A Raw Material Database for Comparative Archaeological and Geological Research

There are many important archaeological problems that can only be solved with high quality provenancing of artifactual material. To address this need a research team from the disciplines of Classical Archaeology, Geological Sciences and Information Technology has been assembled.

In the beginning the South Aegean Volcanic Arc (SAVA) databank permitted us a simplistic means of provenancing artifactual material. With time it became more apparent that the identification of provenance, i.e. what is local versus non-local, was the foundation of any new cultural modeling.

In the past year we have employed the techniques of Information Technology in order to develop more powerful provenancing and data visualization tools. With these new tools the database is in a better position to address many high-profile archaeological problems. In addition, we have added an interactive component to the database. Many researchers who in the past have not been exposed to this type of interaction now have an opportunity to investigate their own data questions. We believe that the integration of humanities-based research with the physical science approach and the rapid exploration potential of Information Technology techniques ushers in a new direction for social enquiry.