture spanning 120 ha at Tugunbulak, thereby demonstrating one of the largest highland urban constellations in premodern Central Asia. Documentation of extensive urban infrastructure and technological production among medieval communities in Central Asia's mountains-a crucial nexus for Silk Road trade networks6-provides a new perspective on the participation of highland populations in the economic, political and social formation of medieval Eurasia.

The ephemeral record: The role of opportunistic animal resources in the archaeology of Pampa and Patagonia

The acquisition of opportunistic animal resources by hunter-gatherers-such as scavenged carcasses-is a well-known subsistence strategy. It is frequently mentioned in the context of the history of early human evolution, but not regularly considered among the strategies utilized by more recent foragers of the Southern Cone of South America. Historical and ethnographic information presented here suggests that the use of opportunistic animal resources was a strategy used under a number of conditions but only partially documented in the archaeological literature. We also present archaeological evidence from four sites-Guardia del Río, Paso Otero 1, Ponsonby, and Myren-in different Pampean and Patagonian settings where relevant guanaco (Lama guanicoe) bone assemblages were recovered. These sites record minimal anthropic involvement, basically cut marks on some guanaco bones accompanied by few stone tools, that we interpret as evidence for access and use of water logged immobilized or recently dead animals. Archaeological evidence for the use of these scavenging strategies is difficult to obtain at large archaeological sites that usually result from multiple occupations, since the distinction between the acquisition of actively pursued versus opportunistic animal resources is not straightforward. One conclusion from our review is that the best places to find and recognize this evidence are archaeological sites resulting from ephemeral occupations. The inclusion of these sites gives us access to crucial and rarely documented evidence for the long-term survival of hunter-gatherers.

Change Detection Analysis Using Drone-Based Photogrammetry for Long-Term Archaeological Site Erosion Monitoring

This paper presents a rapid, cost-effective, and non-specialist approach to long-term archaeological site monitoring that is repeatable and affordable. Advances in unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based photogrammetry allow for the creation of multi-temporal three-dimensional (3D) models that permit accurate and in-depth analysis and quantification of landscape change through time. This paper presents a case study of aerial-based photogrammetric datasets using UAVs (i.e., drones) to conduct change detection analysis for monitoring continued erosion threatening an Indigenous buffalo jump in Alberta, Canada. The results demonstrate which areas of the site experienced the most significant change over a period of four years. By bridging gaps between traditional field survey and satellite-scale observations of impacts to large archaeological site complexes, UAV monitoring programs may become increasingly important as anthropogenic climate change continues to threaten heritage sites in Canada.

The Hidden Cairns—A Case Study of Drone-Based ALS as an Archaeological Site Survey Method

Conducting archaeological site surveys is time consuming, and large sites may have many small features or structures that are difficult to locate and interpret. Vegetation cover and dense forest hide small structures, like cairns, while at the same time forest cover can cause problems for LiDAR tools. In this case study, drone-based ALS (airborne laser scanning) was tested as an archaeological site survey tool. The research site was complex and located partially in a forested area, which made it possible to evaluate how forest cover affects data. The survey methods used were rather simple: visual analysis, point density calculations in the forest area, and, for site interpretation purposes, digitizing observations and viewshed analysis. Using straightforward methods allowed us to evaluate the minimum time and skills needed for this type of survey. Drone-based ALS provided good results and increased knowledge of the site and its structures. Estimates of the number of cairns interpreted as graves more than doubled as a result of the high-accuracy ALS data. Based on the results of this study, drone-based ALS could be a suitable high-accuracy survey method for large archaeological sites. However, forest cover affects the accuracy, and more research is needed.

A Reassessment of the Chronology of the Iron Age site of Khirbet en-Nahas, Southern Jordan

ABSTRACT The chronology of Khirbet en-Nahas, a large Iron Age archaeological site located in the copper mining region of Faynan, southern Jordan, has been under fierce debate for the last 15 years. Since the site was excavated in 2002–2009, several analyses challenged the excavators’ interpretation of the stratigraphy, the results of the radiocarbon data and its dating. However, so far none of these challenges considered the final report published in 2014, which provided precious information from new areas of excavations and novel series of 14C dates. It is therefore necessary to have an independent reassessment of the archaeological and radiocarbon evidence of each excavated area based on the final report. Reasonable questions raised since the beginning about the 14C dates and the use of Bayesian modelling, the stratigraphic contexts from which they were recovered, and the interpretation of the ceramic assemblage can now be reassessed through a meticulous analysis of the site’s stratigraphy and finds. Considering this re-evaluation of the evidence, it is possible to present a reconstruction of the history of the site somewhat different from the one suggested by the excavators.

Parsa Ghasemi, Reza Noruzi, Aziz Rezaei, Mosayeb Amiri, Ebrahim Ghezelbash. “Čāhārbāzār. Preliminary Report on the Identification of a Large Archaeological Site in Farāšband, in the Sasanian Province of Ardašīr-Xwa

A large possibly Sasanian archaeological site, knowns as Cāhārbāzār, was identified 11 km east of Farāsband, in the Bani-Qatār plain of Bacun. Thanks to an approach combining field survey with analysis of remote sensing of aerial photo and satellite imagery, further study had been carried out adding a piece of our knowledge on archaeology of Fars. Previously this site was believed to be a caravanserai and a kusk, but this groundbreaking research discovered that the main complex is within a va...

An ∼1100 yr record of human and seabird occupation in the High Arctic inferred from pond sediments

Abstract Seabirds in the Canadian Arctic congregate in large colonies, producing oases of biological productivity and diversity in coastal regions. Here, we examined sterols, stanols, and stable isotopes (δ15N and δ13C) in three 14C-dated pond sediment cores near a large seabird colony and archaeological site on Devon Island (Nunavut, Canada), showing historical occupation by the seabirds and an ancient human (Thule or Norse) settlement over an ∼1100 yr time period. Coprostanol in the sediment records captures the presence of humans at ca. 1150 CE, followed by their abandonment of the site by ca. 1300 CE. Increased seabird presence at this site after ca.1200 CE is indicated by increases in δ15N and cholesterol/sitosterol. Seabird population expansion is observed after ca. 1600 CE in δ15N and cholesterol/sitosterol profiles, coinciding with European whaling activities that expanded in the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries. Our study provides insights into human and seabird occupation in the High Arctic to inform archaeological and conservation efforts.

Čāhārbāzār. Preliminary Report on the Identification of a Large Archaeological Site in Farāšband, in the Sasanian Province of Ardašīr-Xwarreh, Iran

As a result of field survey and remote sensing of aerial photo and satellite imagery, a large archaeological site, probably belonging to the Sasanian period, was identified in Farāšband. This site covers an area of 14.4 square kilometers, very regular and walled, implanted on virgin land. The initial survey shows that it was probably a large geometric city consists of six large almost rectangular shape sections. Based on the archaeological evidence, this site has never been completed nor filled with population and had some gardens.

The legend of Tan-varp-ekva

The object of the study is the texts about Tan-varp-ekva, «the tendon twistress», recorded during the 20th c. The majority of the full-text tales has been recorded from the northern Mansi (Lyapin River Basin, Upper Lozva), some folklore stories have been published for various groups of Khanty (Yugan, Middle Ob, Berezovo, Kazym, Upper Purov, Shurishkar); the Nenets legend about the old woman-Sihirtia stands out. The tales mostly split into two plots: the first one is associated with the prohibition to spin veins at night, the second — with changeling and kidnapping of children. The analysis of the key points of the legends has been carried out, the position of the Ob-Ugorsk forest spirit among similar images of the Komi and Russians has been determined. The authors suggest that the village of Lombovozh (Lyapin Mansi) became the place of creation of the folklore storyline, linking it to the presence of a large archaeological site, a medieval settlement. The spread of the legend of Tan-varp-ekva among other Mansi and Khanty groups was the result of migrations. The main plot of the story refers to the introduction of regulations by the Ob Ugrians on inclusion of a daughter-in-law, young women into the foreign cult community. The story with a silver cup explains the rules of entry of a newly manufactured or brought from the outside object into the sphere of worship in the Ob Ugrians. Tan-varp-ekva in the role of a female deity could act as the patro-ness of needlework, as, for the Ob Ugrians, twisting of deer tendon threads was a traditional female work. The stories about Tan-varp-ekva are similar to those of many Russian fairy tales, ballades about mythical spin-stresses, as well as bans on needlework during the night and transition time. Her image has a lot in common with Baba Yaga and with the character of Yoma — her double in Komi (forest spirits, creatures of the lower world, kidnappers of children, cannibals, treasure keepers, treasure givers, «spinning» deities). The motifs of killing and eating of daughter-in-law by the spinstress of tendons can be an allusion of the rite of transition to a new family, when the girl «died» for her former family and left the protection of the spirits-keepers of her family. The popular-Christian layer of views of the Russians and Komi provides material for comparative analysis of mythological con-cepts of Slavic and Finn-Ugric peoples, who for a long period experienced mutual influence on ethnocultural tradi-tions. The function of Tan-varp-ekva as a «twister of tendons» can be secondary, borrowed from neighboring populations, for example, from the Komi, who, together with Orthodoxy, accepted and adapted the popular-Christian beliefs of the Russians.

Geo‐environmental evaluation for the preventive conservation of open‐air archaeological sites: the case of the Roman Necropolis of Carmona (Spain)

AbstractThe Necropolis of Carmona, which has more than 600 tombs carved in calcarenites, is among the most important Roman burial sites preserved in southern Spain. The tombs in the Necropolis show severe alteration and multiple weathering processes after being excavated at the end of the nineteenth century without a preventive conservation plan. The archaeological site shows strong anthropic modifications related to different excavation stages and in relation to the construction of facilities for the visiting public. In particular, the exposure of the buried tombs to meteoric conditions and anthropic modification of natural drainage have led to an important acceleration of the deterioration of the tombs. The conservation status of the Necropolis was defined through a comprehensive geo‐environmental study that combined field observations and laboratory data, modelling and digital mapping and environmental monitoring. Results allow a methodology to be developed providing guidelines to minimize potential risks when excavating new tombs (now buried) in the future. Moreover, the most suitable prospective areas can be defined inside the Necropolis in terms of the environmental, geological and geomorphological conditions which will enhance the preservation of newly exhumed tombs. Geo‐environmental preventive conservation methods that we propose can be entirely applied to other large archaeological sites completely exposed to open‐air atmospheric conditions.

Airborne LiDAR Reveals a Vast Archaeological Landscape at the Nan Madol World Heritage Site

An airborne LiDAR survey of the Nan Madol World Heritage Site and adjacent Temwen Island revealed a complex, irrigated cultivation system, the first found in the Central and Eastern Caroline Islands. This informs the goals of the sustainable conservation project, funded by the U.S. Department of State Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation, that inspired the survey, and expands understanding of Nan Madol and its place in the network of Pacific island interaction and trade. Fieldwork verified the presence, across Temwen, of low, wet, cultivable areas, many of which are connected by water channels or separated by earthen berms. The berms themselves may also have been cultivated. In complexity, labor investment, and organization, the system is comparable to Nan Madol itself, the largest archaeological site in Micronesia, with structures on about 100 artificial islets built of stone and coral on a reef flat. Constructed over a millennium, Nan Madol was the seat of the Saudeleur Dynasty, which persisted from about 1200 to 1600 CE. The cultivation system appears to have been able to provide ample food for consumption, feasting, and redistribution or trade. If the landscape alteration described here proves to date to the time of the Saudeleur Dynasty, it will offer many avenues of research into the economic basis of Nan Madol’s regional dominance.

Multi-methodological approaches to investigate large archaeological sites: The case study of the Eneolithic settlement in Mozgawa, western Lesser Poland

Multi-methodological approaches to investigate large archaeological sites: The case study of the Eneolithic settlement in Mozgawa, western Lesser Poland

Three‐dimensional modelling of large archaeological sites using images obtained from masts. Application to Qubbet el‐Hawa site (Aswan, Egypt)

AbstractThree‐dimensional (3D) modelling of archaeological sites has recently undergone a great development due to the implementation of new acquisition devices and techniques and new processing algorithms. One of the most noteworthy of these is the use of unmanned aerial systems for lifting acquisition devices such as digital cameras to model sites based on photogrammetric techniques. Despite the development and wide use of these systems there are some situations where they are not allowed to fly. In this context we propose a method based on masts which elevate the camera in order to perform photogrammetric surveys of large archeological sites. In this study we analysed the photograph acquisition parameters and the surveying procedure in order to balance in‐field the efficiency and the complete coverage of photographs in the study zone, taking into account the requirements of the photogrammetric processing technique to be implemented. The proposed method has been applied to a large and complex archaeological site located in Aswan (Egypt). The results obtained (photogrammetric products and the 3D model) have demonstrated the viability of the method in these cases and the possible implementation of these types of studies for documentation, planning, virtual visualization, etc.

The Imperial Inka road system: exploring new paths

The royal Inka road (Qhapaq Nan), and its associated array of 2000+ provincial facilities, was the grandest work of infrastructure ever constructed in the indigenous Americas. Spanning at least 40,000 km, the road network joined the farthest reaches of the empire to Cuzco, the imperial capital, via two main routes, one in the highlands and the other hugging the coastline. Additional roads crossed the Andes, running from the coast past the Americas’ highest peaks and down into the forests and plains of the eastern lowlands. A 12-year project on the roads by professionals from six Andean nations resulted in the naming of the Qhapaq Nan as the largest archaeological site on the World Heritage list in 2014. The recent research has illuminated the organization of the network through examination of precursors, detailed descriptions of more than 200 sectors, logistical studies at the local and macro levels, GIS analyses, and explorations of human experience in traversing a landscape that the Inkas saw as populated by innumerable non-human beings. The present article discusses those issues, summarizing the results of the recent studies, and poses areas of inquiry for future research.

Quantitative quality measure for photorealistic three dimensional models

The demand for virtual photorealistic models has been recently increased especially in the field of documenting large archaeological sites. These models are commonly assessed qualitatively as no quantitative measure tool is available. In this work, a new approach is presented for a quantitative measure of models texture similarity. Deciding for the reference texture is crucial. Metrics that have been used to assess image stitching quality in panoramic images are employed in the presented approach. A proposed metric is also presented and employed to assess the overall quality of the whole model’s texture. The work is then extended to manage misalignments that might appear in textured models in case of using wide angle lenses. A function that fits a second order polynomial equation is derived experimentally. The approach has been validated by three real models. The quantitative measure approach and the visual inspection of subjects for the models show a consistent correlation between the results.

Landscape applications of photogrammetry using unmanned aerial vehicles

Photogrammetry is quickly becoming an important, cost effective technique for recording cultural heritage. Beyond the micro-scale of site evaluation, however, there are also effective landscape applications, with drone-based image collection allowing for large-scale survey. This combination of highly portable technology, which is not fully automated, can be used to create accurate and dense three-dimensional models at a fraction of the cost of LiDAR, and often at a much high spatial resolution. Yet, despite this, few studies have assessed the viability of this technique in regard to landscape studies. Those that have, such as Muñoz-Nieto et al. (2014), highlight the effectiveness of this technique and its ease of use. This paper assesses the viability of this technology for mapping large archaeological sites such as hillforts, providing a case study for its application to landscape archaeology.

Issues in the Protection of Cultural Heritage in Iraq

Iraq is home to many of the large archaeological sites of the world like Babylon Ashur, Nineveh, Nimrud, and Samarra. Due to the great quantity and quality of Iraq?s cultural resources, it is known as one of the great source countries for international antiquities market and is inherently at risk of looting and pillage of its vast cultural property resources. There are three international agreements on the protection of cultural property whereby Iraq is a party; the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illegal Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property and the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention on Stolen or Illicitly Exported Cultural Property. However, after the U.S occupation in 2003, Iraq has become very unstable and has given way to uncontrolled looting and illegal trade of antiquities, despite the existence of international conventions and Iraqi laws on this matter. This study aims to analyse the legal protection for antiquities, in accordance with international and domestic laws and to recommend legal improvement on this matter. Towards these ends, this study employs the traditional legal method through document analysis. The study concluded that the conventions to safeguard cultural property are inadequate to deal with the situation in Iraq due to lack of commitment from the United States and the United Kingdom to be part of these conventions and make serious efforts to safeguard cultural property in Iraq.

Landscape Archaeology in the Wādī al-ʿArab Region

Abstract As an integral part of the Gadara-Region-Project, a survey of the Wādī al-‘Arab region was conducted during the years 2009-2012, by the Biblical-Archaeological Institute Wuppertal and the German Protestant Institute for Archaeology in order to achieve a better understanding of the hinterland of the main study site Tall Zirāʿa and to provide answers concerning settlement pattern, trade relationships and the importance of sites throughout time. On the basis of this survey we used ecological approaches to see what correlation might exist between archaeological sites and habitat. Since more than half the sites in this survey had Roman occupation, we asked what difference, if any, was there in the distribution of Roman sites compared to previous occupations. A comparison was made of “new” Roman sites (those not previously occupied in the Hellenistic period) with those that had both Roman and Hellenistic occupation. Open water, riverine habitats, and large archaeological sites all seemed connected. In addition, analysis indicated a correlation of older (more successful or established?) sites with open water and new Roman sites were less related to water. We knew that Roman engineering both of cistern systems and aqueducts opened new areas (such as plateaus) for settlement and exploitation. Hence the weaker correlation of new Roman sites with natural water was reasonable.

A Regional Approach to Ancient Urban Studies in Greece Through Multi-Settlement Geophysical Survey

ABSTRACTThe systematic exploration of large archaeological sites in the Mediterranean has evolved considerably since the “big dig” excavations. Pedestrian field surveying and remote sensing applications, including satellite and airborne image analysis, are now practical and relatively cost-efficient methods of characterizing large and diachronically diverse landscapes on regional scales. However, the use of geophysical techniques as a means for exploring manifold archaeological contexts is still in its infancy. In this paper, we highlight the advantages of archaeological geophysics to conduct regional surveys in the Mediterranean. Through a multi-site geophysical fieldwork campaign to investigate the patterns and dynamics of ancient cities in Greece, we show how geophysics offer new opportunities for characterizing the spatial attributes and regional dynamics of urban landscapes, and, in doing so, we make an argument for its wider adoption on regional survey projects.

Reconstruction of measurable three-dimensional point cloud model based on large-scene archaeological excavation sites

This paper outlines a low-cost, user-friendly photogrammetric technique with nonmetric cameras to obtain excavation site digital sequence images, based on photogrammetry and computer vision. Digital camera calibration, automatic aerial triangulation, image feature extraction, image sequence matching, and dense digital differential rectification are used, combined with a certain number of global control points of the excavation site, to reconstruct the high precision of measured three-dimensional (3-D) models. Using the acrobatic figurines in the Qin Shi Huang mausoleum excavation as an example, our method solves the problems of little base-to-height ratio, high inclination, unstable altitudes, and significant ground elevation changes affecting image matching. Compared to 3-D laser scanning, the 3-D color point cloud obtained by this method can maintain the same visual result and has advantages of low project cost, simple data processing, and high accuracy. Structure-from-motion (SfM) is often used to reconstruct 3-D models of large scenes and has lower accuracy if it is a reconstructed 3-D model of a small scene at close range. Results indicate that this method quickly achieves 3-D reconstruction of large archaeological sites and produces heritage site distribution of orthophotos providing a scientific basis for accurate location of cultural relics, archaeological excavations, investigation, and site protection planning. This proposed method has a comprehensive application value.