Currently browsing category

Archaeological science and computing, Page 9

A new year at Portus

The New Year has begun auspiciously for all those of us involved with the Portus Project and related work. At one level, we are pushing ahead steadily with completion of the post-excavation work that will form the basis of the final reports on the project. In January, we held the first of three planned Workshops at the British School at Rome (BSR). This was organized by Christina Triantafillou and myself and was very well attended. Continue reading →

How to fix incorrectly aligned RTI images

Often, when capturing a RTI data set, especially when using a cable, the images captured can be out of place, resulting in an incomplete data set. The following is a how to guide to fix this problem using Photoshop. The first step is to load all of the files into Photoshop using the correct tool. This is done by clicking the file tab, then Scripts and then “Load files into Stack”. Continue reading →

Grab the CAD with GrabCAD

Today I had very interesting meeting with chief engineer from GrabCAD. As they say on their website GrabCAD is a community founded by mechanical engineers. It is also a place for engineers to share their talent, expand knowledge, find a dream project and work with tools and features that make life better. We were discussing how this engineering tool, which enables you to share and collaboratively work with your 3D models, could be used in cultural heritage and archaeology. Continue reading →

Acoustic properties of Moche sites in the Jequetepeque valley, Peru (Dianne Scullin, Columbia)

Earlier this month, I attended the South American Archaeology Seminar, hosted bi-annually at UCL by Dr Bill Sillar. These sessions are an outlet for a broad variety of interests and terrific original research stemming from archaeologists working South America and the Caribbean, yet the overlap with archaeological computing is a surprisingly rare occurrence. Continue reading →

Reconstructing Portus – Rome’s Lost Empire

Why produce computer models? We have been producing computer graphic representations as part of our work at Portus since 2007. These are used for a number of purposes. Firstly, they help us to bring together all the many forms of digital data gathered on site, through survey, geophysics, photogrammetry, laser scanning and other tools. For example, we are combining three-dimensional geophysics with laser scans and excavated sections to understand the development of the Building 5. Continue reading →

Plans for resuming joint excavation

I have just been down to Portus today to discuss plans for resuming our joint excavation at the Palazzo Imperiale with the Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Roma (Ostia Antica) in January. I hope that the results from this coupled with the screening of the BBC1 programme Rome’s Lost Empire on Sunday will remind people of the importance and richness of this unique site. Continue reading →

RTI & the Late Bronze Age stela of Mirasiviene

This Late Bronze Age (LBA) stela was found many years ago in a country-estate located in the Guadalquivir Valley (South Spain). Last September David Wheatley (University of Southampton), Leonardo García Sanjuán (University of Seville) and I have conducted fieldwork on the site where it was found (see also: previous post). We have also applied advanced techniques to obtain a detailed recording of the stela: RTI and laser scanning. Continue reading →

RTI & a prehistoric pottery sherd from Mirasiviene

While fieldwalking the country-estate of Mirasiviene, where the eponymous Late Bronze Stela was found (see: RTI shedding new light on Iberian Late Bronze Age stelae and RTI & the Late Bronze Age stela of Mirasiviene), we located an exceptional settlement. This is one of the many pottery sherds found on its surface. This sherd is a piece of hand-thrown pottery with a thick wall, probably once part of a large scale container. Continue reading →