Ronny Weßling

In 1977, a fragment of a fossil shoulder blade was found in the Fürstenbrunner Quellhöhle (1339/10-11). Based on osteometric and osteomorphological data, the bone is assigned to an adult, male reindeer (Rangifer tarandus). A digital 3D-model of the bone was produced in addition to a traditional palaeontological documentation. According to a radiocarbon date of about 41,000–40,000 cal BP the reindeer lived in the Middle Würmian. The carbon (δ13Ccoll) and nitrogen (δ15Ncoll) stable isotope values indicate a cold steppe environment with permafrost and a lichen-based nutrition of the reindeer. The fossil shoulder blade most likely came into the cave via an entrance which subsequently collapsed during the Last Glacial Maximum. The bone reveals characteristic rolling traces indicating fluviale transport. Whether the bone was brought into the cave as prey by carnivores or by Palaeolithic hunters remains unclear. Nevertheless, this fossil from Fürstenbrunner Quellhöhle is currently the only record of Pleistocene reindeers in the state of Salzburg.

"Requiring archaeological standard equipment (measurement unit and camera) only, Structure from Motion approaches offer an affordable, easy to use and accurate documentation method for stratigraphic excavations. Photo-realistic three-dimensional models generated with this method can be looked upon as virtual replicas of stratification units and thereby allow a comprehensible documentation of archaeological remains, making the models an excellent basis for interpretation purposes. However, on most excavations, Structure from Motion is still not applied in a frequent and systematic way.
During excavations within the exceptionally well preserved Copper Age settlement Meidling im Thale/Kleiner Anzingerberg/ in Lower Austria, Structure from Motion and Multi View Stereo has been used intensively for single surface documentation. The commercial software Agisoft PhotoScan was deployed for a fully automated calculation of intrinsic and extrinsic camera calibration parameters, for the creation of three dimensional point clouds and for the generation of photorealistic surface models. The models generated were transferred to a GIS environment providing the means for visualisation and data management. By arranging and displaying the models according to their stratigraphic position, a four dimensional virtual reality was created, through which the user can move interactively. Thus, as a method of digital preservation, Structure from Motion creates an objective and traceable documentation of archaeological remains.
For accurate results, special attention has to be paid to the process of data acquisition: high image quality and good light conditions are as mandatory as a high stereo coverage of the images. To optimize the latter, ground based aerial photography was introduced at the site of Kleiner Anzingerberg. A photo crane and a telescopic pole served as camera platforms for the generation of overview and serial vertical shots. Images taken that way improve accuracy and point density as well as the computing time required to build the models."

Die Technik des „maschinellen Sehens“ (computer vision) hält immer stärkeren Einzug in den archäologischen Alltag und eignet sich mittlerweile bestens zur systematischen Anwendung auf archäologischen Ausgrabungen. Im vorliegenden Artikel wird der Einsatz von Structure-from-Motion auf der Ausgrabung am Kleinen Anzingerberg bei Meidling im Thale in Niederösterreich vorgestellt. Zur Anwendung kam die kommerzielle Software Agisoft PhotoScan, die vollautomatisiert die inneren und äußeren Parameter der Kamerakalibrierung berechnet und daraus eine dreidimensionale Punktwolke erstellt. Selbige wird mit Hilfe von Multi-View-Stereo-Algorithmen in ein fotorealistisches Oberflächenmodell umgewandelt. Zur Visualisierung der Oberflächenmodelle und für die Zusammenführung mit den übrigen Grabungsdaten bietet sich der Import in ein Geografisches Informationssystem an. Mit dessen Hilfe können herkömmliche Ableitungen der Oberflächenmodelle, wie beispielsweise Schummerungen, Darstellungen der Hangneigung und Profilschnitte, visualisiert werden. Die fotorealistischen Modelle können aber auch der Erzeugung wahrer Orthofotos dienen. Darüber hinaus besteht die Möglichkeit, sich als Betrachter interaktiv durch die texturierten dreidimensionalen Modelle zu bewegen. Eine Anordnung der Modelle gemäß ihrer stratigrafischen Position erlaubt in dieser Form sogar eine vierdimensionale Betrachtung.
Da die Qualität der Fotografien und die Auswahl der Aufnahmestandorte für die Genauigkeit der fertigen Modelle maßgeblich verantwortlich sind, muss bei der Anwendung von Structure-from-Motion dem Prozess der Datenaufnahme eine besondere Aufmerksamkeit gewidmet werden. Wichtig sind eine hohe Bildqualität bei einer hohen Tiefenschärfe, gleichmäßige Lichtbedingungen, eine ausreichende Überlappung der Einzelbilder sowie die Auswahl unterschiedlicher, in den einzelnen Schritten jedoch nicht zu stark voneinander abweichender Kamerastandpunkte. Zur besseren Stereoabdeckung wurden am Kleinen Anzingerberg Techniken der bodengestützten Luftbildarchäologie zum Einsatz gebracht. Ein Fotokran sowie eine Teleskopstange dienten als Kameraplattform zur Generierung von Senkrecht- und Überblicksaufnahmen. Selbige verbessern neben der Präzision und Punktdichte des Modells auch die benötigte Rechenzeit bei der Modellerstellung.
Structure-from-Motion bietet durch die Verwendung von archäologischer Standardausrüstung (Vermessungsgerät und Fotoapparat) eine kostengünstige, einfach zu handhabende und genaue Dokumentationsmöglichkeit für stratigrafische Ausgrabungen. Die fotorealistischen dreidimensionalen Modelle können als virtuelle Nachbildungen der einzelnen Stratifikationseinheiten betrachtet werden und  erlauben dadurch eine objektive und überprüfbare Dokumentation archäologischer Hinterlassenschaften, was sie zu einer ausgezeichneten Interpretationsgrundlage macht.

Předložený příspěvek je věnován popisu jedné z nejmodernějších dokumentačních metod na bázi trojrozměrného modelování, označované jako Structure-from-Motion. Metoda byla aplikována na eneolitické lokalitě Kleiner Anzingerberg bei Meidling im Thale v Dolním Rakousku. Metoda Structure-from-Motion nabízí levnou, jednoduchou a přesnou možnost dokumentace archeologických výzkumů.

Alongside the Morava, the border river between Austria and Slovakia, a significant historico-cultural area developed from the Prehistory on. Fertile soil pandered to the procession of formation of settlements. Good transportation routes on land and water boosted the supra-regional contacts which ranged from the Baltic Sea to the Adriatic Sea. Also, medivial settlements as well as mottes are known from this region. The metal artefacts presented here, which were gathered around Bernhardsthal, Ringelsdorf, Drösing and Jedenspeigen, come from a private collection. The corpus of finds document the spectrum of metal everyday objects from clothes and jewellery of the Middle Ages. Finds from the late High Middle Ages and the Late Middle Ages predominate. Beside the common Europe-wide forms, some few stand out through meticulous workmanship and gilding. Most of the medivial finds were dated to the time as the settlement Drösing (around 1296) was relocated to a dry area to the West. Finds which are dated to the Early modern prove that the area of the abandoned settlement did not fall into oblivion. In the future, systematic excavations in the radius of the church, the medieval cemetry, the deserted village and the motte shall be conducted.

"The article gives a summary about excavation results of the well preserved late neolithic Jevišovice-culture settlement Kleiner Anzingerberg in lower Austria.
It also shows new developed documentation tools like a photo crane and a pole.
In addition we tested structure from motion systems for creating orthophotos and 3D-models.

More information about photo crane Opterix 2.0 and monopod PhotoMob: http://www.unet.univie.ac.at/~a0847161/"

See https://www.academia.edu/7744529/Structure_from_Motion_for_Systematic_Single_Surface_Documentation_of_Archaeological_Excavations for the full article!

Winner of the 5th Vienna Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Poster Award 2013, Category New Technology
                                                                                                                           
By the use of archaeological standard equipment (measurement unit and camera) structure from motion approaches offer an affordable, easy to use and accurate documentation method for stratigraphic excavations. However, it is still not applied in a frequent and systematic way.
In the well preserved Late Neolithic settlement Kleiner Anzingerberg/Meidling im Thale in Lower Austria structure from motion has been used intensely for single surface documentation. The commercial software Agisoft Photoscan was applied for fully automatic calculation of intrinsic and extrinsic camera calibration parameters, for creation of three dimensional point clouds and for generation of photorealistic surface models using multi view stereo algorithms. The models have been transferred to a GIS environment which is used for visualization and data management purposes. By arranging and displaying the models according to their stratigraphic positions a four dimensional virtual reality is created through which the user can move interactively. Thus this method of digital preservation allows an objective and verifiable documentation of archaeological remains, which makes them an excellent basis for further interpretation.
To receive accurate results special attention has to be paid to the process of data acquisition: next to high image quality and good light conditions high stereo coverage of the images is obligatory. To achieve this, ground based aerial photography was put to use at the site Kleiner Anzingerberg. A photo crane and telescopic pole served as camera platforms for the generation of serial vertical and overview shots. Images that have been taken in this way can improve the accuracy and point density as well as the computing time required to build the models.

"In 2013 two potential Viking Age and Medieval harbour sites in Norway and the Faroe Islands were intensively surveyed with Kite Aerial Photography. The work forms part of a research project on
Harbours in the North Atlantic (ca. 800-1300), funded by the DFG. Large scale, high resolution terrain models of these maritime landscapes were calculated from the resulting images using Agisoft PhotoScan. The generated 3D-models serve as compensation for lacking ALS-data for general mapping and landscape visualisation as well as for inspection of relief details and modelling of geomorphological changes. The aim of the poster is to show the chances but also the limits of Kite Aerial Photography and Image Based Modelling in different environments. On the island of Veøy (Norway) the model covers an area of about 11 ha with a maximum ground sampling distance of 1.2 cm. Difficult thermal winds inthe fjord system, a widely forested landscape and tidal changes severely hampered the recording process. The use of kiteswith very high line angel (Rokakku, KAP-foil) enabled a high coverage despite high trees and buildings. In Sandur (Faroe Islands) ever changing wind and light conditions were a challenge that was overcome by the use of different sized kites and by hacking the camera to automatically choose a proper shutter speed. The resulting model covers more than 47 ha with a maximal ground sampling distance of 2.5 cm. Both models revealed some interesting structures like a possible mole and the remains of a post-medieval boat house. The surface models can be used to test various narratives of these structures in a dynamic coastal environment."

"In 2012 a Viking Age assembly site in Thingskálar, Iceland, was investigated by The Assembly
project (TAP) and the Icelandic Institute of Archaeology (FSÍ). The research included the
generation of a digital elevation model from kite aerial photography using computer vision
approaches. The wind conditions and the open landscape as well as the generally good
preservation of archaeological structures in Iceland provide ideal settings for this low cost
prospection method. The effectiveness of kite based camera platforms and the accuracy of
structure from motion and multi view stereo software are demonstrated by comparison with
a digital terrain model, which was generated from a manual GPS survey carried out during
the same campaign."

CONFERENCE ON COMPUTER APPLICATIONS
IN ARCHAEOLOGY, PPA 2016, 30.5. - 1.6.2016 in Veľké Pavlovice (CZ)

In this paper we are presenting an innovative approach to the digitization and web visualization of small-scale non-ferrous artifacts. The artifacts itself, mainly Early Medieval belt plates from the Morava-Thaya region, are studied and analysed in a cross-border research project. Therefor digital copies of every piece were created for further detailed inspections and measurements. For the model creation close-range and partly macro photographs were systematically taken. Since the small scale of the objects as well as their shiny surfaces are challenging for the application of structure from motion and multi view stereo algorithms, we will discuss the use of diverse photographic techniques like focus variation, shutter speed and individual harmonized illumination to overcome these problems. Following our workflow, the models, once they have been calculated, were made public available by publishing them on the internet. As the world wide web is all about fast visualization, long loading times should be avoided, which requires small 3D-format files. To still keep the models at high quality they were compressed using the open source file format OpenCTM .ctm. The open source 3D viewer „jsc3d”, coded in Javascript and supporting most web browsers and WebGL, was integrated into the project webpage and serves as interactive and modern scientific outreach.

150 Jahre nach Entdeckung der ersten Pfahlbauten in Österreich können durch moderne wissenschaftliche Methoden vollkommen neue und außergewöhnliche Erkenntnisse aus diesen einzigartigen archäologischen Quellen unter Wasser gewonnen werden. Um die Oberösterreichische Landesausstellung 2020 „Versunken – Aufgetaucht. Pfahlbaukultur am Attersee und Mondsee“ nach dem letzten wissenschaftlichen Stand zu gestalten, werden durch das Oberösterreichische Landesmuseum und das Kuratorium Pfahlbauten mit Unterstützung des Landes Oberösterreich neue Forschungsprojekte3 realisiert, die eine moderne Sicht auf das Phänomen der Pfahlbauten ermöglichen. Das Pilotprojekt Zeitensprung
startete im Jahr 2015 mit der Erforschung eines Befundes im öffentlichen Strandbad von Seewalchen am Attersee. Während dieser ersten unterwasserarchäologischen Ausgrabung in Österreich seit mehr als 30 Jahren wurden Structure from Motion (SfM) und Multi View Stereo (MVS) Verfahren zur systematischen 3D-Dokumentation eingesetzt. Erste Erfahrungsberichte zum Einsatz dieser Methode für die flächige Grabungsdokumentation werden vorgestellt.