A GIS open source application for cost distance modelling for site catchment analysis of prehistoric sites

L. Duarte; S. Godinho; A. Gomes; S. Rodrigues; A. C. Teodoro

doi:10.1117/12.2678993

19 October 2023 A GIS open source application for cost distance modelling for site catchment analysis of prehistoric sites

L. Duarte, S. Godinho, A. Gomes, S. Rodrigues, A. C. Teodoro

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 12734, Earth Resources and Environmental Remote Sensing/GIS Applications XIV; 1273412 (2023) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2678993
Event: SPIE Remote Sensing, 2023, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract

Archaeological research employing least-cost analysis and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) has increased over the past decade. In the Portuguese archaeological research, several approaches were applied to estimating the cost-distance, describing the relationship between travel distances and their associated costs. Archaeologically, Site Catchment Analysis (SCA) consists of a territorial analysis of the area surrounding a site that its inhabitants can exploit in terms of natural resources. There are a few generic least-cost path plugins available in QGIS software, but none of them incorporates an archaeology-specific methodology, as many GIS users combine QGIS algorithms with ArcGIS tools to achieve the desired results. This work’s objective is to automate the cost-distance modelling for SCA at archaeological sites by creating a QGIS open-source application. Tobler's hiking function and a set of geographic information – slope, aspect, rivers - were implemented in the application, allowing the evaluation of archaeological hypotheses in a specific research study area. The application was tested for Northwest Portugal in a region comprised of the districts of Porto, Braga, and Viana do Castelo, where an inventory of archaeological sites from the second millennium BC until 500 BC was compiled. The creation of SCA maps for archaeological sites enabled the detection of a few differences in the composition of one hour walking territories. This suggests the existence of a set of similarities between these territories, despite their different topographic histories. For archaeologists, the application has benefits for automating the creation of specific maps and streamlining the process of making these models.

Citation Download Citation

L. Duarte, S. Godinho, A. Gomes, S. Rodrigues, and A. C. Teodoro "A GIS open source application for cost distance modelling for site catchment analysis of prehistoric sites", Proc. SPIE 12734, Earth Resources and Environmental Remote Sensing/GIS Applications XIV, 1273412 (19 October 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2678993

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available

Members: $17.00

Non-members: $21.00 ADD TO CART

PROCEEDINGS
8 PAGES

DOWNLOAD PAPER SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

GET CITATION

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Get copyright permission Get copyright permission on Copyright Marketplace

KEYWORDS

Geographic information systems

Modeling

Agriculture

Raster graphics

Analytical research

Data modeling

Open source software

Show All Keywords

Keywords/Phrases

Search In:

Publication Years