AN OUTSIDER‘S PERSPECTIVE ON THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL POTENTIAL OF CIDOC CRM
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 12/10/2020

In 2014-2015, in order to contribute to the design of a technical manual and an on-field documentation system for a field project, I studied the history of archaeological documentation, from the early 20th century diaries to MoLAS style field forms and entirely computational on- and off-field recording systems and databases. Later, while designing a course on digital archaeology in 2017, I got familiar with new and innovative ways of organizing archaeological/cultural data. It is in this latter context that I encountered and examined CIDOC CRM, though I was, as an archaeologist, some two decades late to the CRM world – which seems to be not that unusual. Since then, I have contemplated the potential of CIDOC CRM in archaeological studies and discussed it with colleagues and students alike. The major pitfalls of such an endeavor seem clear. As correctly indicated in the “session content,” a steep learning curve might prove problematic and/or discouraging for the uninitiated archaeologists. Furthermore, questions about its flexibility and, perhaps more importantly, concerns regarding its integrability to existing archaeological data structures should also be addressed for a fruitful collaboration. In my contribution to this discussion session, I will try to summarize an archaeologist’s major concerns regarding such a standardized ontological framework and will propose a way forward with a view to establishing communication between unfamiliar archaeologists and CIDOC CRM specialists.


Author(s): Ozturk, Huseyin (ASCSA; College Year in Athens)