Aramus Excavations and Field School. Experiences in Using, Developing, Teaching and Sharing Free/Libre and Open Source Software (original) (raw)

The article proposes a model of Free and Open Source platform for aerial archaeology. This solution is based on two main components: ArcheOS (software, for data processing) and an UAVP prototype (hardware, for data acquisition). ArcheOS (Archeological Operating System) is a GNU/Linux distribution developed for archaeological aims and released under GPL (General Public License), while the “Universal Aerial Video Platform” (UAVP) is an open source project, which shares knowledge, data, and resources with the aim to build a modern autonomously flying multicopter. The combination of these two elements grants the possibility to collect pictures for aerial archaeology (e.g. photomapping, survey, photointerpretation, etc...), but also to acquire 3D data, using the modern Computer Vision techniques. The main benefits of this “opens source remote sensing platform” can be summarized in: portability, versatility and low cost. Moreover, being an open project, it can be continuously improved by the feedback of the community.

This article illustrates the fourth release of ArcheOS, the first GNU/Linux distribution developed for archaeological aims and released under GPL. Since the first version in 2005, this free operating system has attempted to satisfy all the needs of an archaeological project, covering every single step of the operating workflow, from data collection and storage to elaboration, publication and sharing. The main target of the project is to spread the use of Free and Open Source software and to apply the ideology of the “Free Software” movement to archaeology itself (a central postulation of the Free Software Foundation is the free circulation of data and ideas ). The new release “Caesar”, based on Debian Squeeze 6.0, has some important changes in the organization of the structure of the entire project. In fact, the developer team focused more on the stability of the operating system and an on-line service to keep the different programs (APT deb-repository) up to date. “Caesar” ensures a better hardware integration and a more accurate selection of software. The research of new technological solutions is one of the most important aspects of the project, which, from this aspect, is strongly connected with innovation in archaeological methodology.

VisArq.1.0. is an informatic application that links remote archaeological sites and dispersed throughout the area of the province of Zaragoza. The creation of a homogeneous and normalized database with its respective viewer is the ultimate aim of a project that was born to cover the needs of the academic-scientific world, but also of the less specialized public. The advantage of this application involving virtual reality is also that citizens can check on a "single window" all this archaeological heritage, an important issue for a discipline such as archaeology, where the display information is fundamental to archaeological theory and practice.

In September 2006 the Institute of Ancient History & Ancient Near Eastern Studies of the University of Innsbruck (A) in cooperation with the University of Yerevan (AM) undertook the third excavation and survey campaign at the Early Iron Age and Urartian hilltop settlement of Aramus, situated about 15 km north-est from downtown Yerevan, Armenia. This year, Arc-Team s.n.c. supported the expedition with documentation of the excavation, architectural survey of the fortress walls and immediate processing of the data on site. As the excavation at Aramus was a field school too, the second endeavor of Arc-Team s.n.c. was to introduce the students to the practice of digital documentation, data recording, surveying and analysis.

In this paper we assess the capacity of survey-grade GPS equipments to provide high resolution DEMs for archaeological analysis. Strengths and weaknesses of these methods are pointed out, and the importance of careful planning of capture and further analysis of information is stressed. Several archaeological sites from La Serena Region (Badajoz, Spain) are taken as case studies. We show the workflow from the acquisition of data in the field to the validation of surface models obtained with different interpolation methods. A key point is that the choice of one of the available options in GIS packages must be based on a rigorous estimation of error rather than on the search of a realistic or aesthetic appearance.

Francesca Cantone, Alessandro Bezzi, Alessio Paonessa, Piro Fabio, luca bianconi, Pietro Citarella, Progetto SITAR, Andrea Ciapetti, Luca d'Altilia, Davide Debernardi, Davide Merlitti

ARCHEOFOSS Open Source, Free Software e Open Format nei processi di ricerca archeologica. Atti del VI Workshop (Napoli, 9-10 giugno 2011)