The Digital Revolution to Come: Photogrammetry in Archaeological Practice. Issue 4 (October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Magnani, Matthew; Douglass, Matthew; Schroder, Whittaker; Reeves, Jonathan; Braun, David R.
• Is Part Of: American antiquity. Volume 85:Issue 4(2020)
• Page Start: 737
• Page End: 760
• Publication Date: 2020-10
• Subjects: photogrammetry, -- three-dimensional modeling, -- digital cultural heritage, -- object photogrammetry, -- terrestrial photogrammetry, -- aerial photogrammetry, -- Agisoft PhotoScan (Metashape); fotogrametría, -- modelado tridimensional, -- patrimonio cultural digital, -- fotogrametría de objetos, -- fotogrametría terrestrial, -- fotogrametría aérea, -- Agisoft PhotoScan (Metashape); North America -- Antiquities -- Periodicals; America -- Antiquities -- Periodicals; Archaeology -- North America -- Periodicals; Archaeology -- America -- Periodicals; Anthropology -- America -- Periodicals; North America -- History -- Periodicals; America -- History -- Periodicals; Periodicals; 970
• DOI: 10.1017/aaq.2020.59
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0002-7316

Abstract

Abstract : The three-dimensional (3D) revolution promised to transform archaeological practice. Of the technologies that contribute to the proliferation of 3D data, photogrammetry facilitates the rapid and inexpensive digitization of complex subjects in both field and lab settings. It finds additional use as a tool for public outreach, where it engages audiences ranging from source communities to artifact collectors. But what has photogrammetry's function been in advancing archaeological analysis? Drawing on our previous work, we review recent applications to understand the role of photogrammetry for contemporary archaeologists. Although photogrammetry is widely used as a visual aid, its analytical potential remains underdeveloped. Considering various scales of inquiry—graduating from objects to landscapes—we address how the technology fits within and expands existing documentation and data visualization routines, while evaluating the opportunity it presents for addressing archaeological questions and problems in innovative ways. We advance an agenda advocating that archaeologists move from proof-of-concept papers toward greater integration of photogrammetry with research.