2.5D model: this term is used to refer to models of the bottom of each spatial context produced in Metashape; they are referred to as “2.5D” because they are models of a surface and therefore not truly 3D
3D model: this term is used to refer to fully 3D models (in comparison to 2.5D models); at KAP we produce 3D models for excavated contexts (“context volumes”) and for objects
3D Spatial: this term refers to the part of the project dedicated to producing models of the contexts; it also refers to the team of people who do this work
3D Spatial photographs: photographs taken for the production of photogrammetric models (or, photobatches)
Agisoft Metashape Pro: the program used to produce 2.5D models of the contexts (formerly Agisoft Photoscan Pro)
Approximate Context: a context for which point coordinate data is recorded as a spatial reference; used for collecting spatial data for an object of interest that is no longer in situ but for which the approximate original location is known; contain samples (usually one) representing the object; displayed in GIS as a point rather than a polygon
ArcGIS: a paid GIS software package produced by ESRI that was the primary tool for managing 2D spatial data from 2014–2022
ArcMap: a mapping software component of ArcGIS
Area supervisor: a team member who manages an excavation area; this person is responsible for all recording in the excavation area; also referred to as an “excavator”
Area assistant: a team member who assists an area supervisor, and works in one or more excavation areas
Baulk: in KAP terminology, a freestanding section of unexcavated stratigraphic material within an excavation area, often left to preserve a profile to help understand stratigraphy; distinguished from “scarp”, which is the vertical plane that defines the edge of an excavation area, and distinguished from “profile”, which refers to the vertical face of unexcavated stratigraphy at a baulk or scarp
“Bottom” or Bottom photobatch: a set of data (including at least an orthomosaic and DEM) representing the bottom surface of a spatial context; can be combined with one or more “tops” to produce a context volume representing the volume of the spatial context
Child context(s): spatial contexts that are part of a group context; the group containing the context is referred to as its “parent”
Coded target (CT): a target used in the photobatch process; CT coordinates are recorded using the GNSS and then uploaded to Agisoft Metashape to georeference the model in real space
Context: the most basic unit of recording at Kaymakçı; there are three types of contexts with different attributes (spatial contexts, approximate contexts, and group contexts)
Context key: an identifying number for each context constructed using the formula easting.northing.context number (e.g., 109.523.98)
Context volume: fully 3D digital surrogates of each spatial context excavated on site, produced by the 3D Spatial team
Day journal: an excavation journal kept by area supervisors/excavators in the field using Evernote; day journals are stream-of-consciousness and should not be edited, so they represent the earliest phase of the excavator’s thinking
Day plan: a plan of the excavation area created by the area supervisors/excavators at the end of every day to show what contexts were excavated that day and what is currently visible in the excavation area
Deposit: a supra-type of spatial context created through natural site-formation processes (e.g., mudbrick melt) or by human activity that does not produce a built feature (e.g., earthen surfaces)
Digital Elevation Model (DEM): a raster representing a given surface, created using elevation data; DEMs are produced as part of the photobatch process and are exported with the prefix Z; archival versions can be found on the server at gygaia\3Dspatial\processed\[EA]\DEM, and working versions can be found at gygaia\gisgps\kap\[year]\rasters\photoscan_exports\[EA]
Easting: a projected Cartesian coordinate in the Universal Transverse Mercator (Zone 35N) coordinate reference system referring to the eastward-measured distance from a central meridian; equivalent to the “x” coordinate; truncated for use in excavation area IDs
Elevation drawings (or elevations): drawings made at the end of the season as part of the final report depicting the vertical or near vertical faces of walls and other features
Evernote: an application used for recording day journals and other notes, available on tablets and computers
Excavator: a team member who manages an excavation area (EA); this person is responsible for all recording in the EA; also referred to as an “area supervisor”
Excavation Area (EA): the term used to refer to an area of the site that has been or is currently being excavated
Excavation Area ID: an identifying number for each excavation area constructed using truncated easting and northing coordinates: easting.northing (e.g., 109.523)
Feature: contexts that are built features (e.g., walls, pavements, hearths, circular features); most features should be given a group context number, with later actions on them (e.g., removal, repair) identified by spatial contexts that are gathered as “child contexts” under the “parent” group context
Feature class: a term used in ArcGIS for a file containing points, lines, polygons, or annotations and that are usually part of a geodatabase; equivalent to “layer” in a GeoPackage used in QGIS
Feature plan: a plan made at the end of the season as part of the final report depicting only significant features currently visible in the excavation area
Fileshare: a term referring to when one connects to the folder system on another computer (usually kubaba, the server) via Windows Explorer (on PC) or Finder (on Mac) in order to move files from one computer to another; filesharing does not provide direct access to the connected computer or its programs, but only parts of its storage that have been made accessible
Flotation sample: a standard sediment sample taken from every context that is equal to or larger than 30 L (formerly 10 L); is subsequently subdivided for flotation and for other types of analysis (sediment chemistry, phytoliths, etc.)
Geodatabase: an ArcGIS file for containing and organizing data; can contain feature classes (vectors), rasters, tables, etc.; geodatabases for all excavation areas open from 2014–2022 (the years when ArcGIS was our primary platform) can be found on the server at gygaia/gisgps/kap/[year]/EAs
GeoPackage: a QGIS file for containing and organizing data; can contain layers (including vectors, rasters, tables, etc.); GeoPackages for all excavation areas open from 2023 onward (the year when QGIS became our primary platform) can be found on the server at gygaia/gisgps/kap/[year]/EAs
Georeferencing: the process of assigning real-world coordinates to vector or, more commonly, raster data such as images, orthophotos, or 3D models
Google Chat: a Google messaging app used for communication between the site and the lab; available on computers, tablets, and phones
Group context: a group made up of one or more spatial contexts; often used to identify features that remain in situ for an extended period of time or that have been subjected to actions or events; also used for interpretive grouping of existing spatial and/or group contexts (e.g., walls 1, 2, 3, and 4 grouped as space 5; spaces 5, 6, and 7 grouped as building 8); group contexts have no spatial information and therefore cannot contain samples
Group parent(s): group contexts that contain other contexts; the contexts contained are referred to as “child contexts”
Hand selected: refers to samples that have been collected directly from the ground, rather than from the sieve for from flotation
Harris matrix: a matrix system used to illustrate the stratigraphic sequence of contexts; at Kaymakçı we have used various tools for creating Harris matrices (e.g., Stratify, Powerpoint); currently, we use directed graphs produced in yEd according to a standardized template
kubaba: the current project server
Layer: a term used in QGIS for a file containing points, lines, polygons, annotations, or a raster and usually part of a GeoPackage; equivalent to “feature class” in a geodatabase used in ArcGIS
Line (or polyline): spatial data with one dimension that is composed of one or more line segments; lines are used in QGIS for illustration in the day plans, generally as outlines of features (e.g., walls, circular features) or to indicate directionality (e.g., slope of a part of the excavation area) (formerly referred to as polylines when used in ArcGIS)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Connection: a Remote Desktop Connection available for tablets and computers (Mac and PC) that allows a user to directly connect to a computer and use its programs; allows the user to access and control the computer easily, but requires that both computers be on the same network
Negative feature: a feature representing a concave space within earlier strata (e.g., the cut of a pit or a foundation trench); this is a supra-type of spatial context available in the database
Northing: a projected Cartesian coordinate in the Universal Transverse Mercator (Zone 35N) coordinate reference system referring to the northward-measured distance from a particular latitude; equivalent to the “y” coordinate; truncated for use in excavation area IDs
Orthophoto: an aerial photograph (or combined set of aerial photographs) that has been geometrically corrected to remove distortion, enabling direct measurement; orthophotos are produced as part of the photobatch process and are exported with the prefix “P”; archival versions can be found on the server at gygaia\3Dspatial\processed\[EA]\orthomosaics, and working versions can be found at gygaia\gisgps\kap\[year]\rasteres\photoscan_exports\[EA].
Pause context: a type of spatial context, usually for an object, that is excavated within another context while that context is still open; requires both a top and bottom photobatch to separate it from the surrounding deposit
Phase plan: a plan produced at the end of the season as part of the final report depicting the phasing of significant features (and sometimes deposits) in the excavation area
Photobatch: the data collected for the production of models of spatial contexts as well as their resultant orthomosaic and DEM outputs. This includes at least the photos, GNSS coordinate data from coded targets, metadata (including the context number, photobatch number, prefix, number of targets, and number of photos), orthomosaic, and DEM. Each photobatch is referred to by a photobatch number
Photobatching: the process of collecting and/or processing photobatch data
Photobatch number: a unique identifying number used to refer to a photobatch, constructed using the date and time of the photobatch (e.g., a photobatch taken on June 2, 2016 at 9:37 would be given the number 201606020937). This number is used to label the photobatch and all data products associated with it (e.g., processing notes, Agisoft file, orthophoto, DEM, etc.) and is attached to a context number in the database
Photogrammetry: the broad term for the process by which a set of overlapping photographs is used to ascertain the distance between objects, often used to produce 2.5D and 3D models; often used interchangeably (even if incorrectly) with structure-from-motion (SfM)
Point: refers to spatial data with no dimensions; approximate contexts are associated with spatial data in the form of point coordinates, and points are also used in QGIS to enter elevations
Polygon: spatial data with two dimensions; used to illustrate the horizontal (xy) extents of objects, features, feature parts, contexts, and other objects (e.g., stones, patches of mudbrick, ceramics, etc.) in GIS; used in day plans, context illustration files, and spatial context illustration files
Positive feature: a feature that is built by an additive method, within or on top of existing strata (e.g., wall, hearth, pavement); this is a supra-type of spatial context available in the database
Prefix: a letter used to distinguish one batch of coded target names recorded in a photobatch from those used in another photobatch; the first photobatch of each day is given the prefix “a,” and each subsequent photobatch (including all areas) is given a letter in sequence
Primary key: the unique identifier of a record in a relational database table that distinguishes the record from all others; often used to link related tables; distinguished from a “foreign key”, which serves to further link subtables in a relational database
Profile: in KAP terminology, the vertical face of unexcavated stratigraphy at a scarp (interior edge of an excavation area) or baulk (a freestanding section of unexcavated stratigraphic material within an excavation area) or even under pedestaled features (e.g., walls)
Profile drawings: drawings produced at the end of the season as part of the final report that illustrate stratigraphic layers evident in the vertical faces of unexcavated stratigraphy (e.g., along scarps, baulks, or pedestaled features); may also be referred to more specifically as scarp or baulk drawings, as appropriate
Progress photographs: informal photographs taken by the area supervisors/excavators during excavation, both in Evernote and with a better camera for inclusion in the database; can be annotated in Evernote to indicate interesting developments, features, etc.; should include a north arrow that is either drawn or included physically in the photo; should often be paired as “before” and “after” photos, taken from carefully selected perspectives and with consistent compositional characteristics (e.g., scale bar and north arrow positioning)
QGIS: an open-source GIS platform that, as of 2023, is the primary software used by the project to manage 2D spatial data
Raster: a GIS file type made up of a continuous set of pixels that contain and display data; both orthophotos (which primarily contain RGB data and show true-color images of contexts) and DEMs (which contain elevation data and show a false-color images of relative elevations across contexts) are rasters
Record photographs: formal photographs taken for inclusion in the database, and possibly for later publication; should contain a scale bar (located in the center bottom of the frame of the photograph) and north arrow (above the scale bar), and be clear of tools and other debris; should often be paired as “before” and “after” photos, taken from carefully selected perspectives and with consistent compositional characteristics (e.g., scale bar and north arrow positioning)
Remote Desktop Connection (RDC): refers to a way of connecting to another computer directly, so that one can work on the connected computer and have access to its programs; includes Microsoft Remote Desktop Connection and Team Viewer
RTK-GNSS: the acronym for the “Real-Time Kinematic Global Navigation Satellite System” used to record coordinate data at Kaymakçı; it is composed of a stationary “base” receiver that is set up on a known survey marker at the beginning of the day and a mobile “rover” receiver that is used to record point coordinates; can also be used in “stakeout” mode to survey point locations to lay out new excavation areas, survey grids, sample collection points, etc.
Sample: any material collected from a context and given an identifying number; samples are attached to only one context, contain no spatial information, and can be subdivided or grouped with other samples
Scarp: in KAP terminology, the vertical plane that defines the interior edge of an excavation area; distinguished from “baulk”, which is a freestanding section of unexcavated stratigraphic material within an excavation area, and from “profile”, which refers to the vertical face of unexcavated stratigraphy at a scarp or baulk
Sieve: the tool used to sift sediment, and also a term used to refer to samples that have been recovered from the sieve (contrasted with samples that are “hand selected”)
Skitch: an application that can be used to annotate photos that are saved in the area supervisor’s/excavator’s day journals in Evernote; can be accessed by clicking and holding on the photo and selecting the app
Shapefile: a proprietary file developed by ESRI for use in ArcGIS (and other) software that contains vector data in the form of points, lines, or polygons; each shapefile can contain numerous individual drawings or “objects” (records)
Spatial context: a spatially discrete, generally stratigraphically uniform deposit or feature; contains three-dimensional spatial data and cannot be subdivided; can be grouped with other spatial contexts in group contexts; spatial contexts also contain samples
Spatial context polygon: a polygon drawn in QGIS to record the horizontal (xy) extent of a spatial context
State plan: a plan created at the end of the season as part of the final report that shows the status of the excavation area at the end of the season
Stratify: a program that can be used to automatically generate Harris matrices from entered data
Structure-from-motion (SfM): an algorithm used to recreate three-dimensional structure from sets of overlapping images; often used interchangeably (even if incorrectly) with photogrammetry
Team Viewer: a Remote Desktop Connection available for Mac and PC in which a (secondary) user can share a screen with another (primary) user on their computer; does allow the secondary user to work on the connected computer and to use its programs when the computers are not on the same network, but relies on the primary user to be logged in and to set up the connection
“Top” or Top photobatch: a set of data (including at least an orthomosaic and DEM) representing the top surface of a spatial context; the “top” of a given context might be the bottom of the context above it, or it might be a special photobatch taken prior to the excavation of said context; one or more “tops” can be combined with a “bottom” to produce a context volume of the spatial context
Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinate system: the Coordinate Reference System (CRS) or map projection used by KAP for all spatial recording; specifically, Zone 35N is used