Crafting three-dimensional architecture and material from Bolivian archaeological databases, applying CAD software to re-construct excavations of early settlements in the Altiplano of Bolivia
Christine Hastorf, Professor
Anthropology
Applications for Fall 2025 are closed for this project.
Plotting archaeological plant and animal food data in 3D from a prehistoric archaeological project located in the Altiplano of Bolivia. The goal is to create a 3D map of the excavated architecture and samples collected from a GIS data base of excavated material, so that the distribution and location of artifacts and ecofacts can be visualized within the architecture.
This project is part of an environmental archaeological investigation into the use and presence of plant remains in human settlements on the Taraco Peninsula in lake Titicaca, dating to approximately 1400 BCE - 400 CE. A major goal of the project is the visualization in 3D of the location of selected plant remains to understand how they were deposited from the daily lives of its inhabitants. The project utilizes CAD, GIS and geospatial methods using a variety of open-source platforms to render the architecture excavated on the peninsula alongside the location (and densities) of the plant and animal remains themselves.
Role: This research project is create and then to add and edit architectural features into a CAD database from a prehistoric archaeological project that is based in the altiplano of Bolivia. The primary task of the applicant will be to plot archaeological architecture in a CAD framework to render the excavation levels in 3D that can be linked to the ecological and artifactual data within their spatial context.
Qualifications: Working knowledge of CAD is required to work on this data set. Experience with recent versions of ESRI ArcPro and / or QGIS might also be useful. Knowledge of geocomputation using open source languages such as R or Python is a plus.
Hours: 3-5 hrs
Social Sciences Mathematical and Physical Sciences