The Zamani Project is part of the African

Cultural Heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by soci ...

Sites and Landscapes Database. Zamani is a research group at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

, which acquires, models, presents and manages spatial and other data from cultural heritage sites. The present focus of the Zamani project is

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, with the principal objective of developing “The African Cultural Heritage Sites and Landscapes Database”. Zamani comes from the Swahili phrase “Hapo zamani za kale” which means “Once upon a time”, and can be used to mean 'the past'. The word is derived from Arabic root for temporal vocabulary, ‘Zaman,’ and appears in several languages around the world.

History

The Zamani initiative was conceptualised in the Geomatics Division of the University of Cape Town by Professor Heinz Rüther in 2001 in collaboration with ITHAKA and Aluka ow an initiative of JSTORas the “African Cultural Heritage Sites and Landscapes Database” in 2004 with a number of sequential grants from

the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation of New York City in the United States, simply known as Mellon Foundation, is a private foundation with five core areas of interest, and endowed with wealth accumulated by Andrew Mellon of the Mellon family of Pitt ...

. The project developed out of a long history of heritage documentation in the Geomatics division reaching from conventional mapping of

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

s in the early stages of the project to advanced digital modeling of complex sites in its present phase.

Motivation

The documentation project aims to capture spatial information to create a permanent record of important heritage sites for restoration and conservation purposes and as a record for future generations. The project seeks to provide material for education, research and site management and increase international awareness of African heritage on a

not-for-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

basis.

Data

Spatial data of architectural structures and historical landscapes are acquired by means of

laser scanning Laser scanning is the controlled deflection of laser beams, visible or invisible. Scanned laser beams are used in some 3-D printers, in rapid prototyping, in machines for material processing, in laser engraving machines, in ophthalmological la ...

, conventional surveys, GPS surveys and photogrammetric imaging with calibrated cameras.

Satellite images Satellite images (also Earth observation imagery, spaceborne photography, or simply satellite photo) are images of Earth collected by imaging satellites operated by governments and businesses around the world. Satellite imaging companies sell im ...

aerial photography Aerial photography (or airborne imagery) is the taking of photographs from an aircraft or other airborne platforms. When taking motion pictures, it is also known as aerial videography. Platforms for aerial photography include fixed-wing aircra ...

and full-dome panorama photography are also employed as are contextual photography and videos. The data are captured by the project team during field campaigns. The acquired data are processed to produce

Geographic Information System A geographic information system (GIS) is a type of database containing Geographic data and information, geographic data (that is, descriptions of phenomena for which location is relevant), combined with Geographic information system software, sof ...

s (GIS), 3D

computer models Computer simulation is the process of mathematical modelling, performed on a computer, which is designed to predict the behaviour of, or the outcome of, a real-world or physical system. The reliability of some mathematical models can be deter ...

, maps, architectural sections and building plans and interactive panorama tours of the heritage sites. Sites are seen in the context of their physical environment and therefore landscapes surrounding sites are modelled in 3D using satellite and aerial imagery wherever possible.

Sites

The following is a list of sites which have been documented:

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

Djémila Djémila ( ar, جميلة, links=, lit=Ǧamīlah, translit=Beautiful (one)), formerly Cuicul, is a small mountain village in Algeria, near the northern coast east of Algiers, where some of the best preserved Roman ruins in North Africa are foun ...

# M'Zien (Lemzyen)

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

# Mandara Hills: DGB I & II

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

Lalibela Lalibela ( am, ላሊበላ) is a town in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Lasta district and North Wollo Zone, it is a tourist site for its famous rock-cut monolithic churches. The whole of Lalibela is a large and important site ...

: 13 rock-hewn churches # Axum: Stele-field #

Gondar Gondar, also spelled Gonder (Amharic: ጎንደር, ''Gonder'' or ''Gondär''; formerly , ''Gʷandar'' or ''Gʷender''), is a city and woreda in Ethiopia. Located in the North Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region, Gondar is north of Lake Tana on t ...

Fasil Ghebbi The Fasil Ghebbi ( am, ፋሲል ግቢ) is a fortress located in Gondar, Amhara Region, Ethiopia. It was founded in the 17th century by Emperor Fasilides and was the home of Ethiopian emperors. Its unique architecture shows diverse influence ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

# Elmina:

Elmina Castle Elmina Castle was erected by the Portugal, Portuguese in 1482 as Castelo de São Jorge da Mina (''St. George of the Mine Castle''), also known as ''Castelo da Mina'' or simply ''Mina'' (or ''Factory (trading post), Feitoria da Mina''), in presen ...

# Besease/Kumasi: Ashanti Shrine

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

Petra Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean Aramaic, Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to t ...

Siq The Siq ( ar, السيق, transliterated ''al-Sīq'', transcribed ''as-Sīq'', literally 'the Shaft') is the main entrance to the ancient Nabatean city of Petra in southern Jordan. Also known as Siqit, it is a dim, narrow gorge (in some points ...

: Treasury (

Al-Khazneh Al-Khazneh ( ar, الخزنة; "The Treasury") is one of the most elaborate temples in Petra, a city of the Nabatean Kingdom inhabited by the Arabs in ancient times. As with most of the other buildings in this ancient town, including the Monaste ...

) #

: Monastery (

Ad Deir Ad Deir ("The Monastery"; Arabic: الدير ), also spelled ad-Dayr and el-Deir, is a monumental building carved out of rock in the ancient Jordanian city of Petra. The Deir was probably carved out of the rock in the mid-first century AD. Argu ...

) #

: Urn Tomb #

Tomb of the Roman Soldier The Tomb of the Soldier, also called the Tomb of the Roman Soldier, is one of the best-preserved tombs in the ancient city of Petra. Although its façade is its most recognizable feature—with three carved figures inset between columns—the tomb ...

: Palace Tomb #

: Corinthian Tomb #

: Silk Tomb #

: Theater #

Qasr al-Bint The Qasr al-Bint is a religious temple in the Nabataean city of Petra. It faces the Wadi Musa and is located to the northwest of the Great Temple and to the southwest of the Temple of the Winged Lions. One of the best preserved of the ancient s ...

: Great Temple #

: Facade Tombs #

Temple of the Winged Lions The Temple of the Winged Lions is a large Nabatean temple complex located in Petra, Jordan, and dated to the reign of King Aretas IV (9 BCE–40 CE). The temple is located in Petra's so-called Sacred Quarter, an area situated at the end of Petra ...

: Turkmeniyeh Tomb #

: Soldier Tomb (Wadi Farasa) #

: Garden Tomb (Wadi Farasa) #

: Renaissance Tomb (Wadi Farasa) #

: Triclinium (Wadi Farasa) #

: Djinn Blocks (before Siq entrance) #

: Obelisk Tomb (before Siq entrance) #

: landscape of Wadi Musa and the landscape of Wadi Farasa

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Lamu Lamu or Lamu Town is a small town on Lamu Island, which in turn is a part of the Lamu Archipelago in Kenya. Situated by road northeast of Mombasa that ends at Mokowe Jetty, from where the sea channel has to be crossed to reach Lamu Island. ...

Fortress A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

, Swahili Building and historical street scene # Shela: Shiathna-Asheri

Mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

# Gede: Palace, Mosque and buildings # Namoratung'a: Stelae field # Turkana Village: village huts # Tot Village: village huts

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...

# Djenne: Great Mosque #

Timbuktu Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...

: Friday Mosque

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

Mozambique Island The Island of Mozambique ( pt, Ilha de Moçambique) lies off northern Mozambique, between the Mozambique Channel and Mossuril Bay, and is part of Nampula Province. Prior to 1898, it was the capital of colonial Portuguese East Africa. With its ric ...

: Fortress and Chapel

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

Bagan Bagan (, ; formerly Pagan) is an ancient city and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Mandalay Region of Myanmar. From the 9th to 13th centuries, the city was the capital of the Bagan Kingdom, the first kingdom that unified the regions that wou ...

(Several Temple & Pagodas)

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

# Medirigiriya Watadageya # Polonnaruwa

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Mapungubwe The Kingdom of Mapungubwe (or Maphungubgwe) (c. 1075–c. 1220) was a medieval state in South Africa located at the confluence of the Shashe and Limpopo rivers, south of Great Zimbabwe. The name is derived from either TjiKalanga and Tshivenda. ...

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

site of Mapungubwe Hill, plus rock art site #

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

Union Buildings The Union Buildings ( af, Uniegebou) form the official seat of the South African Government and also house the offices of the President of South Africa. The imposing buildings are located in Pretoria, atop Meintjieskop at the northern end of ...

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

: Good Hope Castle #

Wonderwerk Cave Wonderwerk Cave is an archaeological site, formed originally as an ancient solution cavity in dolomite rocks of the Kuruman Hills, situated between Danielskuil and Kuruman in the Northern Cape Province, South Africa. It is a National Heritage S ...

: cave with early human occupation #

Cederberg The Cederberg mountains are located near Clanwilliam, approximately 300 km north of Cape Town, South Africa at about . The mountain range is named after the endangered Clanwilliam cedar (''Widdringtonia wallichii''), which is a tree end ...

: 6

rock art In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...

sites # Saldhana: Stone age site #

Langebaan Langebaan is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa on the eastern shore of Langebaan Lagoon. Langebaan is situated 120 km north of Cape Town, just off the R27, about 28 km from Vredenburg and 20 km from Saldanha Bay. ...

: Paleontological site #

Drakensberg The Drakensberg (Afrikaans: Drakensberge, Zulu: uKhahlambha, Sotho: Maluti) is the eastern portion of the Great Escarpment, which encloses the central Southern African plateau. The Great Escarpment reaches its greatest elevation – within th ...

: 2 rock art sites

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

Musawwarat es-Sufra Musawwarat es-Sufra (Arabic: , Meroitic: Aborepi, Old Egyptian: jbrp, jpbr-ˁnḫ), also known as Al-Musawarat Al-Sufra, is a large Meroitic temple complex in modern Sudan, dating back to the early Meroitic period of the 3rd century BC. It is lo ...

: Great Enclosure temple complex and Temple of

Apedemak Apedemak or Apademak was a major deity in the Ancient Nubian Pantheon. Often depicted as a figure with a male human torso and a lion head, Apedemak was a war god worshiped by the Kingdom of Kush#Move to Meroë, Meroitic peoples inhabiting Nubia. ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

# Kilwa Kisiwani: Fortress, Mosque, Palace #

Songo Mnara Songo Mnara is a historic Swahiili settlement in located on Songo Mnara Island in Pande Mikoma, Kilwa District in Lindi Region of Tanzania. The island is home to a Medieval Swahili stone town. The stone town was occupied from the 14th to 16th ...

: Palace, Mosque, Buildings, Graveyard #

Engaruka Engaruka is an abandoned system of ruins located in northwest Monduli District in central Arusha Region. The site is in geographical range of the Great Rift Valley of northern Tanzania. Situated in the Monduli District, it is famed for its irriga ...

: Drystone structures #

Stone Town Stonetown of Zanzibar ( ar, مدينة زنجبار الحجرية), also known as Mji Mkongwe ( Swahili for "old town"), is the old part of Zanzibar City, the main city of Zanzibar, in Tanzania. The newer portion of the city is known as Ng'ambo ...

in Zanzibar: 2 Persian baths and Beit Al-Amani

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

# Nyero: 5 rock art sites # Mukongolo: 3 rock art sites # Kampiri: rock art site # Lolui Island: rock art site # Kokoro: 3 rock art sites

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

Great Zimbabwe Great Zimbabwe is a medieval city in the south-eastern hills of Zimbabwe near Lake Mutirikwi and the town of Masvingo. It is thought to have been the capital of a great kingdom during the country's Late Iron Age about which little is known. Con ...

: Great Enclosure and Hill complex {{Div col end

Undocumented sites

These sites have been documented by the project team but not included in the database 1.

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

Tassili Tassili n'Ajjer ( Berber: ''Tassili n Ajjer'', ar, طاسيلي ناجر; "Plateau of rivers") is a national park in the Sahara desert, located on a vast plateau in southeastern Algeria. Having one of the most important groupings of prehistoric ...

: Engravings (TARA)
2.

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

Luxor Luxor ( ar, الأقصر, al-ʾuqṣur, lit=the palaces) is a modern city in Upper (southern) Egypt which includes the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of ''Thebes''. Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open-a ...

Valley of the Queens The Valley of the Queens ( ar, وادي الملكات ) is a site in Egypt, where the wives of pharaohs were buried in ancient times. It was known then as Ta-Set-Neferu, meaning "the place of beauty". It was most famous for being the burial site ...

(Getty Conservation Institute, L.A.)
3.

: SIQ canyon and tombs in co-operation with UNESCO
4.

Laetoli Laetoli is a pre-historic site located in Enduleni ward of Ngorongoro District in Arusha Region, Tanzania. The site is dated to the Plio-Pleistocene and famous for its Hominina footprints, preserved in volcanic ash. The site of the Laetoli fo ...

: Hominid Trackway (Getty Conservation Institute, L.A.)
5.

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Al Ain Al Ain ( ar, ٱلْعَيْن, , ) is a city in the western side of Tawam (region), Tuwwam region and the seat of the administrative division of its namesake, Al-Ain Region, Abu Dhabi, Al Ain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. ...

: Archaeological site (ADACH, Abu Dhabi)

Access to data

The database is conceptualised as a holistic system and therefore spatial data acquired by the Zamani group are augmented by contextual non-spatial data contributed to JSTOR by various additional partners and organizations. This entire set of materials is made available to the scholarly community via JSTOR's Aluka initiative. Access to this collection is free to all institutions and organizations in Africa and portions of the developing world. Libraries and academic institutions outside of Africa can license access to these collections via JSTOR. The Zamani Project website provides a showcase for the data it produces. Subsets of the 3D data, such as panorama tours and flythrough animations can be viewed on the site as well as examples of plans, sections and photographs.

Funding

The African Cultural Heritage Sites and Landscapes Database exclusively funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, New York. Administrative support, office space and other academic services are provided by the University of Cape Town and the Geomatics Division at UCT. Additional funds are generated through documentation work for the Getty Conservation Institute, Los Angeles and the World Monuments Fund, New York. In the early stages of the project

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

provided financial support for documentation in Lalibela.

Zamani team

The Zamani team members comprises four Chief Scientific Officers (Ralph Schroeder, Roshan Bhurtha, Stephen Wessels and Bruce McDonald) under the leadership of the Principal Investigator, Prof. Heinz Rüther. Interns from

UCT The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university stat ...

and international university's also occasionally join the team. Occasionally Christoph Held (former team member, currently works with laser scanning manufacturer Zoller and Fröhlich (Z+F)) and Professor Werner Stempfhuber (from the Beuth University in Berlin) accompany the Zamani team on field campaigns.

References

Building a Digital Library of Scholarly Resources from the Developing World. An introduction to Aluka. Rahim Rajan, Heinz Rüther. African Arts, Volume 40, Number 2, page 1

Documenting African Sites: The Aluka Project, Heinz Rüther, Rahim S. Rajan. JSAH Volume 66, Number 4, December 2007. Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians.

Laser scanning for conservation and research of African cultural heritage sites: the case study of Wonderwerk Cave, South Africa, Heinz Rüther, Michael Chazan, Ralph Schroeder, Rudy Neeser, Christoph Held, Steven James Walker, Ari Matmon, Liora Kolska Horwitz.

Journal of Archaeological Science 36 (2009) 1847–1856

External links

* http://www.aluka.org/ * http://www.zamaniproject.org/ * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jTlKjUAzn8 * https://www.jstor.org * http://www.wmf.org/video/3d-laser-scanning-churches-lalibela-ethiopia Research projects Heritage organizations Heritage registers History organisations based in South Africa