Gaetano Palumbo - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Gaetano Palumbo
Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2018 Issue 4, 2018
This project considered one of the most understudied phenomena in the North African landscape: th... more This project considered one of the most understudied phenomena in the North African landscape: that of the transformations that occurred due to the coming of Islam to the Maghreb. We explore this question by applying archaeological techniques to the landscape of northern coastal Morocco. This was a zone known to have a long history of occupation from the Stone Age to the present. Surveys were conducted in the area between Tangiers and Asilah, both to identify sites of particular importance and to supply data for an analysis of settlement and land-use during various prehistoric and historic periods, with particular emphasis on the Islamic periods. Methods included detailed and controlled landscape survey (fieldwalking), remote sensing, sounding of selected sites, scientific dating of selected finds, and studies of the local ancient environment. Surface collections of materials helped in the dating and assessment of the settlement types. Soundings were conducted at two sites with important presence of material from the Islamic period, to more precisely date their occupation. More than 250 new sites were identified in the approximately 1000 square kilometer's area covered by the project, although only a fraction of this region could be intensively surveyed. The main results showed an important presence of Lower Paleolithic sites and a much more intensive rural occupation during the Early and Middle Islamic periods.
The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, i... more The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, is carrying out the conservation of David Alfaro Siqueiros' mural, America Tropical, in downtown Los Angeles. The mural, painted in 1932, is located on an exterior second story wall of the Italian Hall on Olvera Street, El Pueblo Historic Park, in downtown Los Angeles and measures 5.4 meters high by 24 meters wide. It depicts a crucified Indian figure on a double cross, surmounted by the American eagle, with guerrero figures pointing guns at the eagle, in a tropical landscape with pre-Columbian ruins. At the time the content was considered politically controversial and the mural was whitewashed and left exposed to the elements for several decades. Since the 1970's, there has been an interest in the mural's preservation, and it is now protected by a temporary shelter. However, due to long neglect, overpainting, and the damages of time, today the mural is a faded image of the past and presents an appearance similar to that of a wall painting in an archaeological context. The project consists of the documentation and treatment of the mural, the construction of a protective shelter and an exhibit devoted to the artist's life and work. Since the GCI's involvement, preliminary scientific study of the mural was carried out in 1988, and in 1990 a first phase of conservation treatment took place. In 1993, a digital image capture was done by Eric Lange, then a Fellow in the GCI's Documentation Program. His work consisted of a precise digital image capture system which could then be manipulated f or a number of computerized documentation purposes. In Spring of 1997, GCI conservators conducted a condition survey of the mural in preparation for the construction of the shelter, viewing platform and prior to the final conservation. A customized AutoCAD menu was developed, which allowed the conservators to examine the mural and enter data directly into laptop computers on site using a mosaiced digital image of the mural as a base for graphic documentation. The menu customization was based on previous work done at the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro in Rome. This system facilitated data entry and enabled conservators unfamiliar with the use of AutoCAD to enter condition data. Direct "in situ " data entry ensured control of the process by the conservators and eliminated the long, expensive and error prone process of copying manually produced, condition information into digital form by staff not working on site. The condition survey provided a baseline record of the condition of the mural and recorded previous conservation treatments. This paper will present the use of the customized AutoCAD program for condition recording and the potential for this type of system in archaeological applications.
BAR INTERNATIONAL SERIES, 1999
The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, i... more The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, is carrying out the conservation of David Alfaro Siqueiros' mural, America Tropical, in downtown Los Angeles. The mural, painted in 1932, is located on an exterior second story wall of the Italian Hall on Olvera Street, El Pueblo Historic Park, in downtown Los Angeles and measures 5.4 meters high by 24 meters wide. It depicts a crucified Indian figure on a double cross, surmounted by the American eagle, with guerrero figures pointing guns at the eagle, in a tropical landscape with pre-Columbian ruins. At the time the content was considered politically controversial and the mural was whitewashed and left exposed to the elements for several decades. Since the 1970's, there has been an interest in the mural's preservation, and it is now protected by a temporary shelter. However, due to long neglect, overpainting, and the damages of time, today the mural is a faded image of the pa...
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2003
Archaeology International 10 15 16, 2008
The introduction and rapid spread of personal computers in the early 1980s had an effect on the w... more The introduction and rapid spread of personal computers in the early 1980s had an effect on the way archaeological site inventories could be managed. The pioneering work conducted by the Department of Antiquities of Jordan and the American Center of Oriental Research resulted in JADIS, a FoxPro database, and revealed the potential of using smaller and less-expensive systems to handle databases of potentially unlimited size. Similar systems with updated hardware and software were developed in Israel, Lebanon, and later in Egypt and Qatar. This paper looks at the way various countries have approached documentation and inventorying of archaeological heritage and how they have responded to the evolution of technology and the availability of tools, such as the Internet and GIS.
NASA and The Getty Conservation Institute are conducting an experiment in the application of remo... more NASA and The Getty Conservation Institute are conducting an experiment in the application of remotely sensed multispectral and radar data for monitoring change at World Heritage Sites. The project is concerned both with the principles of this approach and with current limitations. The latter have clearly demonstrated that automatic monitoring cannot be easily achieved, due to problems of low resolution, lack of repeatability, and cost, but the integration of this remotely sensed data with other data types into a geographic data management system may provide a monitoring management tool that can be used to test the potential of a fully integrated approach to site definition, monitoring, and management. The test case being adopted covers the area of Chaco Culture National Historic Park, in New Mexico, USA, a major Anasazi complex which is registered in the UNESCOs World Heritage List. Data assembled included a variety of remotely-sensed information, GPS surveys, and the preparation o...
We present the results of a joint Italo-Jordanian mission in the upper Zarqa Valley in the Jordan... more We present the results of a joint Italo-Jordanian mission in the upper Zarqa Valley in the Jordanian plateau. The chronostratigraphic sequence, formerly proposed, has been confirmed. It has three inset terraces comprised between at least the Middle Pleistocene and the Holocene. The uppermost one is a pediment composed of the Dauqara Complex, a mixed alluvial-colluvial formation. The middle terrace embraces both the Bire (upper Acheulean) and the Khirbet-Samraformation (Mousterian). The lowermost terrace is of Holocene age. This paper especially deals with 19 sections in the Dauqara Formation. One of these sections, near the village of Sukhne, yielded mammalian fossilized faunas and a rich flake industry. Identified teeth pertain to Mammuthus meridionalis, Equus cf. tabeti and Bos primigenius. The fauna is comparable with the one found at the Israeli site of 'Ubeidiya, dated at lA my, but slightly more evolved. The 243 artifacts from the whole formation are quite peculiar in the ...
Remote Sensing for Geography, Geology, Land Planning, and Cultural Heritage, 1996
ABSTRACT The Getty Conservation Institute is exploring the feasibility of using remote sensing as... more ABSTRACT The Getty Conservation Institute is exploring the feasibility of using remote sensing associated with a geographic database management system (GDBMS) in order to provide archaeological and historic site managers with sound evaluations of the tools available for site and information management. The World Heritage Site of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, a complex of archeological sites dating to the 10th to the 13th centuries AD, was selected as a test site. Information from excavations conducted there since the 1930s, and a range of documentation generated by the National Park Service was gathered. NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center contributed multispectral data of the area, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory contributed data from ATLAS (airborne terrestrial applications sensor) and CAMS (calibrated airborne multispectral scanner) scanners. Initial findings show that while 'automatic monitoring systems' will probably never be a reality, with careful comparisons of historic and modern photographs, and performing digital analysis of remotely sensed data, excellent results are possible.
Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology, 2014
International Archives of Photogrammetry and …, 2004
Heritage documentation today is at a transitional stage. On one side the advancement of technolog... more Heritage documentation today is at a transitional stage. On one side the advancement of technology, which is reflected within CIPA by the diversification of topics and issues, has improved methodologies and data integration processes. On the other side there is a more widespread recognition of documentation as being an integral part of the conservation process, and not just an extra item to do if time and money allow it. The paper looks at the status of heritage documentation in situations where risk is high, the role CIPA is playing, and perspectives of improving the way documentation is conceived and practiced by heritage professionals.
Dip. Scienze Stor. Antichita, 1991
Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2018 Issue 4, 2018
This project considered one of the most understudied phenomena in the North African landscape: th... more This project considered one of the most understudied phenomena in the North African landscape: that of the transformations that occurred due to the coming of Islam to the Maghreb. We explore this question by applying archaeological techniques to the landscape of northern coastal Morocco. This was a zone known to have a long history of occupation from the Stone Age to the present. Surveys were conducted in the area between Tangiers and Asilah, both to identify sites of particular importance and to supply data for an analysis of settlement and land-use during various prehistoric and historic periods, with particular emphasis on the Islamic periods. Methods included detailed and controlled landscape survey (fieldwalking), remote sensing, sounding of selected sites, scientific dating of selected finds, and studies of the local ancient environment. Surface collections of materials helped in the dating and assessment of the settlement types. Soundings were conducted at two sites with important presence of material from the Islamic period, to more precisely date their occupation. More than 250 new sites were identified in the approximately 1000 square kilometer's area covered by the project, although only a fraction of this region could be intensively surveyed. The main results showed an important presence of Lower Paleolithic sites and a much more intensive rural occupation during the Early and Middle Islamic periods.
The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, i... more The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, is carrying out the conservation of David Alfaro Siqueiros' mural, America Tropical, in downtown Los Angeles. The mural, painted in 1932, is located on an exterior second story wall of the Italian Hall on Olvera Street, El Pueblo Historic Park, in downtown Los Angeles and measures 5.4 meters high by 24 meters wide. It depicts a crucified Indian figure on a double cross, surmounted by the American eagle, with guerrero figures pointing guns at the eagle, in a tropical landscape with pre-Columbian ruins. At the time the content was considered politically controversial and the mural was whitewashed and left exposed to the elements for several decades. Since the 1970's, there has been an interest in the mural's preservation, and it is now protected by a temporary shelter. However, due to long neglect, overpainting, and the damages of time, today the mural is a faded image of the past and presents an appearance similar to that of a wall painting in an archaeological context. The project consists of the documentation and treatment of the mural, the construction of a protective shelter and an exhibit devoted to the artist's life and work. Since the GCI's involvement, preliminary scientific study of the mural was carried out in 1988, and in 1990 a first phase of conservation treatment took place. In 1993, a digital image capture was done by Eric Lange, then a Fellow in the GCI's Documentation Program. His work consisted of a precise digital image capture system which could then be manipulated f or a number of computerized documentation purposes. In Spring of 1997, GCI conservators conducted a condition survey of the mural in preparation for the construction of the shelter, viewing platform and prior to the final conservation. A customized AutoCAD menu was developed, which allowed the conservators to examine the mural and enter data directly into laptop computers on site using a mosaiced digital image of the mural as a base for graphic documentation. The menu customization was based on previous work done at the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro in Rome. This system facilitated data entry and enabled conservators unfamiliar with the use of AutoCAD to enter condition data. Direct "in situ " data entry ensured control of the process by the conservators and eliminated the long, expensive and error prone process of copying manually produced, condition information into digital form by staff not working on site. The condition survey provided a baseline record of the condition of the mural and recorded previous conservation treatments. This paper will present the use of the customized AutoCAD program for condition recording and the potential for this type of system in archaeological applications.
BAR INTERNATIONAL SERIES, 1999
The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, i... more The Getty Conservation Institute, in collaboration with El Pueblo Historic Park in Los Angeles, is carrying out the conservation of David Alfaro Siqueiros' mural, America Tropical, in downtown Los Angeles. The mural, painted in 1932, is located on an exterior second story wall of the Italian Hall on Olvera Street, El Pueblo Historic Park, in downtown Los Angeles and measures 5.4 meters high by 24 meters wide. It depicts a crucified Indian figure on a double cross, surmounted by the American eagle, with guerrero figures pointing guns at the eagle, in a tropical landscape with pre-Columbian ruins. At the time the content was considered politically controversial and the mural was whitewashed and left exposed to the elements for several decades. Since the 1970's, there has been an interest in the mural's preservation, and it is now protected by a temporary shelter. However, due to long neglect, overpainting, and the damages of time, today the mural is a faded image of the pa...
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2003
Archaeology International 10 15 16, 2008
The introduction and rapid spread of personal computers in the early 1980s had an effect on the w... more The introduction and rapid spread of personal computers in the early 1980s had an effect on the way archaeological site inventories could be managed. The pioneering work conducted by the Department of Antiquities of Jordan and the American Center of Oriental Research resulted in JADIS, a FoxPro database, and revealed the potential of using smaller and less-expensive systems to handle databases of potentially unlimited size. Similar systems with updated hardware and software were developed in Israel, Lebanon, and later in Egypt and Qatar. This paper looks at the way various countries have approached documentation and inventorying of archaeological heritage and how they have responded to the evolution of technology and the availability of tools, such as the Internet and GIS.
NASA and The Getty Conservation Institute are conducting an experiment in the application of remo... more NASA and The Getty Conservation Institute are conducting an experiment in the application of remotely sensed multispectral and radar data for monitoring change at World Heritage Sites. The project is concerned both with the principles of this approach and with current limitations. The latter have clearly demonstrated that automatic monitoring cannot be easily achieved, due to problems of low resolution, lack of repeatability, and cost, but the integration of this remotely sensed data with other data types into a geographic data management system may provide a monitoring management tool that can be used to test the potential of a fully integrated approach to site definition, monitoring, and management. The test case being adopted covers the area of Chaco Culture National Historic Park, in New Mexico, USA, a major Anasazi complex which is registered in the UNESCOs World Heritage List. Data assembled included a variety of remotely-sensed information, GPS surveys, and the preparation o...
We present the results of a joint Italo-Jordanian mission in the upper Zarqa Valley in the Jordan... more We present the results of a joint Italo-Jordanian mission in the upper Zarqa Valley in the Jordanian plateau. The chronostratigraphic sequence, formerly proposed, has been confirmed. It has three inset terraces comprised between at least the Middle Pleistocene and the Holocene. The uppermost one is a pediment composed of the Dauqara Complex, a mixed alluvial-colluvial formation. The middle terrace embraces both the Bire (upper Acheulean) and the Khirbet-Samraformation (Mousterian). The lowermost terrace is of Holocene age. This paper especially deals with 19 sections in the Dauqara Formation. One of these sections, near the village of Sukhne, yielded mammalian fossilized faunas and a rich flake industry. Identified teeth pertain to Mammuthus meridionalis, Equus cf. tabeti and Bos primigenius. The fauna is comparable with the one found at the Israeli site of 'Ubeidiya, dated at lA my, but slightly more evolved. The 243 artifacts from the whole formation are quite peculiar in the ...
Remote Sensing for Geography, Geology, Land Planning, and Cultural Heritage, 1996
ABSTRACT The Getty Conservation Institute is exploring the feasibility of using remote sensing as... more ABSTRACT The Getty Conservation Institute is exploring the feasibility of using remote sensing associated with a geographic database management system (GDBMS) in order to provide archaeological and historic site managers with sound evaluations of the tools available for site and information management. The World Heritage Site of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, a complex of archeological sites dating to the 10th to the 13th centuries AD, was selected as a test site. Information from excavations conducted there since the 1930s, and a range of documentation generated by the National Park Service was gathered. NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center contributed multispectral data of the area, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory contributed data from ATLAS (airborne terrestrial applications sensor) and CAMS (calibrated airborne multispectral scanner) scanners. Initial findings show that while 'automatic monitoring systems' will probably never be a reality, with careful comparisons of historic and modern photographs, and performing digital analysis of remotely sensed data, excellent results are possible.
Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology, 2014
International Archives of Photogrammetry and …, 2004
Heritage documentation today is at a transitional stage. On one side the advancement of technolog... more Heritage documentation today is at a transitional stage. On one side the advancement of technology, which is reflected within CIPA by the diversification of topics and issues, has improved methodologies and data integration processes. On the other side there is a more widespread recognition of documentation as being an integral part of the conservation process, and not just an extra item to do if time and money allow it. The paper looks at the status of heritage documentation in situations where risk is high, the role CIPA is playing, and perspectives of improving the way documentation is conceived and practiced by heritage professionals.
Dip. Scienze Stor. Antichita, 1991