PROFESSIONAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL ILLUSTRATION
Valerie Woelfel – St. Paul, MN USA 651 955-7198 – [email protected]
It is important to understand what to add to a map and what to leave off and it is important to keep in mind what media will be used to display the final image. Many of my clients need maps showing the locations of sites discussed in a text. This map of Iron Age kingdoms in Cyprus uses color and limited background elements to draw attention to the sites being discussed without distracting the viewer with unnecessary details.
GIS and maps are heavily used in cultural resources management (CRM) for data collection, management and visualization. These maps are usually intended to be submitted to a government agency and have clearly defined standards on how the maps should look. This doesn’t leave as much room for creative design but still requires cartographic skill in order to make a quality product. This image is a sketch map based on data collected in the field on a tablet and reflects the required cartographic standards of the agency it will be submitted to.
I have experience working in large consulting firms as a GIS professional and as a freelancer I am available to support smaller firms who may not have a full-time GIS Analyst on staff.
Many archaeologists inherit the maps of earlier excavators or want to conduct research based on historic maps. These maps need be approached with caution and an understanding of who made them, why they were made, and what technology was used.
At the site of Idalion on Cyprus, where I am assistant director, we have a full map of the ancient city created in 1887 by Edward Carletti that indicates the locations of significant finds and early excavations. The city walls depicted on the map are still visible today and I was able to determine that Carletti was as accurate in 1887 as I was with modern GPS. This gave me enough confidence in Carletti to incorporate excavations depicted on his map into the site GIS for mapping and analysis.
I give workshops and talks on cartography for GIS users in archaeology. These maps are part of a presentations to demonstrate the concept of visual hierarchy. The map on the left is a map of Etruscan sites with rivers in the background and the one on the right is a map of rivers with Etruscan sites in the background. Using techniques with symbology, such as larger sized symbols or stronger color, makes an element stand out on a map, bringing it forward in the visual hierarchy and making subject of the map clear to the viewer.
I have extensive experience using GIS for analysis in addition to creating maps. This image shows the result of a least cost path analysis from the inland site of Idalion to the coastal site of Kition. Before the results of GIS can be trusted it is important to understand the steps and tools used in the analysis process. This least coast path was created using the slope of the local terrain to find the easiest route. People have many different reasons beyond ease of travel to choose a path, so this analysis was followed up by ground truthing and further research on site locations along the route.