Andes: High-Altitude Archaeological Sites as Cultural Heritage

Author(s):  
Johan Reinhard
2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 326-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna S Cohen ◽  
Rodrigo Solinis-Casparius

Approximately 90% of Mexican archaeological sites are on communal ejido lands and yet the Mexican Constitution stipulates that all cultural heritage is the property of the federal government. Considering this disconnect between federal and local practices, how can archaeologists work with ejido communities to help preserve cultural patrimony? This article explores the micropolitics associated with archaeological fieldwork on communal ejido lands in Western Mexico. We show how long-standing practices based on local histories, community political theater, and interpersonal relations shape fieldwork and cultural conservation initiatives in important and unintended ways. In our study near the site of Angamuco, Michoacán, we draw upon ethnographic and archival research and outreach projects over five field seasons, and address the tensions that emerge when informal micropolitical and formal top–down sociopolitical practices interface. We show how aspects of a policy science approach are appropriate for long-term community-supported archaeology and cultural heritage management.


2014 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Marchetti ◽  
Vincenzo Sapia ◽  
Adriano Garello ◽  
Donatella De Rita ◽  
Alessandra Venuti

<p>The Vulci archeological site was object of interest by the Soprintendenza ai beni culturali dell’Etruria meridionale (Italian government department responsible for southern Etruria’s cultural heritage) since the beginning of the 20th century. In 2001, the Ministero dei Beni Culturali (Italian ministry of cultural heritage) along with the local authorities, opened a natural-archeological park. In this area, it lies most of the ancient Etruscan city of Velch (today known by its Latin name, Vulci) including the Osteria Necropolis that is the object of this study. Recently, new archaeological excavations were made and the local authorities needed major geological information about the volcanic lithotypes where the Etruscans used to build their necropolis. The aim of this study is to define the geological and geophysical characteristics of the rock lithotypes present in the Vulci park. For this purpose, a geological map of the area (1:10000) has been realized. Moreover, two different geophysical methods were applied: measurements of magnetic susceptibility and electrical resistivity tomography. Magnetic susceptibility analyses clearly identify magnetic contrasts between different lithotypes; the characteristics of the pyroclastic flow that originated the Sorano unit 2 and its vertical facies variations are well recorded by this parameter that along with lithostratigraphic observations provides information about the depositional conditions. Two electrical resistivity tomographies were performed, which show the Sorano unit 2 thickness to be of c. 7 m with resistivity values ranging from 200 to 400 Ω·m. This kind of multidisciplinary approach resulted to be suitable to study this type of archaeological sites, revealing that areas characterized by a relevant thickness and wide areal extension of volcanic lithotypes can be a potential site where Etruscans might have excavated their necropolis.</p>


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-162
Author(s):  
Olesya Konstantinovna Pisareva

In the paper, separate information about archaeological finds and predatory excavations on the territory of the Samara Governorate in the middle of the XIX-beginning of XX centuries is collected for the first time. The process of archaeological study of the Samara Governorate in the pre-revolutionary period of development of the Samara archaeology remains unexplored. As a result the author has made a set of archaeological discoveries and excavations made on the territory of the Samara Governorate in the second half of XIX-beginning XX centuries. The list of finds includes all facts of the discovery revealed during the research of archaeological sites and individual artifacts with indication of detection time, place, and composition of the find or treasure. The author revealed 142 evidences of found antiquities according to the research of the second half of XIX-early XX centuries. They are hoards of coins, jewelry, household items, religious objects and other finds accumulated in the scientific centers and museums in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan, Samara, Saratov and Simbirsk. Many of finds are lost or their location is unknown. The issues raised in the paper are inseparably linked with the problem of accounting and protection of archaeological sites, preservation of cultural heritage.


2011 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ezra B.W. Zubrow

The issue is not ‘why excavate?’, nor is it whether or not to excavate sites. Nor is it the numerous ancillary considerations mentioned at the round table and in the papers – too many sites, too few resources, too large a backlog of unpublished sites, or saving sites for future techniques. All – excavators, archaeologists, curators and cultural heritage managers – would agree. If there is a unique world-class site that will be destroyed in a few weeks, it should be excavated. One needs to excavate to preserve the heritage, information, artefacts and context.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Athanasia-Maria Tompolidi ◽  
Issaak Parcharidis ◽  
Constantinos Loupasakis ◽  
Michalis Fragkiadakis ◽  
Pantelis Soupios ◽  
...  

&lt;p&gt;Cultural heritage is a key element of history as the ancient monuments and archaeological sites enrich today&amp;#8217;s societies and help connect us to our cultural origins. The project entitled ''SpaCeborne SAR Interferometry as a Nonivasive tool to assess the vulnerability over Cultural hEritage sites (SCIENCE)'' has as ultimate objective to predict the vulnerability of the archaeological sites to ground deformation in time and space and protect them against natural/man-made damage. The SCIENCE project aims to develop, demonstrate, and validate, in terms of geotechnical local conditions and monuments&amp;#8217; structural health, SAR interferometric techniques to monitor potential ground deformation affecting the archaeological sites and monuments of great importance.&amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;During the last few years, spaceborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) interferometry has proven to be a powerful remote sensing tool for detecting and measuring ground deformation and studying the deformation&amp;#8217;s impact on man-made structures. It provides centimeter to millimeter resolution and even single buildings/monuments can be mapped from space. Considering the limitations of conventional MT-InSAR techniques, such as Persistent Scatterers Interferometry (PSI), in this project a two-step Tomography-based Persistent Scatterers (PS) Interferometry (Tomo-PSInSAR) approach is proposed for monitoring ground deformation and structural instabilities over the Ancient City Walls (Ming Dynasty) in Nanjing city, China and in the Great Wall in Zhangjiakou, China. The Tomo-PSInSAR is capable of separating overlaid PS in the same location, minimizing the unfavorable layover effects of slant-range imaging in SAR data. Moreover, the demonstrations are performed on well-known test sites in China and in Greece, such as: a) Ming Dynasty City Walls in Nanjing, b) Great Wall in Zhangjiakou, c) Acropolis complex of Athens and d) Heraklion walls (Crete Island), respectively.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In particular, in the framework of SCIENCE project are processed several radar datasets such as Sentinel 1 A &amp; B data of Copernicus program and the high resolution TerraSAR-X data. The products of Persistent Scatterers Interferometry (PSI) are exported in various formats for the identification of the persistent scatterers using high resolution optical images, aerial photographs and fusing with high accuracy Digital Surface Models (DSM). In addition, the validation of the results is taking place through in-situ measurements (geological, geothechnical e.t.c) and data for the cultural heritage sites conditions.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;SCIENCE project&amp;#8217;s final goal is the risk assessment analysis of the cultural heritage monuments and their surrounding areas aiming to benefit institutions, organizations, stakeholders and private agencies in the cultural heritage domain through the creation of a validated pre-operation non-invasive system and service based on earth observation data supporting end-user needs by the provision knowledge about cultural heritage protection. In conclusion, SCIENCE project is composed by a bilateral consortium of the Greek delegation of Harokopio University of Athens, National Technical University of Athens, Terra Spatium S.A, Ephorate of Antiquities of Heraklion (Crete), Acropolis Restoration Service (Athens) of Ministry of Culture and Sports and by the Chinese delegation of Science Academy of China (Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth) and &amp;#160;International Centre on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST) under the auspices of UNESCO (HIST-UNESCO).&lt;/p&gt;


Author(s):  
Eleni Christopoulou ◽  
John Garofalakis

Cultural heritage environments, like museums, archaeological sites and cultural heritage cities, have gathered and preserved artefacts and relevant content for years. Today’s state of the art technology allows the shift from traditional exhibitions to ones with reinforced interaction among the cultural heritage environment and the visitor. For example, mobile applications have proved to be suitable to support such new forms of interaction. Effective interaction exploits information both from the cultural environment, the visitor, and the broader context in which they occur. The aim of this chapter is to present the value of context in applications designed for cultural heritage environments and to demonstrate an infrastructure that effectively exploits it.


2021 ◽  
pp. 691-697
Author(s):  
Luisa Berto ◽  
Andrea Doria ◽  
Anna Saetta ◽  
Alberto Stella ◽  
Diego Talledo

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (16) ◽  
pp. 2657
Author(s):  
Krzysztof Stereńczak ◽  
Rafał Zapłata ◽  
Jarosław Wójcik ◽  
Bartłomiej Kraszewski ◽  
Miłosz Mielcarek ◽  
...  

The Białowieża Forest (BF), a unique ecosystem of historical significance in central Europe, has a long history of assumed human settlement, with at least 200 known archaeological sites (until 2016). This study uncovers new evidence of the cultural heritage of this unique forest area using Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) technology combined with traditional archaeological field assessment methods to verify the ALS data interpretations and to provide additional evidence about the function and origin of the newly detected archaeological sites. The results of this study include (1) a scientific approach for an improved identification of archaeological resources in forest areas; (2) new evidence about the history of the human use of the BF based on ALS data, covering the entire Polish part of the BF; and (3) an improved remote sensing infrastructure, supporting existing GIS (Geographic Information System) systems for the BF, a famous UNESCO Heritage site. Our study identified numerous locations with evidence of past human agricultural activities known in the literature as “field systems”, “lynchets” and “Celtic fields”. The initial identification included more than 300 km of possible field boundaries and plough headlands, many of which we have verified on the ground. Various past human activities creating those boundaries have existed since the (pre-) Roman Period up to the 13th century AD. The results of this study demonstrate that past human activities in the Polish part of the Białowieża Forest had been more prevalent than previously believed. As a practical result of the described activities, a geodatabase was created; this has practical applications for the system of monument protection in Poland, as well as for local communities and the BF’s management and conservation. The more widely achieved results are in line with the implementation of the concept of a cultural heritage inventory in forested and protected areas—the actions taken specify (built globally) the forms of protection and management of cultural and environmental goods.


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