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A fuzzy approach to evaluate the attributions reliability in the archaeological sources

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Abstract

This paper presents a case study of data management and processing of archaeological information through a relational database. The unusual typology of the ‘small finds’ that were archaeologically analyzed and the specific history of the excavations at Phaistos and Ayia Triada (Crete, Greece) prompted our consideration of issues regarding data integrity. We sought to address the problem surrounding the relevance of archaeological sources by applying a reliability index to the subjective interpretations of archaeological data, which ultimately led to the implementation of a fuzzy method to determine the degree of uncertainty of attributions associated with function. The resulting database represents a ‘container of memories’ that allows the processing of all the typological and functional attributions from any source, without having to necessarily simplify or dilute the information in order to render it manageable. The concept of ‘probability of belonging’ and multi-assignment of source attributions seem to represent plausible methodological pathways to determining the reliability of archaeological data, thus warranting the research presented herein.

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Notes

  1. The Professor Vincenzo La Rosa was the director of the Italian Mission at Phaistos from 1977 to 2014.

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Acknowledgements

This work is part of a wider project related to the documentation of small finds carried out under the supervision of the Prof. Pietro Militello (University of Catania, director of the Italian Archaeological Mission in Phaistos, Crete). The project Phaistos and Ayia Triada: Small finds and Contextual Analysis was funded by the Institute of Aegean Prehistory (INSTAP), the University of Catania and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I would like to thank Prof. Franco Niccolucci (University of Florence) for inviting me to contribute this case study to the special ‘Archaeological data-based research: are FAIR data fair enough?’ session in the 26th annual CIDOC-ICOM Conference (October 2018, Heraklion, Crete, Greece).

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  1. Department of Human Sciences, University of Catania, piazza Dante 32, 95124, Catania, Italy

    Marianna Figuera

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Figuera, M. A fuzzy approach to evaluate the attributions reliability in the archaeological sources. Int J Digit Libr 22, 289–296 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00799-020-00284-6

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