Keith Challis

Corona Remotely-Sensed Imagery in Dryland Archaeology: The Islamic City of al-Raqqa, Syria

Abstract Satellite remote sensing has seen some use in archaeological research, although its effectiveness has been restricted by the low spatial resolution and the high cost of available imagery. In 1995 the United States declassified 860,000 high-resolution Corona satellite photographs, acquired for intelligence purposes between 1960 and 1972. Corona offers global coverage with an emphasis on areas of strategic significance to the United States. The imagery has been released into the public domain at low cost of acquisition. In this paper we explore the potential of Corona imagery in archaeological investigations using as an example the topography and cultural landscape of the early Islamic city of al-Raqqa in northern Syria.

Archaeological resource modelling in temperate river valleys: a case study from the Trent Valley, UK

Methods for mapping and determining the condition of archaeological resources while they are still underground have been in development for nearly half a century. The authors here offer an example from the frontiers of the art: the application of a package of remote sensing procedures not only designed to locate sites but to model the valley deposits which contain and cover them. The variation in success of different methods in different deposits offers a guide to the design of evaluation projects on sand and gravel terrain everywhere.

The Raqqa Ancient Industry Project

The Raqqa Ancient Industry project is an interdisciplinary investigation of a 2-km long, 8th-12thcentury Islamic industrial complex associated with the city of al-Raqqa, located close to the junction of the river Euphrates (FIGITRE 1) and its tributary the Balikh in northern Syria. The Hellenistic and classical city (called variously Nikephorion, Kallinikos/ Callinicum) was conquered by a Muslim army in A n 639/640 (AH 18/19). Al-Raqqd came to prominence as the residence of the ‘Abbasid caliph Hanin al-Rashid and was the centre of his area of influence between AD 796 and 808 (AII 175 and 187). During this period a now walled city al-Rafika (the companion) was built next to al-Raqqa (FIGIJRE I), togelher with a complex of palaces and a substantial industrial area. (Meinecke 1994). The principle research objectives of this project are to investigate the seminal evidence for ancient glass and pottery production; to generate a niodel for industrial organisation in the Islamic (and other) worlds through an analysis of tho spatial organization of the industries; and to assess the environmental impacts of such industrial activity. The industrial complex consists of up to 4.5 m of stratified material and was a centre for the manulaacture of dazed and unglazed pottery and glass. Rescue excavations at six sites have revealed an ‘Abbasid glass workshop with the remains of four in situ three-chmbered fimiaces, two still standing to 1.3 ni in height (Henderson 1999), the destroyed remnants of soveral ‘Abbasid and 1 Ith-century glaqs tank furnaces and the remains of 13 ‘Abbasid pottery lul~is, includuig two for the production of moulded wares. Excavation has also examined deeply stratified deposits of industrial debris and by-products from pottery and glass production (Ton@& Henderson 1998). Scientific adysis has revealed intriguing evidence for exporimentation with raw materials (Henderson et al. in preparation). The excavations of individual industrial areas have been placed in context by a larger scale landscape survey. Satellite remote sensing, using Corona intelligence satellite photographs acquired by the Unitcd States in the 1960s and early 1970s (McDonald 1997), has allowed reconnaissance and mapping of the topography, environment and cultural archaeology of Raqqd and its hinterland. Corona imagery is panchroniatic, high-resolution satellite photography, comprising stereo images with a spatial resolution of six feet (2 metres). Each lowcost image covcrs an area of 144x10 miles. Since the imagery predates both the modern urban expansion of Raqqa and the development of extensive irrigation systems in the hinterlands, they have proved invaluable for mapping the now largely destroyed cultural landscape. (The images used in this study come from a number of missions flown between 1966 and 1972 and have proven invaluable to the study as as they show Raqqa before the modern development which affects the archaeological landscape, and the Euphrates and Balikh valleys prior to the impact of the Assad dam and modern, high intensity, irrigated agriculture.) High-resolution digital imagery was produced by direct scanning of the photographic negativcs at an optical resolution of 5000 dpi. Digital images were georeferenced arid used within a Geogrdphical Information System (GIS) framework to produce interpretative maps of the c11 Itnral archaeological landscape and the topography and geomorphology of the Euphrates floodplain. To aid in the interpretation of the form and function of structures within the Kaqqa city complex, future work will compare plans of the palaces with those of other contemporary Islamic sites. Field survey data gathered using global positioning system (GPS) receivers and electronic survey equipment have also been incorporated within the GIs. In addition, detailed excavation and topographical surveys. recorded digitally with a total station, are incorporated within the CIS framework to produce an integrated fieldwork record. Tho palaeoenvironniental component of the project was initiated during the 2000 season, in part to rectify the puci ty of palaeoen~rironmeI1tal data for the desert steppe of Syria. Investigations have focused on detecting the impacts of the industry on vegetation from. for example, fuel gathering. A 3-36-m sedimentary sequence was recovered from a small depression 50 m from the main excavation site at Tell Aswad at the eastern end of the industrial area (FIGURE 3). A mechanical excavator was employed to dig a trench from which monoliths were extracted, presenting an ideal opportunity to examino the nature and extent of the basin stratigraphy, which includes a 35-cm thicklayer of potsherds, dated

“There’s an App For That”: Building Smartphone Applications to Improve the Ergonomics of Landscape Study, Analysis and Interpretation

In the past few years, the widespread availability and use of Smartphones and mobile applications has become ever more prevalent in daily life; but how can these powerful, compact, user-friendly devices be used to improve an individual’s interpretation and understanding of a landscape? This chapter discusses the development and testing of a dedicated Smartphone application for Apple’s iOS, which allows users to explore archaeological information relating to the Stonehenge World Heritage Site. We describe the design and development of the application and assess how individuals interact with the software and ways in which it aids with the interpretation and understanding of the landscape.