Integrated Archaeo-Geophysical Survey on Volcanic Terrain: The Case of Karmir Sar on Mount Aragats (Republic of Armenia)

Abstract

This paper addresses the challenges posed by geophysical prospection in a high-altitude volcanic landscape. The case study is the site Karmir Sar, on Mount Aragats, Armenia. A major aim of the ongoing archaeological explorations at Karmir Sar is to detect, map and interpret prehistoric features on site, including the extraordinary concentration of megalithic monuments known as vishaps ("dragon stones"). This paper illustrates a workflow that has allowed us to detect archaeologically relevant features by combining geomagnetic prospection, groundpenetrating radar prospection and orthophotographs generated from image-based modelling of aerial pictures. The collected archaeological information was cross-checked through excavation and the results led to a new understanding of the site and its contexts.