Edited Volumes by Markos Katsianis
This volume is the proceedings of the 2nd Conference on Computer Applications and Quantitative Me... more This volume is the proceedings of the 2nd Conference on Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology - Greek Chapter (CAA-GR). It contains 21 contributions in English or Greek that have been reviewed by our international scientific committee and grouped by the editors into four thematic areas. Contributions range from long papers for completed projects to short papers for work in progress with preliminary results.
Books by Markos Katsianis
Το βιβλίο εξετάζει την ενσωμάτωση της ψηφιακής τεχνολογίας στην ανασκαφική πράξη με επίκεντρο την... more Το βιβλίο εξετάζει την ενσωμάτωση της ψηφιακής τεχνολογίας στην ανασκαφική πράξη με επίκεντρο την ανάπτυξη ενός πληροφοριακού συστήματος για τη διαχείριση και τη διερεύνηση των αρχαιολογικών δεδομένων. Η προσέγγιση χρησιμοποιεί τα Συστήματα Γεωγραφικών Πληροφοριών (ΣΓΠ), διεθνώς γνωστά με τον όρο GIS, και εκμεταλλεύεται τις δυνατότητες που παρέχουν ως προς την τρισδιάστατη χωρική αναπαράσταση και την οπτική αντιπαραβολή της ανασκαφικής πληροφορίας. Η ανασκαφή στην προϊστορική θέση των Παλιαμπέλων Κολινδρού και η ερευνητική μεθοδολογία που ακολουθείται στο συγκεκριμένο πρόγραμμα αποτελεί το παράδειγμα εφαρμογής της εργασίας.
Department of History and Archaeology. National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 2017
Papers by Markos Katsianis
Hein, A. (Ed) 2024. Big Data in Archaeology. Proceedings of the 4th Conference of the Greek Chapter of the Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (CAA-GR), Athens, Greece, 21-22 October 2021, National Center for Scientific Research “Demokritos”., 2024
Ως μέρος μιας παγκόσμιας τάσης για την εφαρμογή πρακτικών της Ανοικτής Επιστήμης, κρίνεται ιδιαιτ... more Ως μέρος μιας παγκόσμιας τάσης για την εφαρμογή πρακτικών της Ανοικτής Επιστήμης, κρίνεται ιδιαιτέρως χρήσιμη η παρουσίαση των πρωτοβουλιών σε διεθνές επίπεδο και η σύγκριση με το ελληνικό παράδειγμα και την προσωπική μας εμπειρία, όπου παρά την αυξανόμενη χρήση της ψηφιακής τεχνολογίας στην αρχαιολογική έρευνα, οι στρατηγικές συγκρότησης, επιμέλειας και ανοικτής διάθεσης των ψηφιακών συνόλων δεδομένων σπάνια επαρκούν. Οι ολοένα αυξανόμενες εκκλήσεις για την ενθάρρυνση πρακτικών Ανοικτής Επιστήμης τονίζουν την ανάγκη για τη διαφάνεια της ερευνητικής διαδικασίας και την υπολογιστική αναπαραγωγιμότητα κατά τη δημιουργία αρχαιολογικών συνόλων δεδομένων, με ό,τι αυτό συνεπάγεται. Στην Ελλάδα η σχετική συζήτηση στον χώρο της Αρχαιολογίας χρήζει εντατικοποίησης προκειμένου να λάβει υπόψη το τοπίο των διαθέσιμων υποδομών αποθετηρίων, καθώς και την ανάγκη για πρακτικές οδηγίες σε οργανισμούς και ερευνητές που ασχολούνται με την παραγωγή, την οργάνωση και τη διατήρηση συλλογών αρχαιολογικών δεδομένων. Στο παρόν άρθρο σκιαγραφούνται η πρόοδος και τα εμπόδια ως προς την επιμέλεια και τη διάθεση των αρχαιολογικών δεδομένων τα τελευταία χρόνια, ενώ περιγράφονται ενδεικτικά οφέλη από τη διατήρηση και τη δυνατότητα επαναχρησιμοποίησης της ψηφιακής αρχαιολογικής παραγωγής που αντιστοιχεί στο έργο μια ολόκληρης γενιάς. Παρουσιάζονται ακόμη ολοκληρωμένες και τρέχουσες διεθνείς προσπάθειες για την ενίσχυση των πρακτικών Ανοικτής Επιστήμης στην αρχαιολογική έρευνα μέσα από ερευνητικά προγράμματα και συναφή δίκτυα. Τέλος, συνοψίζονται τα στοιχειώδη βήματα που απαιτούνται προς μια “Ανοικτή Αρχαιολογία”.
Internet Archaeology, 2023
Archaeological data repositories usually manage excavation data collections as project-level enti... more Archaeological data repositories usually manage excavation data collections as project-level entities with restricted capacities to facilitate search or aggregation of excavation data at the sub-collection level (trenches, finds, season reports or excavation diaries etc.). More granular access to excavation data collections would enable layered querying across their informational content. In the past decade, several attempts to adapt CIDOC CRM in order to provide more explicit descriptions of the excavation universe have resulted in the use of domain-specific model extensions (e.g. CRMarchaeo, CRMsci, CRMba). Each focuses on corresponding aspects of the excavation research process, while their combined usage has potential to support expressive data mappings at the sub-collection level. As part of the ARIADNEplus project, several CIDOC CRM developers and domain experts have collaborated to undertake conceptual mapping exercises, to address the practicalities of bringing excavation data descriptions together and to link these to our overall aspirations in terms of excavation data discoverability and reusability. In this contribution, we discuss the current state and future directions of the field of semantic representation of archaeological excavation data and consider several issues that constrain the applicability of existing solutions. We identify five key enabling technologies or research areas (Conceptual models and semantic data structures, Conceptual modelling patterns, Data mapping workflows and tools, Learning technologies and Semantic queries) and assign readiness levels to assess their level of technological maturity. Our research demonstrates that while the existing models and domain-specific extensions are deemed adequate, there is a need for more user-friendly methods and tools to structure data in meaningful and interoperable ways. The next steps involve consolidating relevant semantic structures, improving modelling implementation guidance, adhering to consistent workflows, developing engaging curricula, and documenting real-case examples to demonstrate the benefits and results of semantic data integration.
Digital, 2022
The emergence of the ubiquitous digital ecosystem has provided new momentum for research in archa... more The emergence of the ubiquitous digital ecosystem has provided new momentum for research in archaeology and the cultural heritage domain [...]
CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research - Zenodo, Sep 26, 2022
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2021
Recent advances in recording equipment, software solutions and intra-site applications have suppo... more Recent advances in recording equipment, software solutions and intra-site applications have supported the widespread integration of 3D spatial technologies within archaeological fieldwork. However, the heavy dependence on digital technology to organize excavation research does not come without costs, especially in the case of long-term excavation projects that have employed 3D documentation procedures and need to use, maintain and preserve their 3D archives. This work revisits the digital data collection of the excavation project in Paliambela Kolindros, Greece, which provided one of the first working examples regarding a full 3D workflow in excavation recording and interpretative reasoning. As part of our attempt to integrate part of the 3D excavation archive in the ARIADNEplus infrastructure and with the intention to build up its informational capacity, the article reviews the entire methodology and identifies cases where data reassessment or reprocessing activities link directly to digital knowledge production practices. Based on our experience, we discuss the possibility of regarding the excavation event as a historically situated conversion into an archive to be further transformed and perpetually re-interpreted in the digital continuum. By stressing the dependence of archaeological knowledge work to digital data provenance and transparent data curation practices, we have a chance to both harness the benefits of 3D GIS and improve data preservation chances.
Internet Archaeology, 2021
This article provides an overview of the current situation in Greece regarding digital archaeolog... more This article provides an overview of the current situation in Greece regarding digital archaeological data stewardship. A brief chronicle of Greek archaeology sets the scene for a better understanding of the present situation. Greek archaeology is supervised by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, with the Archaeological Service as the central organisation in charge of antiquities. However, archaeological data resulting from archaeological fieldwork are produced by several other entities. This article presents the policies governing both physical and digital documentation archives. It introduces the current practices for archaeological data preservation and the relevant digital infrastructures, attempting to showcase the existing environment. We categorise prevailing problems on three levels, all based on the fact that digital and open access arrived recently in a well-established environment formed gradually over almost two centuries.Even so, fragmentation and variation would be the proper terms to describe the status of the stewardship of digital archaeological data in Greece. Our review shows that there is substantial effort directed towards digital archaeological data stewardship and accessibility by all stakeholders within the archaeological sector. Finally, we add a few thoughts and suggestions, and indicate the need to generate a network that could take steps towards more inclusive strategies within digital data stewardship. The key to leveraging change is raising awareness about data sustainability and reuse, and the COVID-19 outbreak indicates a clear change in mentality in this direction, since open access resources have begun to be key to education and research conducted in Greece.
Journal of Open Archaeology Data, 2020
The Holocene, 2019
This paper offers a comparative study of land use and demographic development in northern and sou... more This paper offers a comparative study of land use and demographic development in northern and southern Greece from the Neolithic to the Byzantine period. Results from summed probability densities (SPD) of archaeological radiocarbon dates and settlement numbers derived from archaeological site surveys are combined with results from cluster-based analysis of published pollen core assemblages to offer an integrated view of human pressure on the Greek landscape through time. We demonstrate that SPDs offer a useful approach to outline differences between regions and a useful complement to archaeological site surveys, evaluated here especially for the onset of the Neolithic and for the Final Neolithic (FN)/Early Bronze Age (EBA) transition. Pollen analysis highlight differences in vegetation between the two sub-regions, but also several parallel changes. The comparison of land cover dynamics between two sub-regions of Greece further demonstrates the significance of the bioclimatic conditions of core locations and that apparent oppositions between regions may in fact be two sides of the same coin in terms of socio-ecological trajectories. We also assess the balance between anthropogenic and climate-related impacts on vegetation and suggest that climatic variability was as an important factor for vegetation regrowth. Finally, our evidence suggests that the impact of humans on land cover is amplified from the Late Bronze Age (LBA) onwards as more extensive herding and agricultural practices are introduced.
Supplemental material, Supplementary_Table_3_(Site_survey) for Long-term trends of land use and d... more Supplemental material, Supplementary_Table_3_(Site_survey) for Long-term trends of land use and demography in Greece: A comparative study by C Neil Roberts, Ralph Fyfe, Stephen Shennan, Andrew Bevan, Jessie Woodbridge, Alessio Palmisano, Erika Weiberg, Andrew Bevan, Katerina Kouli, Markos Katsianis, Jessie Woodbridge, Anton Bonnier, Max Engel, Martin Finn�, Ralph Fyfe, Yannis Maniatis, Alessio Palmisano, Sampson Panajiotidis, C Neil Roberts and Stephen Shennan in The Holocene
Studies in Digital Heritage, 2018
The fortifications of Athens have been a recurrent object of archaeological investigation. In the... more The fortifications of Athens have been a recurrent object of archaeological investigation. In the past two centuries, parts of the walls have been located during rescue interventions at numerous sites in the urban fabric. At present, the visibility of the entire monument remains rather low as the traces of the walls are hidden beneath the modern city, marginalized within larger archaeological sites, or preserved solely by the written record. Despite the high level of scholarly work devoted to synthesizing the available material, the volume of information accumulated over the years requires an integrated approach that would systematize different types of evidence using digital media. To this end, we attempt to revisit the city walls of Athens through the use of geospatial technologies. Our aim is the informed development of an efficient digital mapping platform to record, store, combine, explore and eventually disseminate resources about the fortifications of Athens. Our research employs published and archival sources (e.g., excavation drawings) in combination with historical maps (e.g., early cadastral maps, the earliest maps of modern Athens) and complementary historical evidence (e.g., writings, illustrations, photography) to locate, document and integrate in space and time available data on lost and surviving fortification remains.
The Acropolis Restoration News, 2016
Communities, Landscapes, and Interaction in Neolithic Greece, A. Sarris, E. Kalogiropoulou, T. Kalayci, L. Karimali (eds.), 2018
We present a first preliminary report on the
prehistoric use of space in southern Euboea in an
at... more We present a first preliminary report on the
prehistoric use of space in southern Euboea in an
attempt to examine the way the landscape was populated
and socially constructed during the Neolithic
and Early Bronze Age in this part of Greece. To
achieve this we use legacy data, both published and
unpublished, in combination with newly acquired
evidence from surface surveys and excavations. We
employ GIS to combine data recorded at different
scales and using alternative observation methods
(field walking, tract walking, GPS survey, systematic
material collection, and excavation) into a coherent
body of information that supports the analysis of the
data’s spatial characteristics. An initial comparison
of the spatial distribution of sites in comparison to
terrain relief and soil characteristics suggests that
large-scale land management was practiced, as is
evidenced by the deliberate avoidance of larger habitation
of agriculturally significant land. Moreover,
the situation in southern Euboea mirrors that in the
Cyclades, where there is also sparse evidence of
permanent or more substantial habitation predating
the Late or even Final Neolithic. Finally, our study
indicates that the ritual use of landscape in southern
Euboea predates the Neolithic peopling of this part
of Greece.
From Maple to Olive. Proceedings of a Colloquium to Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Canadian Institute in Greece, Athens, 10–11 June 2016, 2017
The Southern Euboea Exploration Project (SEEP), under the aegis of the Canadian Institute in Gree... more The Southern Euboea Exploration Project (SEEP), under the aegis of the Canadian Institute in Greece, has conducted archaeological research in the Karystia for over 30 years. A region once perceived as a scarcely populated backwater can now be shown to host a complex mosaic of at least 69 prehistoric sites and findspots, ranging in date from the Late Neolithic to the Late Bronze Age. This paper provides an overview of the prehistory of the Karystia, a picture compiled largely from fieldwork carried out in five areas: the Paximadi peninsula, the large agricultural plain west of Karystos (the kampos), the foothills of Mt. Ochi, the Bouros-Kastri peninsula, and the Katsaronio plain, northeast of the bay at Marmari. The data collected by SEEP have been used as a foundation by other projects to build a more comprehensive understanding of habitation in the region. To convey the scope of current archaeological research in southern Euboea, the authors consider three issues. First, how can we account for the earliest human presence in the region? Second, what underlies the choice of defensible promontories during the Final Neolithic? And third, can we attribute significance to the territorial spacing of Early Bronze Age sites in the region? The patterns that arise shed light on the possible reasons that the area was first visited, the kinds of settlements that were sustained in this marginal environment, and the emerging complexity of Early Bronze Age communities.
To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Canadian
Institute in Greece, we highlight work in Eub... more To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Canadian
Institute in Greece, we highlight work in Euboea by the Southern
Euboea Exploration Project, one of the earliest endeavors
supported by the Institute.
Papadopoulos, C., Paliou, E., Chrysanthi, A., Kotoula, E., and Sarris, A. 2015. Archaeological Research in the Digital Age. Proceedings of the 1st Conference on Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology Greek Chapter (CAA-GR). Pages 46-54, Feb 2015
Recent advances in spatial technologies present new opportunities for augmenting existing excavat... more Recent advances in spatial technologies present new opportunities for augmenting existing excavation archives. This paper outlines methods and techniques for the transformation of spatial information recorded in these archives into 3D representations. Towards this end, the use of GIS can assist the modelling process, integrate spatial data produced using different modelling procedures and support the transcription of information held in diverse documentation means, both paper-based and digital. The outcome of such modelling exercises can enable new dynamic ways of interacting with an existing excavation archive within a 3D cartographic environment, thus allowing the improved understanding of stratigraphic relations and spatiotemporal patterning. Additional techniques for data grouping and quantitative analysis can facilitate further information extraction processes. Examples are used from recent work on the prehistoric sites of Thessaloniki Toumba and Ayia Triada Karystos.
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Edited Volumes by Markos Katsianis
Books by Markos Katsianis
Papers by Markos Katsianis
prehistoric use of space in southern Euboea in an
attempt to examine the way the landscape was populated
and socially constructed during the Neolithic
and Early Bronze Age in this part of Greece. To
achieve this we use legacy data, both published and
unpublished, in combination with newly acquired
evidence from surface surveys and excavations. We
employ GIS to combine data recorded at different
scales and using alternative observation methods
(field walking, tract walking, GPS survey, systematic
material collection, and excavation) into a coherent
body of information that supports the analysis of the
data’s spatial characteristics. An initial comparison
of the spatial distribution of sites in comparison to
terrain relief and soil characteristics suggests that
large-scale land management was practiced, as is
evidenced by the deliberate avoidance of larger habitation
of agriculturally significant land. Moreover,
the situation in southern Euboea mirrors that in the
Cyclades, where there is also sparse evidence of
permanent or more substantial habitation predating
the Late or even Final Neolithic. Finally, our study
indicates that the ritual use of landscape in southern
Euboea predates the Neolithic peopling of this part
of Greece.
Institute in Greece, we highlight work in Euboea by the Southern
Euboea Exploration Project, one of the earliest endeavors
supported by the Institute.
prehistoric use of space in southern Euboea in an
attempt to examine the way the landscape was populated
and socially constructed during the Neolithic
and Early Bronze Age in this part of Greece. To
achieve this we use legacy data, both published and
unpublished, in combination with newly acquired
evidence from surface surveys and excavations. We
employ GIS to combine data recorded at different
scales and using alternative observation methods
(field walking, tract walking, GPS survey, systematic
material collection, and excavation) into a coherent
body of information that supports the analysis of the
data’s spatial characteristics. An initial comparison
of the spatial distribution of sites in comparison to
terrain relief and soil characteristics suggests that
large-scale land management was practiced, as is
evidenced by the deliberate avoidance of larger habitation
of agriculturally significant land. Moreover,
the situation in southern Euboea mirrors that in the
Cyclades, where there is also sparse evidence of
permanent or more substantial habitation predating
the Late or even Final Neolithic. Finally, our study
indicates that the ritual use of landscape in southern
Euboea predates the Neolithic peopling of this part
of Greece.
Institute in Greece, we highlight work in Euboea by the Southern
Euboea Exploration Project, one of the earliest endeavors
supported by the Institute.
interventions has been in use through successive upgrades for the past 25 years. Recent activities towards the
implementation of 3D visualisation facilities and the simplification of the database structure aim to benefit userinteraction
with the database records and achieve improved transaction speeds. A 3D visualisation and modelling
tool that has been developed for the segmentation and annotation of 3D textured models of complex architectural
features or entire monuments facilitates the association of individual 3D spatial structures with the corresponding
database records. This way it is possible to depict the results of queries regarding the state of preservation and
the restoration interventions directly on the 3D model of a monument. Combined with data structure
improvements, the designed tool enhances data accessibility and visual data examination.