Coordinated Earth Sciences and Global Project Planning

“Adopt a Project”

The RAS Foundation offers these sponsorship opportunities, in collaboration with the Region of Campania, which has guaranteed that it will provide matching funds to the extent of 2/3 of the funding necessary for any project if the RAS Foundation can find funding for 1/3.

These projects are part of the first 14 projects designed to execute the Master Plan for the Archaeological Park of ancient Roman Stabiae. The projects are formally approved for funding by the Region of Campania as part of its “Piano Operativo Regionale” for 2006-2011.

Project no. 3:

Coordinated Earth Sciences and Global Project Planning

“Campania Felix”—“Happy Campania”—was one of the richest natural areas of the Roman Empire, and its environment was fatefully linked to Campania’s political and social power. It is also an area which preserves one of the most complete records of the intense and ingenious use (and abuse) of any natural environment in the world.

The Restoring Ancient Stabiae Foundation has been given a rare opportunity in world archaeology to coordinate a coherent study not of just a part of a single site, but the entire site and the area around it, hence enabling the development of a comprehensive view of this environment and its interaction with history.

“Project no. 3” is an innovatively bundled group of mutually supportive science-intensive archaeological survey projects and architectural planning projects.

The science-intensive “earth science” projects will ask, and doubtless answer, many questions on the interdependence of human history and environment.

These science-intensive studies will also provide critical technical and scholarly information to designers, conservators and engineers who will shape the archaeological park: final landscape design of the park will depend upon paleo-environmental study of the ancient environment; conservation planning will depend on knowledge gained from geology, engineering, and hydrology; etc.

All of the subsequent work to create a truly innovative archaeological park at Stabiae depends upon the success of these projects.

1. Science-Intensive Archaeological Surveys:

Earth Sciences Campaign

Scientific method produces the most significant—and surprising—results when several methodologies work together (as when, in the early 1980’s, the amazing hour-by-hour history of the eruption of Vesuvius on 24 August, A.D. 79 was discovered by vulcanologists side by side with archaeologists).

-Geophysics and Remote sensing:

At the moment, we still have little idea of the number or size of the Stabian villas or other buried structures (villas, roads, aqueducts), other than through the 18th century reburied excavations, because of the deep eruption overburden of A.D. 79, In 2002 RAS-SAP definitively demonstrated that current geophysical methods can in fact detect buried buildings in the area. The never-suspected far corner of the Villa San Marco peristyle was indicated some 113 m. away, and it was proved by excavation in 2006. (images above).

The geophysical survey will cover the entire site, and lead to a second long term phase of a geophysical center located at the Vesuvian Institute serving the entire Vesuvian area.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP, RAS, Dr. Meg Watters, Univ. Birmingham/UMd; Prof. Maurizio Fedi, Univ. Of Naples Federico II.

-Database management:

Two-year development of the digital architecture is underway with a private grant from UMd alumnus and funds being sought from NEH. After a 2 year “R&D” phase continued management will be the “glue” which will hold together a widely dispersed archaeological and design team.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, Southwestern University, UMd, Houghton, Tim Goddard with Prof. Mark Leone, Prof. Thomas Howe, Dr. Elena Schettino, Cy-Fair College, Houston.

-Mapping:

Aerial LiDAR scanning of the entire area, as base for GIS database, and high precision surface mapping of the prime archaeological site, and other selected areas of focus.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, Univ. Birmingham, Univ. Pennsylvania.

-Hydrology

Water and humidity are the principal sources of damage to frescoes. Ancient Roman buildings seemed to control water damage excellently. Hence, a combined study involving archaeology, modern hydrological engineers and geophysics aims to study both the ancient drainage system and modern situation in order to come up with a stable conservation plan.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, Univ. Naples, Federico II, UMd,

-Geomorphology, Geo-Engineering

Where was the ancient coastline? Were the villas structurally stable in antiquity (before the A.D. 79 eruption and earthquakes)? Are they stable now? These pose a group of interrelated critical questions—and answers—about the ancient nature of the site, and provide critical information useful for its future conservation.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, Penn State, Univ Naples, MIT,

-Vulcanology

The A.D. 79 eruption was different in every area, and was only one of many which shaped the geology of the area.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, Univ. Naples, Univ Hawaii-Manoa.

-Paleo-Environmental

Paleo-environmental studies, working together with mapping, geomorphology and geophysics, reconstruct the changes an natural and human plantation.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, Univ. Naples, Univ of Rome La Sapienza.

-Architectural Recording,

RAS has executed several seasons of training in traditional hand-drawing with UMd Students, and a feasibility study with advanced LiDAR scanning from Univ. Birmingham (images above). The latter, in cases working with the former, can be developed as entire 3D models of the upstanding architecture of all of the villas extant, and yet to be excavated.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, UMd, Univ. Birmingham.

-Digital model building: archaeological reconstruction; architectural design; CAVE virtual reality:

The same data produced for archaeological architectural recording and GIS-database and mapping, can be developed into scholarly reconstructions models of the original appearance of the site and villas, or used to develop a “3D-design Master Plan” which will allow the international team of archaeologists, architectural historians, architects, engineers and conservators to communicate as they develop conceptual and working plans for the archaeological park, for conservation work and for new constructions. It can also be transferred to CAVE “virtual reality environments,” which can be used in the on-site museum or in traveling international exhibits.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, UMd School of Architecture, Virginia Technical Institute, Studio Tom Leader, studio Capasso.

2. Global Project Planning

-Landscape Design

Landscape planting, with the minimum of intervention and cost, can make the archaeological park of Stabiae visible from the site of Pompeii, and hence provide a strong sense of orientation for the entire modern southern Bay of Naples.

It must however be very carefully planned and evaluated. Planting must not overwhelm the original sense of the ancient spaces, and it must be compatible with the long term maintenance of the ruins. Plantings whose roots may damage remains need to be avoided.

The planting design also needs to be informed by the paleo-environmental study so that the planting will evoke the ancient environment.

It also needs to consider the findings of hydrology, geology, vulcanology and other earth sciences.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, UMd School of Architecture, Landscape architecture Studio Tom Leader, Facoltà di Agraria, Università Federico II di Napoli.

-Urban Planning and Connections

The Archaeological park will function as a public park even when the site is closed, and is integrated into the surrounding community support structure.

Urbanistic connections also can make the site accessible from Pompei within ten minutes.

An urban action plan is the key document communicating the planning of the park with the local governments.

Interested institutions and professionals: SAP-RAS, UMd School of Architecture, Landscape architecture Studio Tom Leader, Facoltà di Architettura dell’Università di Napoli Federico II, City of Castellammare di Stabia, Region of Campania.

NOTE: The total global budget for the full excavation, conservation and construction program of the archaeological park is estimated at c. € 140 million. Funding from Italian-managed European Community sources is generous and available, but demands elaborate and expensive “project definitions” to be considered for funding. The studies support by this “project” will provide the material with which to produce these technically elaborate funding requests.

RAS is a non-profit cultural foundation in Italy with international board representation from the Superintendancy of Archaeology of Pompei, the School of Architecture of the University of Maryland, and the Committee of Stabia Reborn, Castellammare di Stabia, It is a foundation legally capable of receiving and spending state and private funds from Italy and abroad, and is also registered as a 501c-3 organization in the US. It has the concession from the Superintendancy to coordinate all work on the archaeological site.

Contacts in the U.S.:

Prof. Thomas Noble Howe, Coordinator General,

Architect Leonardo Varone, Vice President of RAS-USA:

Dr. Richard Seely, Vice President for Development, RAS-USA:

ITALY•Piazza Unità d’Italia n. 14, 80053 Castellammare di Stabia(NA)•Tel:+39 081 870 0274•Fax:+30 081 3185

USA•888 16th St. NW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20006•Tel: +001 202 349 9873

www.stabiae.org