Abstract

The project “3D-Digging at Çatalhöyük” began in 2010 thanks to collaboration between Stanford University (Archaeological Center) and the University of California Merced with the scope to record, document (with different digital technologies) and visualize in virtual reality all the phases of archaeological excavation. Phase I (2010 excavation season) of the project was mainly oriented to test different technologies during the excavation (time of flight and optical laser scanners). In phase II (2011 excavation season) the UC Merced team initiated the excavation of a Neolithic house (building 89), recording all the layers by time phase-shift scanners and computer vision techniques. The recording of the excavation process through the use of digital technologies gave the team the ability to generate 3D models of layers and micro-stratigraphies in stereovision during the excavation (using stereo projectors), so as to stimulate a new digital hermeneutics in archaeology. At the end of the fieldwork all the 3D models are accessible through a Teleimmersive system created by UC Merced and UC Berkeley.

:Advanced data capture techniques, cost-effective data processing, and visualization technologies provide viable solutions for the documentation and curation of archaeological heritage and material culture. Work at the UNESCO World Heritage site of Çatalhöyük has demonstrated that new digital approaches for capturing, processing, analyzing, and curating stratigraphic data in 3D are now feasible. Real-time visualization engines allow us to simulate the stratigraphy of a site, the three-dimensional surfaces of ancient buildings, as well as the ever-changing morphology of cultural landscapes. Nonetheless, more work needs to be done to address methodological questions such as: can threedimensional models and stratigraphic relationships, based on 3D surfaces and volumes, be used to perform archaeological interpretation? How can a 3D virtual scenario become the interface to cultural data and metadata stored in external online databases? How can we foster a sense of presence and user embodiment in the simulation of ancient cities and archaeological sites? This article aims to provide viable solutions to the methodological challenge of designing a comprehensive digital archaeological workflow from the data acquisition and interpretation in the field to a three-dimensional digital data curation based on interactive visualization, searchable 3D data, and virtual environments. This work describes the results we achieved developing the application Dig@IT, a multi-platform, scalable virtual reality tool able to foster archaeological data analysis, interpretation, and curation in a realistic and highly-interactive virtual environment.

Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) is a three-dimensional survey technique proven successful for in-field stratigraphic and site-wide documentation or damage assessment of archaeological heritage. This study explores the potential utility of TLS and the Multiscale Model to Model Cloud Comparison (M3C2) surface change detection method for monitoring and preserving ancient earthen architecture, and for creating comprehensive site monitoring programs in compliance with UNESCO periodic reporting guidelines. The proposed methodology was tested using 3-D TLS datasets spanning a period of six years to assess the decay of mud brick structures at Çatalhöyük, Turkey in order to understand material loss in walls and buildings, identify potential underlying causes, and create a plan for physical interventions. This paper explains how a multitemporal laser scanning workflow using the M3C2 method can be leveraged successfully to quantify-with millimeter-level accuracy-the decay of large earthen sites and inform future conservation interventions. This approach allows for the identification of the wall features with the most immediate risk of deterioration based on the detection of patterns of change and calculation of its significance as a preventative measure. Results presented in this paper suggest that the proposed method can be used effectively to enhance site monitoring and perform preventative on-site interventions at large earthen sites earthen sites in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. 2 Keywords: Çatalhöyük; terrestrial laser scanning; earthen architecture conservation; surface change detection; Multiscale Model to Model Cloud Comparison (M3C2)

This paper discusses new advances in heritage site monitoring using a geo-spatial method for assessing the state of preservation of earthen architecture overtime as a preventive conservation measure. The proposed method leverages a comprehensive (quantitative-qualitative) approach that gathers multitemporal data including environmental information collected by means of environmental loggers, qualitative vulnerability assessment of mud-brick walls, and surface change detection information obtained by comparing terrestrial laser scanning point cloud capturing the decay of building's wall features over time. Producing a detailed spatial understanding of the conservation issues that affect mudbrick walls in large earthen sites, this method can be used by conservators to rapidly identify which buildings require immediate intervention and lay the basis for future evaluation of the conservation actions undertaken. To test the effectiveness of the proposed geospatial model in producing a comprehensive view of the environmental risk and pattern of decay that affect mudbrick structures, this paper presents analyses and results obtained in a six-year study at Çatalhöyük, Turkey. Our results Campiani et al. 2019-Author Version 2 corroborate the effectiveness of the proposed method and prove that it can be successfully employed to create preventive conservation measures at other earthen sites inside and outside the Near East.