The interactive digital map - a modern approach for archaeological heritage management

The paper presents one of the main products of the ArchTerr project “Integrated management of archaeological heritage: Archaeological map and administrative procedures for heritage research and protection”. The project is funded by UEFISCDI following the collaboration of two scientific research centers, “Dunărea de Jos” University of Galați and “Politehnica” University of Bucharest. The aim of this scientific paper is to present the main product of the above mentioned project, the interactive digital map of the historical archaeological heritage with geospatial information (Geographic Information Systems GIS). The paper presents the national context that generated the need to develop such a computer application, some European archaeological heritage records models that could be used as examples to follow and the achievements in this field in Romania. The new functionalities introduced by the interactive digital map developed within the ArchTerr project are: Polygonal representation of any archeological site surface, representation of its protection area (when the site is also a historical monument), representation of researched areas using preventive archaeological methods, the representation of the archaeological discharged areas inside a site (following the preventive archaeological research). Regarding the efforts to protect the archaeological heritage, we mention the daily activity usefulness of this map for a wide range of users: County directorates for culture; urban planning services (within city halls and county councils); cadastral offices; real estate agencies; any person who intend to ask for a building permit inside an archaeological heritage protected area. At www.archterr.ro it could be found the fully functional interactive digital map.