A project set up to document archaeological sites in the Middle East and North Africa, and assess the threats they face, is celebrating continued success with renewed support from the Arcadia Fund of £2 million.
The Endangered Archaeology project – which operates in one of the most significant regions in the world for its archaeological remains – will now continue its vital work until 2020.
An Arcadia funded team of archaeologists from the universities of Oxford and Leicester launched the Endangered Archaeology in the Middle East and North Africa (EAMENA) project two years ago. They use satellite and aerial imagery to rapidly identify archaeological sites endangered by threats from agricultural practices, new road-building schemes, urbanisation, conflict or looting.
The project covers 20 countries from Mauritania to Iran, and has already recorded over 100,000 sensitive sites, using a bespoke open access database. The majority of the sites would otherwise not have been documented.
Thanks to Arcadia's generosity, it has been possible for Dr Neil Brodie to join the EAMENA team as a Senior Research Fellow. An archaeologist by training, Dr Brodie is a world-renowned expert in the illicit trade of cultural objects – a major concern at such sites.
Professor Andrew Wilson, Principal Investigator of the project at Oxford says: 'We are delighted at being able to put the tools and strategies developed by the project into the hands of those professionals who confront the real challenges of preservation of archaeological sites, in the face of both conflict and peacetime threats to their cultural heritage. We are extremely grateful to the Arcadia Fund for its continued support of these vital projects.'
The EAMENA partnership has also expanded to include the University of Durham, thanks to its expertise and experience of archaeological survey in Syria, Iraq, and Iran.
The Arcadia Fund was set up by Lisbet Rausing and Peter Baldwin to support organisations that preserve cultural heritage and the environment.