Papers by Brendan O'Neill
The largest corpus of clay figurines from the Cretan Bronze Age comes from ritual mountain sites ... more The largest corpus of clay figurines from the Cretan Bronze Age comes from ritual mountain sites known as peak sanctuaries. In this paper, we explore how the ‛Figures in 3D' project contributes to our understanding of these figurines, aiding in the study of the technologies of figurine construction and the typological analysis of distinctive styles. We discuss how the project has, more unexpectedly, begun to create new dialogues and opportunities for moving between the material and the digital by taking a multifaceted approach that combines the data from 3D models and 3D prints with experimental work in clay.
In many regions of Europe, bronze metalwork survives in excellent states of preservation that ena... more In many regions of Europe, bronze metalwork survives in excellent states of preservation that enable us to examine traces of use on objects that are indicative of the ways in which they were used. This is a relatively young field of archaeometric research and the methodologies employed are as yet to be consolidated. A systematic relationship typically exists between experimental archaeology and the analyses of ancient objects to understand the character and causation of traces of use on objects. Mediation between these approaches has typically been undertaken using physical casts of damage on ancient objects or primary documentation and illustration by hand. We propose in this paper that advances in digital 3D modelling provide a new and dynamic interlocutor between artefact analyses and experimental archaeology. To this end, we evaluate the pros and cons of two of the affordable and commonly used modes of 3D data capture – laser scanning and structure from motion/photogrammetry – for studying the wear on bladed metal objects. We conclude that 3D modelling has considerable potential for enhancing metalwork wear analysis and object biography research. This is due to the dynamics of storing and displaying wear data for particular objects and by linking the study of traces of use on ancient objects more generally with those developed through experimental research.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440316301431
Close-up and full view of an early medieval copper-alloy ladle discovered in Ballynapark townland... more Close-up and full view of an early medieval copper-alloy ladle discovered in Ballynapark townland, Co. Wicklow, on the route of the N11 Rathnew-Arklow road scheme (John Sunderland).
Journal papers by Brendan O'Neill
The application of high-resolution imagery from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to classify the sp... more The application of high-resolution imagery from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to classify the spatial extent and morphological character of ground and polished stone tool production at quarry sites in the Shetland Islands is explored in this paper. These sites are manifest as dense concentrations of felsite and artefacts clearly visible on the surface of the landscape. Supervised classification techniques are applied to map material extents in detail, while a topological analysis of surface rugosity derived from an image-based modelling (IBM) generated high-resolution elevation model is used to remotely assess the size and morphology of the material. While the approach is unable to directly characterize felsite as debitage, it successfully captured size and morphology, key indicators of archaeological activity. It is proposed that the classification of red, green and blue (RGB) imagery and rugosity analysis derived from IBM from UAV collected photographs can remotely provide data on stone quarrying processes and can act as an invaluable decision support tool for more detailed targeted field characterisation, especially on large sites where material is spread over wide areas. It is suggested that while often available, approaches like this are largely under-utilized, and there is considerable added value to be gained from a more in-depth study of UAV imagery and derived datasets.
Early medieval houses in Ireland, as elsewhere, were the places where people slept, worked on cra... more Early medieval houses in Ireland, as elsewhere, were the places where people slept, worked on crafts, prepared and consumed food, gathered together at night, and where a household extended hospitality to kin and neighbors. 1 Early medieval houses and dwellings were key venues for the enactment or performance of social identities of ethnicity, social status, gender, kinship, and community. As in most house societies worldwide, these buildings were effectively the places where social identities were created. Children were socialized through routine life, and, through watching their elders, learned how one interacted with people of different genders, ages, kin groups, and rank.
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Papers by Brendan O'Neill
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440316301431
Journal papers by Brendan O'Neill
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440316301431