The use of air photo interpretation in archaeological landscape research: the case-study of a Colombian Andean plateau

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to use historical aerial photographs for the reconstruction of archaeological areas nowadays disappeared due to urban growth; this is supported by data from excavations and colonial documentation. In this case, we intend to reconstruct and analyze the raised fields system built by the pre-Hispanic groups in the Bogotá savanna, located in the Colombia Andean highlands. The results show that the hydraulic system significantly transformed the ecological environment: it controlled the mobility of rivers and seasonal floods, blocked water flows and flooded specific areas of the savanna. The objective of the pre-Hispanic groups was not to drain the savanna but to manage the water to get the most out of it, coexisting with it.