Associated Products
Digital Archaeological Archives 2.0: Answering Past Critiques with Linked Open Data (LOD) (Book Section)Title: Digital Archaeological Archives 2.0: Answering Past Critiques with Linked Open Data (LOD)
Author: Chen, A.
Editor: A. Miranda
Editor: O. Bobou
Editor: R. Raja
Abstract: This article examines how Linked Open Data methods offer compelling solutions to long-standing challenges in archaeological archives.
Year: 2022
Access Model: print
Publisher: Brepols
Book Title: Archival Historiographies: The Impact of Twentieth-Century Legacy Data on Archaeological Investigations
ISBN: 9782503600185
Dura-Europos Stories: Explore the Excavations and Artifacts (Article)Title: Dura-Europos Stories: Explore the Excavations and Artifacts
Author: K. Thornton
Author: K. Seals-Knutt
Author: A. Chen
Abstract: This article introduces the technical and data-preparations strategies behind the Dura-Europos Stories interface.
Year: 2023
Primary URL:
http://https://www.semantic-web-journal.net/content/dura-europos-stories-explore-excavations-and-artifacts.Access Model: open access
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Semantic Web Journal
Publisher: Semantic Web Journal
Wikidata for Ethical Archaeology and Cultural Heritage: Introduction to the International Digital Dura-Europos Archive (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Wikidata for Ethical Archaeology and Cultural Heritage: Introduction to the International Digital Dura-Europos Archive
Abstract: The International Digital Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA) is a project aimed at increasing global access to, and comprehensibility of, data and artifacts from the important cultural heritage site of Dura-Europos (Syria). Using Linked Open Data (LOD), IDEA endeavors to create a comprehensive and extensible digital archive whose data points can be freely reused, and to develop a web application that provides multilinguistic access to the integrated Dura-Europos archival resources in a single interface, together with visualizations to enhance data intelligibility at a glance. The planned work will make c. 30,000 artifacts and archival documents searchable in Arabic for the first time. Looting at Dura since 2011 has regrettably compromised the site for future stratigraphic research. Accessibility of data from controlled scientific excavations prior to 2011 is therefore of paramount importance as the basis for future teaching and research, including anti-trafficking efforts related to the site.
Author: Chen, A.
Date: 7/7/2023
Location: Oxford Summer School, UK
Primary URL:
http://https://web.cvent.com/event/58fc430e-5294-4919-a7a3-c2b14f81a059/websitePage:81dde179-b5aa-468b-8439-3a0db07b220fWikidata for Classics (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Wikidata for Classics
Abstract: Training lecture for digital humanists on the utility of the Wikidata platform for legacy archaeological archive work. The archived recordings of lectures are made freely available as references for later users/trainees.
Author: Chen, A.
Date: 6/15/2023
Location: Online
Primary URL:
http://SunoikisisDCDura-Europos: Ancient Past, Digital Future (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Dura-Europos: Ancient Past, Digital Future
Abstract: Overview of the IDEA project and methodological approach.
Author: Chen, A.
Date: 4/12/23
Location: Online Ptarmigan Lecture Series, Stanford University.
Wikidata and Multilingual Image Annotation (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Wikidata and Multilingual Image Annotation
Abstract: Discussion and demonstration of multilingual image annotation in Wikidata, using the methods and data of the IDEA project.
Author: Chen, A.
Date: 2/13/23
Location: Online, Pelagios Network Annotation Activity
Dislodging Disciplinary Silos at Dura-Europos (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Dislodging Disciplinary Silos at Dura-Europos
Abstract: Founded by the Seleucids, successively occupied by the Arsacids (Parthians) and Romans, and spectacularly conquered in a Sasanian siege, the borderland town of Dura-Europos (Syria) was home throughout its history to a fascinatingly diverse population. Over the century since its initial excavation, the site has become justly famous thanks to unique circumstances of preservation that resulted in the site’s retention of significant organic materials and other traces of daily life long-vanished elsewhere. It is thanks to the extraordinary quality of the finds to which it owes its evocative (if romanticized) nickname, “Pompeii of the East”. Together, the multiethnicity and significance of the site’s finds make it a rare (and invaluable) archaeological resource that transcends modern disciplinary boundaries. And yet, the site and its important archaeological resources have been too often considered the purview of ‘Western’ disciplines, despite the fact that the site’s Arsacid occupation was indeed its longest phase. This talk will first explore how the original excavators’ choices with regard to data-processing and publication strategies have had an enduring impact on who mobilizes Durene data and to what intellectual ends. It will then turn to introduce the efforts of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA), a project recently funded by the NEH and designed to help cut across the disciplinary silos that still very much shape research on the site.
Author: Chen, A.
Date: 2/15/23
Location: Pourdavoud Center Lecture Series, UCLA.
AI and ML in Computer Graphics Content Creation and Cultural Heritage Preservation (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: AI and ML in Computer Graphics Content Creation and Cultural Heritage Preservation
Abstract: Discussion and demonstration of AI and ML methods drawing on IDEA data and workflows.
Author: Rushmeier, H.
Date: 2/1/2023
Location: Boston University
Leveraging Wikidata for Ethical Digital Re-Assembly of Cultural Heritage (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Leveraging Wikidata for Ethical Digital Re-Assembly of Cultural Heritage
Abstract: Introduction and demonstration of IDEA data and methods.
Author: Chen, A
Date: 1/15/2023
Location: New York City, Wikipedia Day NYC
Archives, Accessibility, and Translation: Dura-Europos and the Digital Future (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Archives, Accessibility, and Translation: Dura-Europos and the Digital Future
Abstract: Discussion and demonstration of Linked Open Data methods' utility for multilingual discovery and access, drew on IDEA datasets and methods.
Author: Chen, A.
Date: 10/6/2023
Location: Bard Translation and Translatability Initiative Lecture, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY
Pour une archeologie numerique des archives (Article)Title: Pour une archeologie numerique des archives
Author: Guinette
Author: Chen
Abstract: Cet article présente le projet IDEA (International Digital Archive of Dura-Europos), mettant en lumière son utilisation de Wikidata et des données ouvertes liées pour la préservation du patrimoine culturel de Doura-Europos, en Syrie. En nous concentrant sur l'étude du temple de Bêl, nous démontrons comment ces approches redéfinissent la notion d'archives à l'ère du web sémantique. Nous explorons également le processus de traitement et de modélisation des données tout en contextualisant les fouilles archéologiques de Doura-Europos.
Year: 2024
Primary URL:
https://hal.science/hal-04569050v1Primary URL Description: stable URI
Access Model: open access
Format: Journal
Publisher: HAL Open Science
Wikidata for Papyrologists: A reflection on data-modeling (Article)Title: Wikidata for Papyrologists: A reflection on data-modeling
Author: Sahu-Hough, Jasmine
Abstract: The ambition of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive project (IDEA) to bring together all the material excavated in Dura-Europos in Wikidata has offered the opportunity to explore the utility of that platform for digital papyrology. Papyrologists have developed many digital tools over the years but have largely neglected Wikidata. The process of creating a data-model for the Dura-Europos papyri and parchment has demonstrated the difficulties in representing papyrological categories in the ontologies of Wikidata, whilst also indicating the great potential for research if these issues can be overcome.
Year: 2024
Primary URL:
https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10410007Access Model: subscription
Format: Journal
Publisher: IEEE Conference Proceedings
Prizes
Best IEEE Conference Paper 2023
Date: 1/1/2024
Organization: IEEE Congress on Information Science and Technology (CiSt)
Archives, Artifacts, and Contexts: the Work of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA) (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Archives, Artifacts, and Contexts: the Work of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA)
Abstract: The International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA), a project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, is aimed at reassembling and recontextualizing archaeological information from the ancient site of Dura-Europos (Syria). Using Linked Open Data, and the Wikidata platform specifically, IDEA is working to digitally reassemble materials in separate collections across the world, provide more transparent and easily intelligible context for buildings and artifacts discovered at a time when interest was more in unearthing museum-quality pieces than in highlighting contextual relationships and assemblages, and finally, to improve inequalities in access to the information and materials from the site that are held in the West. In an AMS 2024 presentation, we propose to introduce IDEA’s methods and recent work on archival photographs, papyri, inscriptions, and graffiti from the site. At the heart of this
work lies the development of EpiDoc XML and Wikidata models for organizing and publishing ancient written documents which, building on the current epigraphic and papyrological standards and integrating data in a digital urban gazetteer, aim to improve the accessibility and searchability of the rich multilingual heritage of Dura-Europos (including but not limited to Greek, Latin, and Aramaic).
Author: Chen
Date: 01/07/24
Location: Chicago, IL
Primary URL:
https://live.allintheloop.net/App/AIA/aia-scs24Secondary URL:
https://ancientmakerspaces.github.io/Wikidata for ‘Big Dig’ Archaeology: Prospects for Ethical Archival Interventions (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Wikidata for ‘Big Dig’ Archaeology: Prospects for Ethical Archival Interventions
Abstract: mbalances in access and inclusion are among the most pressing problems facing the cultural heritage and archival sectors today. Blockbuster ‘Big Digs’ of the early 20th century have filled collections and textbooks in the West, and recent critical approaches illuminating the deep entanglement of Western imperial interests with archaeological exploration point to problematic repercussions for knowledge and access inequities descendant of such legacies. How can institutions, scholars, curators, and students who have benefitted from these early excavations work more effectively together and make use of emerging technologies to help bring about more equitable access to the (physical and intellectual) products of those excavations or to help rebalance processes of knowledge-making that frequently still exclude local stakeholders? This talk will introduce the work toward these ends by the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA), a project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Author: Chen
Date: 03/18/24
Location: online
Archives, Artifacts, and Contexts: The Work of the International (Digital) Dura- Europos Archive (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Archives, Artifacts, and Contexts: The Work of the International (Digital) Dura- Europos Archive
Abstract: Introduction to the methods and rationale of the IDEA project.
Author: Chen
Date: 02/09/24
Location: New Haven, CT
Data-Modeling in Wikidata: A Perspective from Colonially-Entangled Cultural Heritage (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Data-Modeling in Wikidata: A Perspective from Colonially-Entangled Cultural Heritage
Abstract: Introduction to the methods and rationale of the IDEA project, with specific emphasis on their impact for equity and inclusion.
Author: Chen
Date: 08/20/24
Location: online
Cultural Heritage LOD and Structural Biases: Challenges and Prospects (Public Lecture or Presentation)Title: Cultural Heritage LOD and Structural Biases: Challenges and Prospects
Abstract: Introduction to the methods and rationale of the IDEA Project, with special emphasis on the impacts for equity and inclusion of long-marginalized local communities.
Author: Chen
Date: 07/24/24
Location: online
Lives in Ruins: Assessing and Addressing the Needs of Syrian Heritage Workers (Conference/Institute/Seminar)Title: Lives in Ruins: Assessing and Addressing the Needs of Syrian Heritage Workers
Author: Chen
Author: Baird
Author: Al Mohamed
Abstract: In Spring 2024, as part of the ‘Lives in Ruins’ outreach initiative funded by the OSUN/Talloires Network of Engaged Universities, the IDEA dataset served as a hands-on training space for familiarizing a group of Syrian cultural heritage professionals with the possibilities offered by LOD methods. Born of collaborative discussions in the Spring workshops, participants in the pilot workshop have designed targeted projects for data enrichment (ie. LOD annotation, etc.) that they will carry out in the 2024-2025 academic year.
Date Range: 01/01/2024-06/30/24
Location: online
Primary URL:
https://opensocietyuniversitynetwork.org/research/projects/community-engaged-research/Wikidata for Papyrologists: A reflection on data-modeling (Conference Paper/Presentation)Title: Wikidata for Papyrologists: A reflection on data-modeling
Author: Sahu-Hough
Abstract: The ambition of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive project (IDEA) to bring together all the material excavated in Dura-Europos in Wikidata has offered the opportunity to explore the utility of that platform for digital papyrology. Papyrologists have developed many digital tools over the years but have largely neglected Wikidata. The process of creating a data-model for the Dura-Europos papyri and parchment has demonstrated the difficulties in representing papyrological categories in the ontologies of Wikidata, whilst also indicating the great potential for research if these issues can be overcome.
Date: 12/16/24
Primary URL:
http://www.ieee.ma/cist23/special-invited-sessions/cistPour une archeologie numerique des archives (Conference Paper/Presentation)Title: Pour une archeologie numerique des archives
Author: Guinette
Abstract: Cet article présente le projet IDEA (International Digital Archive of Dura-Europos), mettant en lumière son utilisation de Wikidata et des données ouvertes liées pour la préservation du patrimoine culturel de Doura-Europos, en Syrie. En nous concentrant sur l'étude du temple de Bêl, nous démontrons comment ces approches redéfinissent la notion d'archives à l'ère du web sémantique. Nous explorons également le processus de traitement et de modélisation des données tout en contextualisant les fouilles archéologiques de Doura-Europos.
Date: 05/09/2024
Primary URL:
https://humanistica2024.sciencesconf.org/Conference Name: Colloque Humanistica 2024
Encoding Archaeological Data Models as Wikidata Schemas (Conference Paper/Presentation)Title: Encoding Archaeological Data Models as Wikidata Schemas
Author: Chen
Abstract: Dura-Europos Stories is a web application leveraging a presentation framework powered by linked open data for digital storytelling. The framework emphasizes the display of interactive multimedia content, in this case related to archaeological excavations from Dura-Europos, an ancient site in present-day Syria. We introduce a set of schemas in the Shape Expressions (ShEx) language published in Wikidata’s schema namespace that we use in the context of WikiProject IDEA. WikiProject IDEA is a group of Wikidata editors who curate data related to Dura-Europos. This data is then reused within the Dura-Europos Stories site to automatically curate visualizations describing each artifact and location. Members of the WikiProject use ShEx schemas to encode data models that the group has created for items they maintain in Wikidata. They share these schemas on the pages of their WikiProject, and track the updates to the schemas in Wikidata’s schema namespace. These schemas are both human-readable and machine-readable, and can be used to validate entity data from Wikidata. Schema-based validation provides editors with a way to monitor data from the knowledge base relevant to their project, and allows non-technical curators a way to develop virtual viewing guides without needing to read or write code.
Date: 06/28/24
Primary URL:
https://thehumanities.com/about/history/2024-conferenceConference Name: New Directions in the Humanities
Disrupting the Archaeological Archive: Experiments in Decolonial Intervention (Conference Paper/Presentation)Title: Disrupting the Archaeological Archive: Experiments in Decolonial Intervention
Author: Al Mohamed
Author: Baird
Author: Chen
Abstract: What would it take, in concrete terms, to effectively and meaningfully disrupt an entrenched Eurocentric knowledge hierarchy tied to a blockbuster ‘Big Dig’ era excavation? What obligations do we as scholars, curators, and students in the West, who have benefitted from the ‘Big Digs’ of the early 20th century, have to help bring about more equitable access to the (physical and intellectual) products of those excavations or to help rebalance processes of knowledge-making? Taking these questions as a starting point, this talk first reflects on what post-colonially-informed perspectives and community engagement have taught us about the long-lasting repercussions of foreign excavations at the site of Dura-Europos, Syria. We then describe our recent collaborative efforts to harness the potential of emerging technologies to work toward active remediation of persisting inequities and biases of the sort which are often rooted in early archaeology.
Date: 04/12/24
Primary URL:
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/archaeology/events/2024/apr/ractrac-conference-2024Conference Name: Roman Archaeology Conference
Toward a FAIR-er Archive (Conference Paper/Presentation)Title: Toward a FAIR-er Archive
Author: Chen
Abstract: Post-colonially-informed critiques of recent years have made clear early archaeology’s problematic entanglements with colonialism. Increasingly well-documented are downstream impacts of such entanglements, including cultural heritage ownership and data sovereignty debates, perspectival biases, archival silences, and inequities in physical accessibility of displaced collections. Less reflected upon, especially in Mediterranean archaeology, are the mechanics of persisting intellectual access limitations and the resultant perspectival-marginalizations that descend from colonial power imbalances at the time of excavation. This paper argues that the FAIR data movement in archaeology, and the development of inherently multilingual, lower-technical-barrier platforms like Wikidata, present opportunities for developing ethically-informed interventions in legacy archives related to Classical ‘Big Digs’ of the 19th and 20th centuries. It also reflects on what Mediterranean archaeologists might learn from the CARE principles and critical debates on the ethics of Indigenous cultural heritage data management.
The paper draws on the work of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA), an ongoing project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. It calls attention to important but little commented upon ripple effects (language of metadata/scholarship composition; site name bias; scholarship silos) that mark both the analog and digital archaeological information landscapes in the wake of blockbuster foreign-run excavations from the dawn of the discipline. Citing outreach work among local stakeholder communities, it explicitly ties those persistent biases to global inequities in access to certain kinds of knowledge. It then turns to reflecting on the utility of the FAIR-compliant and multilingual Wikidata platform for work across languages, disciplines, and borders toward active remediation of persisting inequities, biases, and entrenched hierarchies of knowle
Date: 04/10/24
Primary URL:
https://2024.caaconference.org/Archives, Artifacts, and Contexts: the Work of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA) (Conference Paper/Presentation)Title: Archives, Artifacts, and Contexts: the Work of the International (Digital) Dura-Europos Archive (IDEA)
Author: Chen et al
Abstract: Introduction to the methods and rationale for IDEA, with special emphasis on the impacts for equity and inclusion of local communities.
Date: 01/07/24
Primary URL:
https://www.archaeological.org/programs/professionals/annual-meeting/2024academicprogram/Secondary URL:
https://ancientmakerspaces.github.io/