Reiner GÖLDNER
(Archaeological Heritage Office of Saxony, Germany)
Abstract: There are two important historic map sets in Saxony, “Meilenblätter” (mile sheets) from about 1800 and “Ur-Oeder” (primal Oeder) from about 1600. Both have been used for archaeological research for a log time, and in the pre-digital era copying machine and light table where the most important tools to gain new information from them.
“Meilenblätter” and “Ur-Oeder” where first digitally scanned in 1998 by an initiative of the Archaeological Heritage Office in Saxony. “Meilenblätter” was georeferenced in 2003, “Ur-Oeder” followed in 2009, both performed by the Archaeological Heritage Office in Saxony. While the old scans have qualitative limitations, because they base on photocopies of the map sets, there exist new, high resolution data sets of “Meilenblätter” and “Ur-Oeder” now.
Which kind of problems arise while georeferencing 400 years old “Ur-Oeder”? Inaccuracy of measurement and drawing, hand written text and the change of names and landscape are only a few examples. Some more of them and the approach to solve them are illustrated.
As result there are about 400 georeferenced scenes internally available as web map service. They don’t have the accuracy of modern maps, but they enormously simplify the usage of “Ur-Oeder”. The method supports the practice of heritage protection not only for a small project region but state wide for the entire region of Saxony.
Keywords: historic maps, archaeological base data, georeferencing, heritage protection