Geophysical imaging survey in the south necropolis at the ancient city of Parion (Kemer-Biga), northwestern Anatolia, Turkey : Preliminary results

Part of : Mediterranean archaeology & archaeometry : international journal ; Vol.12, No.2, 2012, pages 145-157

Issue:
Pages:
145-157
Section Title:
Articles
Author:
Abstract:
Parion is one of the most important settlements located in the ancient Troas region, in which the city of Troy was the center. Many remarkable and precious archaeological remains have been unearthed so far which point out the city’s importance during the Hellenistic and Roman Age. In this study, a first attempt to obtain high resolution images of the subsurface of Parion to guide the archaeological trenches was made by an initial geophysical survey applying Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) technique. The apparent resistivity data, collected using pole-dipole electrode configuration along 11 transects, were inverted by two- and three-dimensional smoothness-constrained least squares algorithms. Relatively compatible results were obtained from two inversion processes. Parallel transects showed the resistivity distribution in three-dimensional images and thus both the horizontal and vertical extents of the anomalous zones were displayed. Additionally, some high anomaly zones located at the end of the first six transects were backed up by archaeological trenches. Thus, taking into account these findings, the other resistivity anomalies located at the different parts of the surveyed area are thought to be the most promising locations for archaeological excavations.
Subject:
Subject (LC):
Keywords:
Geophysics, archaeology, resistivity, inversion, necropolis, 3D imaging, Parion
Notes:
Corresponding author: ylekinci@comu.edu.tr, Thanks are due to Mrs. Rezzan Ekinci (geophysicist), Mr. Can Ertekin (geologist) and Mr. Taner Gόrer (geophysicist) for their valuable helps in preparing the high quality images. We are grateful to Ms. Canan Albayrak (archaeologist) for her great effort during the data acquisition stage of the geoelectrical resistivity imaging survey. Excavation team is thanked for their helps and hospitality. We are also indebted to two anonymous referees for their constructive comments. The location maps shown in Fig. 1a and Fig. 2 were generated by using Generic Mapping Tools (GMT) (Wessel and Smith, 1995).
References (1):
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