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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | ULVS XXVII: mapping and spatial analysis of the Libyan Valleys data using GIS |
Authors: | Flower, C.P.J. Mattingly, D.J. |
Year: | 1995 |
Periodical: | Libyan Studies |
Volume: | 26 |
Pages: | 49-78 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Libya |
Subjects: | archaeology settlement patterns |
Abstract: | This paper presents a new approach to the analysis of the UNESCO Libyan Valleys Survey (ULVS) data, using a Geographical Information System (GIS) for mapping and spatial analysis of archaeological site distribution. The first section of the paper describes the way in which the GIS was compiled and linked to the ULVS gazetteer, a computerized synthesis of the survey data from the five seasons of fieldwork (1979-1981, 1984, 1989) in Libya. The second section demonstrates the use of the system as a mapping tool, shedding new light on the settlement trends in the Tripolitanian predesert region through time. A number of distribution maps have been selected for illustration with the aim of elucidating three main problems: the nature of the spatial relationship between the hilltop villages and the early Romano-Libyan farms; continuity or change: the transition from courtyard farm to systems based on the 'gasr' (fortified farm); the origins of decline: changes in settlement patterns from the mid to late Romano-Libyan period. The final section explores the use of GIS for more sophisticated forms of spatial analysis, viz. the spatial analysis of site location in relation to wadi junctions/headwaters. Bibliogr., sum. |