Mapping Up and Down: Automatic Mapping of Highland and Coastal Sites Using Multispectral Based Image Analysis Methods From Aerial Images

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Mapping archaeological sites has become more precise, faster, and cheaper than ever, especially once archaeologists began using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) to capture high-resolution aerial views of archaeological sites. Nevertheless, the next step, manually tracing structures and archaeological features from orthophotos, is still daunting and time-consuming, particularly when the obtrusiveness of the sites, like high reflectance, non-contrasting features, or vegetation cover, prevents us from getting an accurate picture. Using multispectral image classification techniques, like band manipulation and supervised pixel-based classification, the proposed methodology offers a fast and efficient solution to get an initial map of an archaeological site. This poster offers an easy-to-follow workflow to map structures using aerial images. We will compare how this method works in two different sites in Peru: 1) Cerritos, a stone-based pre-Hispanic site located over a steep hill in Huarochirí, and 2) The port city of Islay, an abandoned settlement from the early republican period located on the coast of Arequipa. Additionally, to follow equity principles in research, we share the step-by-step workflow made available through long-term digital repositories and discuss the alternative use of open-source tools.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 40415.0