Advanced Research Infrastructure for Archaeological Dataset Networking in Europe
ARIADNE
Goal of the proposal.
The Research Infrastructure (RI) proposal aims at integrating existing archaeological datasets and at creating the tools to enable data access for researchers.
The project will address European access to, and integration of: excavation and monument record data (building on the work done in ARENA and ARENA2); specialized datasets used for dating, analysing and interpreting, such as dendrochronology, pollen analysis, or other digital reference collections; aerial and remote sensing imagery; and other database relevant for archaeological research. Integration tools will range from metadata crosswalks and mappings to GIS and will avail of state-of-the-art technology such as data mining and Linked Data. Access to unpublished fieldwork reports, or ‘grey literature’, which often form a primary source of archaeological knowledge, will be a specific concern.
Coverage
The project will extend all over Europe and across all periods. It will also extend to European archaeological research outside Europe and, through its liaison with the most important initiatives in the world, it will create a model useful for all archaeologists.
ARIADNE acknowledges the importance of understanding the differences between regions and two macro-areas in Europe, the Central-Northern European region and the Mediterranean basin, as far as archaeological research questions and methods, research traditions and administrative practices are concerned. The project will also integrate the outcomes of previous or on-going research, such as the EU projects relevant for the domain, first of all the ESFRI RI DARIAH, and existing thematic research networks.
Partnership
The project will endeavour to overcome the tension between coverage and extension, and manageability and effectiveness. The partnership will in principle include one core partner per country or grouping of them. Other partners will be in charge of transferring into ARIADNE the knowledge accumulated by EU projects relevant for the domain, and by other related initiatives. It is anticipated that the overall number of partners will be about twenty, with provisions for different levels of involvement and participation. Proponents have so far agreed that the project coordinator will be Prof. Franco Niccolucci, PIN – University of Florence, and deputy coordinator Prof. Julian D. Richards, ADS – University of York. MDR will be in charge of the administrative coordination. Julian will also supervise integration activities in Central-Northern Europe and liaisons with America and the Pacific, while Franco will take responsibility for the Mediterranean basin, including its South shores.
Expected outcomes
Networking activities
- Common standards and interoperability of datasets
- Good practices, charters and training
- Research agenda, policy and strategy, foresight studies, users’ needs and sustainability
- Dissemination; clustering of teams and networks; liaisons with related initiatives
Trans-national access and services
- Creation of a portal giving integrated access to existing datasets
- Provision of advanced tools for searching and data mining this virtual data infrastructure
Joint Research Activities
- All the research activities necessary for the creation and maintenance of the RI, also including the analysis of its impact on archaeological methodology and practice
