Workshop
The application for the workshop Securing Data in Mesopotamia: New Technologies for Secured Cuneiform Texts has been accepted by both the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities and the Social Sciences and the Lorentz Centre. The workshop, of which the Centre for Global Heritage and Development is co-applicant, seeks to create a new multidisciplinary research community consisting of historians, archaeologists, linguists, epigraphists, geo-scientists, computer scientists and experts from the social, cognitive and applied sciences, in order to research to study Mesopotamia’s ancient communication system in all its aspects.
Lorentzworkshop
The Lorentz workshop seeks to create formulate a research agenda in which a broad array of researchers working at forefronts of their field can test and evaluate newly developed techniques and algorithms for (virtual) modelling of geomaterials and man-made objects. As such, modern measuring techniques, state of the art imaging and image analysis techniques, advanced soil mechanics models, and last but not least, fast-developing pattern recognition algorithms require a concerted effort, to unveil the secrets of data security in ancient Mesopotamia.
Europa Nostra Award Ceremony
In 2020, the project received the Europa Nostra Heritage award. Winning the European Heritage Award/Europa Nostra Heritage Award 2020 has been a great comfort in these difficult times where we first of all lost our colleague and friend Olivier Nieuwenhuijse: the initiator of Scanning for Syria and the person to whom we dedicate this award. And – of course - in these times of COVID-19, we as a network CGHD were forced to cancel a lot of our activities. It has been hard to readjust, and the award definitely helped keeping the spirit up.
Results/Message to Europa
Scanning for Syria was much more than recreating archaeological objects that were lost during the Syrian war, by the use of 3d-technology. It safeguarded these cuneiform texts, but it also broadened the network of scholars working on these matters, bringing progress in the 3D-scanning of small (archaeological) objects. Furthermore it was about raising awareness on the rich Syrian cultural heritage and the threats it continues to face. We received so much media attention, in the Netherlands and abroad; it definitely helped receiving a larger audience for our work.
Resilience Heritage
Overall the project was about resilience in times of conflict and post-conflict. The long standing European research interest in the Middle and Near East, with data, objects and copies entering different European museums and universities for many decades, was suddenly confronted by the war in Syria. Scanning for Syria, even though a very small project with little funding, was a way to show there is something we as both European and Syrian heritage practitioners and scholars can still do. Finally it was a way to engage Syrian migrant communities. One of the offspring activities was an exhibition in a regional museum in the Northern part of the Netherlands (Museum Wierdenland), which draw a lot of Syrian migrants and their families; hopefully, although in a small way, contributing to their identity, pride and feeling of belonging.
Expectations
With this award we wish to continue our activities related to Syrian heritage. We have a seminar and photo exhibition at the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden scheduled for next year (2021), and there are already two research applications lodged. Being part of the Europa Nostra network of excellence will really help us in our way forward.
Researchers:
Olivier Nieuwenhuijse
Richard Jansen
Mara de Groot
Further reading:
https://www.globalheritage.nl/news/focus-raqqa-20-an-interview-with-monique-arntz
https://www.globalheritage.nl/news/scanning-for-syria-project