Prof. Dr. Natascha Sojc – Dr. Cinzia Bettineschi – Dr. Annalize Rheeder – Dr. Sebastian Gairhos

A Geoinformation System for Roman Augsburg (ArcGIS, Access, AutoCad)

The Roman city of Augusta Vindelicum is barely visible today since it is covered by the modern city of Augsburg. Our knowledge of the vicus and later municipium is based mainly on rescue excavations conducted by the Stadtarchäologie Augsburg (City Archaeology Department of Augsburg) during construction projects. The volume of data collected is tremendous. A single excavation can generate over 1.000 drawings. Traditional mapping methods are not able to handle the volume of information. However, recent developments in digital data management and geographic information systems (GIS) are providing new opportunities.

The Digital Mapping Project (AugustaGIS)

The project undertaken by the University of Augsburg aims to develop a geoinformation system (GIS) for the Roman city. The investigation is conducted in close cooperation with the City Archaeology Department of Augsburg. Beside GIS a database has been created in order to collect, manage and analyse the information on the ancient features and finds with a special focus on urbanistic markers like streets, drainage, city walls and cemeteries. The spatial data is georeferenced and vector shapes are created. Each feature is recorded with an own ID and with the available attribute data (material, function, time period etc.) to enable further investigation.