A digital Mediterranean countryside: GIS approaches to the spatial structure of the post-medieval landscape on Kythera (Greece)

Abstract

Mediterranean landscapes have been fragmented, connected and reformed by countless trackways, buildings and field systems. On the Greek Island of Kythera, an extensive and detailed record of such structures has been recorded as part of broader multidisciplinary investigation of the island’s long-term history by the Kythera Island Project (KIP). This rich dataset can be complemented further by KIP’s intensive archaeological and geoarchaeological surveys, offering both practical checks on existing data and insights at a greater resolution. This paper draws on this combination of material and deploys spatial analysis techniques to explore and quantify a range of issues relating to anthropogenic landscapes.