An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia
Northwest Iberia can be considered as one of the main areas where tin was exploited in antiquity. However, the location of ancient tin mining and metallurgy, their date and the intensity of tin production are still largely uncertain. The scale of mining activity and its socio-economical context have...
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MDPI AG
2021-08-01
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| Series: | Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/13/17/3434 |
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| author | João Fonte Emmanuelle Meunier José Alberto Gonçalves Filipa Dias Alexandre Lima Luís Gonçalves-Seco Elin Figueiredo |
| author_facet | João Fonte Emmanuelle Meunier José Alberto Gonçalves Filipa Dias Alexandre Lima Luís Gonçalves-Seco Elin Figueiredo |
| author_sort | João Fonte |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Northwest Iberia can be considered as one of the main areas where tin was exploited in antiquity. However, the location of ancient tin mining and metallurgy, their date and the intensity of tin production are still largely uncertain. The scale of mining activity and its socio-economical context have not been truly assessed, nor its evolution over time. With the present study, we intend to present an integrated, multiscale, multisensor and interdisciplinary methodology to tackle this problem. The integration of airborne LiDAR and historic aerial imagery has enabled us to identify and map ancient tin mining remains on the Tinto valley (Viana do Castelo, northern Portugal). The combination with historic mining documentation and literature review allowed us to confirm the impact of modern mining and define the best-preserved ancient mining areas for further archaeological research. After data processing and mapping, subsequent ground-truthing involved field survey and geological sampling that confirmed cassiterite exploitation as the key feature of the mining works. This non-invasive approach is of importance for informing future research and management of these landscapes. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T08:05:05Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8d14b591f6964f6e82b0deaa6ce0b5fa |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T08:05:05Z |
| publishDate | 2021-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj.art-8d14b591f6964f6e82b0deaa6ce0b5fa2023-11-22T11:08:50ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922021-08-011317343410.3390/rs13173434An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest IberiaJoão Fonte0Emmanuelle Meunier1José Alberto Gonçalves2Filipa Dias3Alexandre Lima4Luís Gonçalves-Seco5Elin Figueiredo6Department of Archaeology, University of Exeter, North Park Road, Exeter EX4 4QE, UKCENIMAT/i3N, Departamento de Ciência dos Materiais, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 2829-516 Caparica, PortugalDepartment of Geosciences, Environment and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, 4169-007 Porto, PortugalDepartment of Geosciences, Environment and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, 4169-007 Porto, PortugalDepartment of Geosciences, Environment and Spatial Planning, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, 4169-007 Porto, PortugalCICGE: Research Centre for Geospatial Sciences, Universidade da Maia—ISMAI, 4475-690 Maia, PortugalCENIMAT/i3N, Departamento de Ciência dos Materiais, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 2829-516 Caparica, PortugalNorthwest Iberia can be considered as one of the main areas where tin was exploited in antiquity. However, the location of ancient tin mining and metallurgy, their date and the intensity of tin production are still largely uncertain. The scale of mining activity and its socio-economical context have not been truly assessed, nor its evolution over time. With the present study, we intend to present an integrated, multiscale, multisensor and interdisciplinary methodology to tackle this problem. The integration of airborne LiDAR and historic aerial imagery has enabled us to identify and map ancient tin mining remains on the Tinto valley (Viana do Castelo, northern Portugal). The combination with historic mining documentation and literature review allowed us to confirm the impact of modern mining and define the best-preserved ancient mining areas for further archaeological research. After data processing and mapping, subsequent ground-truthing involved field survey and geological sampling that confirmed cassiterite exploitation as the key feature of the mining works. This non-invasive approach is of importance for informing future research and management of these landscapes.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/13/17/3434airborne LiDARaerial imageryarchival documentationmining archaeologynorthwest Iberiatin |
| spellingShingle | João Fonte Emmanuelle Meunier José Alberto Gonçalves Filipa Dias Alexandre Lima Luís Gonçalves-Seco Elin Figueiredo An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia Remote Sensing airborne LiDAR aerial imagery archival documentation mining archaeology northwest Iberia tin |
| title | An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia |
| title_full | An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia |
| title_fullStr | An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia |
| title_full_unstemmed | An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia |
| title_short | An Integrated Remote-Sensing and GIS Approach for Mapping Past Tin Mining Landscapes in Northwest Iberia |
| title_sort | integrated remote sensing and gis approach for mapping past tin mining landscapes in northwest iberia |
| topic | airborne LiDAR aerial imagery archival documentation mining archaeology northwest Iberia tin |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/13/17/3434 |
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