MedArchNet 2008

First International Workshop on Cyberinfrastructure for the Mediterranean Archaeology Network

November 16-18, 2008

Hosted by the
California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2)
at the
University of California, San Diego

Organized by the
Center of Interdisciplinary Science for Art, Architecture and Archaeology (CISA3)

This invitation-only international workshop will explore and lay the foundations for a Mediterranean Archaeology Network (MedArchNet). MedArchNet would put in place cyberinfrastructure linking a network of archaeological sites throughout the Mediterranean region-sites dating from remote prehistory to the early 20th century. The cyberinfrastructure would support data collection and representation, cultural heritage conservation, data discovery, information integration, access and dissemination of results for students and the public, as well as information display and visualization in new and emerging digital formats, including 3D, ultra-high-resolution, multispectral imaging and virtual reality.

The initial focus of the MedArchNet project, and the workshop itself, will be on the "Holy Land" (modern Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula). This first 'node' in the Mediterranean Archaeology Network is the Digital Archaeological Atlas of the Holy Land (DAAHL), visible online as the DAAHL portal (http://daahl.ucsd.edu). Once the DAAHL portal of MedArchNet is completed, many of the same cyberinfrastructure tools and methodologies could be applied to archaeological sites in Egypt, Italy and other regional nodes around the Mediterranean (see graphic). Organizers also foresee adapting this model for the development and deployment of cyberinfrastructure to support other disciplines (e.g. cultural anthropology) and/or different regions of the world (e.g., to examine traditional cultures and technologies in South India, or China.)

This workshop will bring together the key researchers who control archaeology settlement pattern data sets for Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Sinai. It will focus on establishing the structure of the DAAHL portal, protocols for depositing data, OpenContent, on-line publishing and other issues.

Subsequent to this workshop, the next phase of implementing DAAHL and MedArchNet will involve working with the San Diego Supercomputer Center to implement the basic portal for the DAAHL, and collect archaeological site information to populate it. Online, password-protected tools are now being developed for basic data entry by contributors to the DAAHL database. These include interactive Google Maps interfaces for digitizing project areas and site points. Contributors to the atlas will provide site and project information via these tools, including accurate site locations, time periods and site types for each site added to the DAAHL, as well as detailed descriptions and digital images needed to illustrate the site descriptions. Existing data in the DAAHL database will be checked for positional accuracy; GPS ground truthing will be used where practical and satellite imagery where access is limited.