Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project
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Grant Holder:
Dr Michael Given
The Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project is investigating human activity across the landscape during all time periods, using intensive archaeological and geomorphological survey. TAESP is working in a broad area of the north-central Troodos mountains that includes fertile valleys and plains, copper-bearing foothills, and the northern part of the Troodos Range itself. Other than some rescue excavation of tombs, no systematic archaeological work had been done in this area, and none at all in the mountains. Because of our interdisciplinary research goals and intensive methodology, developed in an earlier, already published project, we are contributing a wide-ranging analysis of the Cypriot landscape for all periods, one that will make a key contribution to landscape archaeology and to regional studies more widely in the Mediterranean.
Our research is focused on the dynamic relationship between human society and the environment. We are documenting and analysing settlement patterns, site hierarchies, land use patterns and communication networks across the landscape during all time periods, and relating them to environmental factors such as physical landforms, soils and sediments, vegetation, and water. A particular focus is the nature and development of resource exploitation, in particular agriculture and metallurgical production. Related themes include the production of pottery and stone tools, forest resources and soil management.
Within our 159 sq km survey area we carried out fieldwalking transects in five ‘intensive survey zones’ totalling 37 sq km. The rest was sampled by means of a grid of 20 short transects and more purposive survey. Transects are lines of ‘survey units’ traversed by fieldwalkers placed 5 m apart. Throughout the project, they consistently counted and collected a sample of artefacts, and recorded geomorphological and environmental data. We examined clusters of contiguous survey units in broader areas of importance, and employed various gridding and sampling techniques for more intensive investigation of particular foci of human activity.
Production of compressed JPEG files from uncompressed TIFF files or high-resolution JPEG files for web dissemination.
Production of TIFF maps from GIS showing database queries (e.g. pottery distribution)
| Project start date: 2000-05 | Project end date: 2006-12 |
Subject domains:
Era(s):
Country/region(s):
| Methods used | Category |
|---|---|
| 2d modelling - raster | Data structuring and enhancement |
| 2d modelling - vector | Data structuring and enhancement |
| 2d Scanning and photography | Data capture |
| 3d modelling - vector | Data structuring and enhancement |
| Content-based image retrieval | Data analysis |
| Data mining | Data analysis |
| Geo-referencing and projection | Data structuring and enhancement |
| Geophysical survey | Data capture |
| GPS and total station surveys | Data capture |
| Image enhancement | Data structuring and enhancement |
| Photogrammetry | Data structuring and enhancement |
| Searching and querying | Data analysis |
| Spatial | Content types |
| Spatial data analysis | Data analysis |
| Statistical analysis | Data analysis |
| archaeology | Discipline |
| text | Content types |
Funding sources:
British Academy, Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), Council for British Research in the Levant, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Institute for Aegean Prehistory, Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, Brennan Foundation, American Schools of Oriental Research
Content types created:
Dataset/structured data, Spatial, Still Image/Graphics, Text
Software tools used:
Microsoft Access, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, ArcGIS, ERDAS Imagine
Source material used:
Virtually all of our data comes from our own fieldwork, and is the result of data entry from paper forms used in the field and digitising from field maps. Our base map consists of 1963 aerial photographs from the Department of Lands and Surveys, Republic of Cyprus.
Digital resource created:
(1) Relational database in Access with all field data, including details of artefacts, survey units, geomorphological units, geobotany, archaeometallurgy, architecture, sites, photographs, and drawings. The aims of the database are data management, data archiving, and production of queries for analysis
(2) GIS in ArcGIS 9.0 with all spatial field data, including aerial photographs, survey units, geomorphological units, geobotany, archaeometallurgy, architecture, GPS and total station data, geophysical data and sites. Most vector layers have been joined to database queries the analysis of artefact distribution etc.
(3) Digital photographs, artefact illustrations, site plans, architectural drawings, etc.
Access to digital resource:
Open Access
Data Formats created:
ArcGIS, AutoCAD drawing file (DWG), JPEG File Interchange Format (JPG), Microsoft Access Database (MDB), Microsoft Word Document (DOC), Tagged Image File Format (TIFF)
Publications:
Boutin, A., A.B. Knapp, I. Banks, M. Given, and M. Horowitz. 2003. Settlement and cemetery in and around Katydhata village: from Prehistory to the Roman era. Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus: 335-349.
Given, M. 2004. Living between lines. Chapter 5 in The Archaeology of the Colonized. London: Routledge.
Given, M., H. Corley, and L. Sollars. 2007. Joining the dots: continuous survey, routine practice and the intepretation of a Cypriot landscape (with interactive GIS and integrated data archive). Internet Archaeology 20. http://intarch.ac.uk/journal/issue20/taesp_index.html
Given, M., V. Kassianidou, A.B. Knapp, and J. Noller. 2002. Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project, Cyprus: Report on the 2001 Season. Levant 34: 25-38.
Given, M., A.B. Knapp, I. Evans, E. Gibson, T. Ireland, V. Kassianidou, J. Noller, H. Saunders, L. Sollars, N. Urwin, K. Winther Jacobsen, and S. Zesimou. 2001. Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project: First Preliminary Report (June-July 2000). Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus: 425-440.
Given, M. and M. Hadjianastasis. n.d. Landholding and landscape in Ottoman Cyprus. Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies (accepted).
Graham, A., K.W. Jacobsen and V. Kassianidou. 2006. Agia Marina-Mavrovouni: preliminary report on the Roman settlement and smelting workshop in the central northern foothills of the Troodos Mountains, Cyprus. Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus 2006: 345-367.
Jacobsen, K.W. 2004 Regional distribution of transport amphorae in Cyprus in the Late Roman period, in: J. Lund & J. Eiring (eds.), Transport Amphorae and Trade in the Eastern Mediterranean. Monographs of the Danish Institute at Athens 5: 143-148.
Jacobsen, K.W. 2007. The role of pottery in the interpretation and classification of rural sites in Cyprus. The functional typology. In Vanhaverbeke, H., Poblome, J., Vermeulen, F. & Waelkens, M. (eds), Dialogue with Sites. The Definition of Space and Time in the Roman period (Studies in Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology 8), Brepols-Turnhout. (forthcoming)
Jacobsen, K.W. n.d. Transport Amphorae in the Copper Mining Industry of Cyprus: Introducing a new type of transport amphorae from Cyprus. In M. Bonifay & J.-C. Treglia (eds), LRCW 2, Late Roman Coarse Wares, Cooking Wares and Amphorae in the Mediterranean, Archaeology and Archaeometry (BAR Int. Ser.), Oxford. (Forthcoming)
Given, M. 2004. Living between lines. Chapter 5 in The Archaeology of the Colonized. London: Routledge.
Given, M., H. Corley, and L. Sollars. 2007. Joining the dots: continuous survey, routine practice and the intepretation of a Cypriot landscape (with interactive GIS and integrated data archive). Internet Archaeology 20. http://intarch.ac.uk/journal/issue20/taesp_index.html
Given, M., V. Kassianidou, A.B. Knapp, and J. Noller. 2002. Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project, Cyprus: Report on the 2001 Season. Levant 34: 25-38.
Given, M., A.B. Knapp, I. Evans, E. Gibson, T. Ireland, V. Kassianidou, J. Noller, H. Saunders, L. Sollars, N. Urwin, K. Winther Jacobsen, and S. Zesimou. 2001. Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project: First Preliminary Report (June-July 2000). Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus: 425-440.
Given, M. and M. Hadjianastasis. n.d. Landholding and landscape in Ottoman Cyprus. Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies (accepted).
Graham, A., K.W. Jacobsen and V. Kassianidou. 2006. Agia Marina-Mavrovouni: preliminary report on the Roman settlement and smelting workshop in the central northern foothills of the Troodos Mountains, Cyprus. Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus 2006: 345-367.
Jacobsen, K.W. 2004 Regional distribution of transport amphorae in Cyprus in the Late Roman period, in: J. Lund & J. Eiring (eds.), Transport Amphorae and Trade in the Eastern Mediterranean. Monographs of the Danish Institute at Athens 5: 143-148.
Jacobsen, K.W. 2007. The role of pottery in the interpretation and classification of rural sites in Cyprus. The functional typology. In Vanhaverbeke, H., Poblome, J., Vermeulen, F. & Waelkens, M. (eds), Dialogue with Sites. The Definition of Space and Time in the Roman period (Studies in Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology 8), Brepols-Turnhout. (forthcoming)
Jacobsen, K.W. n.d. Transport Amphorae in the Copper Mining Industry of Cyprus: Introducing a new type of transport amphorae from Cyprus. In M. Bonifay & J.-C. Treglia (eds), LRCW 2, Late Roman Coarse Wares, Cooking Wares and Amphorae in the Mediterranean, Archaeology and Archaeometry (BAR Int. Ser.), Oxford. (Forthcoming)
Institutions affiliated with this project:
| UK HE institutions involved: |
|---|
| University of Glasgow |
| UK HE institutions involved: |
|---|
| Oregon State University |
| University of Cyprus |
Project staff and expertise:
| Principal staff member: | Dr Michael Given; Dr Vasiliki Kassianidou; Professor A Bernard Knapp; Professor Jay Noller |
|---|---|
| Other staff: | Computing officer(s) / Technical supporter(s) |
| External expertise: |
| Metadata on this arts-humanities.net record | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) of record | Michael Given |
| Title | Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project |
| Record created | 2005-11-07 |
| Record updated | 2010-06-11 21:25 |
| URL of record | http://www.arts-humanities.net/node/2071 |
| Citation of record | Michael Given: Troodos Archaeological and Environmental Survey Project. <http://www.arts-humanities.net/node/2071> created: 2005-11-07, last updated 2010-06-11 21:25 |