FIELDWORK REPORT (year 1, 2022)

 

TESTING AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY AT THE NEOLITHIC SITE OF ÇATALHÖYÜK – TURKEY

By Prof Stefano Campana and Dr Giuseppe Prospero Cirigliano

 

From 11 to 17 September 2022 a small team of the University of Siena, Laboratory of Landscape Archaeology and Remote Sensing (https://www.lapetlab.it) started a testing programme aimed to identify the potential of aerial photography in the landscape of Çatalhöyük. The purpose of the aerial survey was the identification of archaeological and geomorphological features aimed to better understand the landscape context and its development across time.

On Sunday September 12, Stefano Campana and Giuseppe Cirigliano started testing the equipment based on two low-cost commercial drones, Parrot Anafi and DJI Mavic 3 mini. Both drones are light-weight respectively 320 gr and 249 gr; according to the Turkish domestic rules under 500 gr any permit and piloting licence is required.

In the next days the test allows us to gather aerial photography of the western and northern mounds including their neighbourhood for a total amount of 500 hectares (Fig1).

  

Fig.1 – Light green polygon corresponds to the aerial survey test area.

Data collection was aimed to implement photogrammetry and produce orthophoto maps and digital terrain models of the whole area under study (Fig.2 and 3). The ground resolution of the orthophoto mosaic and the digital terrain model varies between 4 cm and 12 cm.

Fig.2 – Orthophoto mosaic implemented through the aerial photography gathered by drone.

Fig. 3 – Digital terrain model based on aerial photography gathered by drone.