Leiden University of the Netherlands shared news this week: How lasers and volunteers are uncovering thousands of archaeological sites. The University emphasized the critical role of human insight in this project, noting that volunteers identified subtle patterns that AI missed.
‘Heritage Quest’ is the name of the Dutch citizen science project, led by archaeologist Quentin Bourgeois. “Using AI and LiDAR data, volunteers identified thousands of potential burial mounds. With human verification, the project confirmed new sites with 90% accuracy.” 2,000 km² were mapped in only three short months.
Another article about Heritage Quest from 2023 states that they also detected Celtic fields, charcoal kilns, and cart tracks.
Leiden University writes that “Bourgeois emphasizes the value of human insight: volunteers often spot subtle patterns AI misses, such as Iron Age fields or burial mounds. Their contributions not only refine datasets but also help train future AI models for more accurate detection.”
Hervé Morin’s article in Le Monde explores the wider impact of lidar in European archaeology. He quotes archaeologist Murielle Leroy, an early adopter of lidar in French forest studies during the late 2000s.
“We have the same thing here, even if they are not pyramids!” she says. “It was a revolutionary technology {lidar}, and it still is.”
We happen to agree…
You can Read the Le Monde piece here: L’archéologie à l’heure des révélations LiDAR
And find Leiden University here: How lasers and volunteers are uncovering thousands of archaeological sites
The Article from 2023: Thousands of Citizen Scientists Studying LiDAR Maps Have Found 1,000 Prehistoric Burial Mounds Across the Netherlands
More In the Scan: American Southwest Archaeology and Lidar
