The Archaeological Computing Laboratory at the University of Sydney in Australia is part of the university’s Spatial Science Innovation Unit. It represents just one, albeit very important, component of the University’ 30-year-old commitment to the study and teaching of archaeological method.
The laboratory boasts the following areas of expertise:
- 3D reconstructions of archaeological sites
- Instructional and database-driven web-site design
- CD-ROM & paper-based publication
- Computer-based mapping of historical data
- Software and user-interface development
- Global positioning systems (GPS)
- Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
The ACL oversees or participates in a wide range of important research projects, including:
- the Greater
Angkor Project
a comprehensive, detailed aerial radar survey of the environment and cultural landscape of the World Heritage site of Angkor in Cambodia 1
- the Australian
Paliochora-Kythera Archaeological Survey
exploring the broad question of the relationship between fortified centres and their hinterlands in the Byzantine period, testing alternative hypotheses for site location and the factors influencing occupation and abandonment of sites. The project focuses on the abandoned site of Paliochora (mediaeval Agios Demetrios) on the island of Kythera, mid-way between the Peloponnesos and Crete 2
(see also the APKAS website itself) - a TimeMap of World Heritage Sites (2003)
- a TimeMap of World Archaeology Projects (2002)
- the Anglo-American
Project in Pompeii
(the Anglo-American Project in Pompeii has its own website as well: AAPP Homepage) - Penelope Allison’s work on The
Material Culture of Pompeii Households
(The Pompeii Households project will soon have its own website, courtesy of the stoa) - the mapping
of archaeological sites in Syria
(in support of the Australian ambassador to Syria)
