By

Matthew Previto

Intern at the Digital Social Science Center Fall 2012-Spring 2013

GIS AND

ARCHAEOLOGY

• A data based interactive computer software program.

• Developed in the 1960s.

• Multiple Layers and attribute tables.

GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS (GIS)

• Subfield of Anthropology

• Academic

• Site and cultural resource preservation

ARCHAEOLOGY

• Archaeology has always been concerned with spatial characteristics.

• Spatial analysis can pose several different questions.

• Most archaeological studies will have maps showing spatial relationships.

• Makes GIS paramount.

ARCHAEOLOGY AND SPATIAL ANALYSIS

MAPPING

GIS map with satellite image and spatial locations of sites. Talgar, Kazakhstan.

GIS map showing hydrology, topography and settlement pattern of San Ramon de Alajuela, Costa Rica.

• Like a picture, made up of pixels.

• Each pixel or cell gets a value.

• Allows for layer comparison.

• http://www.cadb.pitt.edu/hanks/synthesis/upperlevels/upperlevels.html

RASTER

VECTOR

Hydrology Map: Talgar, Kazakhstan Local Communities: Lower Xiajiadan, China.

• Uses GIS to extrapolate.

• Population density.

• Search for new sites Saves time and money.

• Controversial.

PREDICTIVE MODELING

Liangcheng Topographic Map

• Mapping.

• Spatial Analysis.

• Data can be queried.

• Massive amounts of data readily available.

GIS AND ARCHAEOLOGY

Finished GIS Map of Lower Level Stratigraphy: Pavlinovo, Russia

• Learned and Gained Experience with GIS

• Very important to the field of Archaeology

• Limited opportunities to learn GIS in a college setting

• Presentation

• Thank You!

THE INTERNSHIP

BIBLIOGRAPHYBrandon, RJ, and K L Wescott ed

2004 Practical Applications of GIS for Archaeologists: A Predictive Modeling Kit. Taylor and Francis, Philadelphia.

Bruce, Trigger

1989 A History of Archaeological Thought. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.

Gaffney, Vincent and Zoran Stancic.

1991 GIS Approaches to Regional Analysis: Case Study in the Island of Hvar . Ljubljana University Press, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Lock, Gary

2000 Beyond the Map: Archaeology and Spatial Technologies. IOS Press, Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Lock, Gary and Zoran Stancic ed.,

1995 Archaeology and Geographic Information Systems: A European Perspective. Taylor and Francis, New York.

Wheatley, David and Mark Gilling

2002 Spatial Technology and Archaeology: The Archaeological Implications of GIS. Taylor and Francis, New York. University of Pittsburgh. “Comparative Archaeology Database” Last accessed May 4 th, 2013.

http://www.cadb.pitt.edu/cadbmap.html