Document

Big data in maritime archaeology : challenges and prospects from the Middle East and North Africa.

Identifier
DOI: 10.1080/00934690.2022.2028082
Source
Journal of Field Archaeology. v. 47, 3, p. 131-148
Contributors
Country
United Kingdom.
Publisher
Taylor and Francis Ltd.
Gregorian
2022-01-01
Language
English
English abstract
The Middle East and North Africa have witnessed a surfeit of geospatial data collection projects, resulting in big databases with powerful deductive capacities. Despite the valuable insights and expansive evidentiary record offered by those databases, emphasis on anthropogenic threats to cultural heritage, combined with a limited integration of local perspectives, have raised important questions on the ethical and epistemological dimensions of big data. This paper contextualizes maritime cultural heritage (MCH) in those debates through the lens of the Maritime Endangered Archaeology in the Middle East and North Africa project (MarEA). MarEA is developing a unique for the region database for MCH designed to amalgamate a baseline record emphasizing spatial location, state of preservation, and vulnerability. This record will form a stepping stone toward finer-grained research on MCH and its interdisciplinary intersections. It is also developed as an information resource to facilitate local collaborators in prioritizing site monitoring and developing documentation, management, and mitigation strategies.
ISSN
0093-4690
Category
Journal articles