The basic funding of the Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft was more than doubled to a total of 21.8 million euros during the term of the project thanks to the financial contributions of international partner organisations (academic research institutes and research institutes specialising in cultural heritage, museums, heritage protection authorities, SMEs and government agencies) and competitively acquired third-party funding. The mission of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Archaeological Prospection and Virtual Archaeology (LBI ArchPro) is to research, develop, apply and promote efficient non-invasive methods for the digital exploration, documentation, interpretation and visualisation of archaeological heritage.

Special emphasis was placed on internationally recognised sustainable projects for the exploration and documentation of existing UNESCO World Heritage Sites as well as those on the Tentative List. The LBI ArchPro has realised the world’s most comprehensive non-conventional prospection projects to date and has visited many sites, including Stonehenge (UK), Carnuntum (A) and other Roman sites on the Danube Limes (SK, HU, HR, RO, BG), in Birka-Hovgarden (S), at the ring forts of Harald Bluetooth (DK), in Kuelap (PER), at the Viking ship graves (N), in the Carolingian monasteries of Müstair (CH) and Corvey (D), in the monastery of St. Gallen (CH), in the casemates and the Royal Naval Dockyards in Bermuda (BMU), in the Spanish Riding School and the Lipizzaner stud farm in Piber (A) or in St Stephen’s Cathedral (A). Work is currently underway on robotic systems with multi-sensor systems for even more efficient recording of cultural heritage above and below the ground surface.

The creation of a broad awareness of the innovative LBI ArchPro approach to non-invasive archaeology and the non-compliant and creative dissemination of the generated research results to the scientific community, politics, administration and civil society were and are an important goal of the LBI ArchPro consortium. The potentials and opportunities arising from the research work of the LBI ArchPro to solve social challenges based on the Valletta Convention for the Protection and Conservation of our Cultural Heritage were presented in such a way that they became comprehensible in their relevance for political and administrative decisions, spatial planning, construction industry, creative industries, private and public research institutions.

The application of standardised techniques and methods developed by LBI ArchPro generate benefits and added value in cultural heritage management, education and cultural tourism.  A particular focus is on the development of unconventional ways and concepts for communicating science in a generally understandable way and increasing the positive perception of science in society and the importance of preserving humanity’s unique cultural heritage.

LBI ArchPro: The mission of an innovative interdisciplinary research institute

The mission of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Archaeological Prospection and Virtual Archaeology (LBI ArchPro) is to research, develop, apply and promote efficient non-invasive archaeological prospection, digital documentation and virtual archaeology. The main objective of the LBI ArchPro, funded from 2010 – 2024 by the LBG and a consortium of 17 European institutions and 35 cooperation partners (academic and specialised research institutes, museums, heritage authorities, SMEs and government agencies), was to establish an internationally leading and visible scientific institution for basic and applied research and development focusing on high-resolution archaeological prospection methods and technologies, innovative digital archaeological documentation techniques and new concepts of virtual archaeology.

The main motivation – based on the Valletta Convention – that drives the LBI ArchPro approach is based on the societal need to develop efficient means to reliably locate, document, interpret and comprehensively visualise hidden and extant archaeological heritage that is seriously threatened by destruction and continuous deterioration, natural hazards and lack of public awareness. The Valetta Convention, as part of the Malta Treaty, clearly states that non-destructive archaeological investigation methods should be used wherever possible – a recommendation that is still mostly disregarded in practice. However, our multidisciplinary research consortium sees this international treaty as an important guideline and impetus for the further development of future technologies and methods to protect and preserve our common cultural heritage. We are convinced that the large-scale application of non-invasive high-resolution archaeological prospection and digital documentation and the exploration of the resulting large 3D and 4D digital datasets using virtual archaeology are the most appropriate solutions for future archaeology. The proposed innovative approach will provide archaeologists and planning authorities with the spatial information needed to protect and explore threatened underground and above-ground cultural heritage at the appropriate scales. This approach integrates the scientific fields of remote sensing, geophysics, geomatics, computer science and archaeological and architectural history research.

Creating awareness of the innovative LBI ArchPro approach and the non-compliant and creative dissemination of the generated research results to the scientific community, stakeholders and citizens was and is an important goal of the LBI ArchPro consortium. To this end, peer-reviewed publications have been produced, international conferences and workshops organised and attended, professional TV films produced and regular press releases distributed.

The potentials and opportunities arising from the research work of the LBI ArchPro were presented in such a way that their relevance for political and administrative decisions, spatial planning, the construction industry, the creative industries and private and public research institutions became comprehensible. The application of standardised techniques and methods developed by LBI ArchPro generate benefits and added value in cultural heritage management, education and cultural tourism.  A particular focus is on the development of unconventional ways and concepts for communicating science in a generally understandable way and increasing the positive perception of science in society.

Measures to raise awareness of the respective challenges and potential of the digital age and the implementation of open science have been intensified.  This includes the aspect of educating and training the next generation of researchers and heritage professionals, as well as emphasising the need for international interdisciplinary research that takes into account the importance of our shared cultural heritage, extensive archaeological sites and entire archaeological landscapes.

Extract from the 2021 evaluation report: Evaluation result 1.3 (scale 1 – 9)

“The mission of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Archaeological Prospection and Virtual Archaeology (LBI ArchPro) is to research, develop, apply and promote efficient non-invasive methods for the exploration, documentation, interpretation and visualisation of archaeological heritage.

In recent years, the LBI ArchPro has developed very positively and has also managed to further sharpen its mission. Its research programme is coherent and well aligned with its overarching mission. The research topics within the framework of a global process chain – from the collection to the interpretation and visualisation of archaeological data – make up the originality and high relevance of the institute and are of particular benefit to the international archaeological community. The triad of basic and applied research, large-scale archaeological prospection studies and strong efforts to disseminate its results and findings is well balanced and gives the LBI ArchPro a strong competitive advantage over competitors in its main fields of activity. Overall, the LBI ArchPro is an institute at the heart of European heritage conservation concerns, with the means to encompass a wide range of theoretical and applied knowledge in various fields from culture and education to landscape ecology, including tourism and entertainment.”

Contact:

Wolfgang Neubauer
University of Vienna
Franz-Klein-Gasse 1/III
1190 Vienna
Jbystnat.Arhonhre@havivr.np.ng
+43 664 8174991

Co-financing LBI ArchPro contract partners:

• Amt der Niederösterreichischen Landesregierung (A) 2010-2024
• Airborne Technologies (A) 2011–2017
• Arctron (D) 2020-2022
• Landesverband Westfalen-Lippe (D) 2017-2023
• Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft (A) 2010-2024
• Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (N) 2010-2024
• Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften (A) 2015-2017
• Österreichisches Archäologisches Institut (A) 2015-2017
• Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum (D) 2010-2017
• 7reasons Medien GmbH (A) 2014-2024
• Spanische Hofreitschule (A) 2021-2023
• Swedish National Heritage Board (S) 2010-2017
• Technische Universität Wien (A) 2010-2024
• Universität Wien (A) 2010-2024
• Universität für Weiterbildung Krems (A) 2021-2024
• University of Birmingham (UK) 2010-2017
• Vestfold Fylkeskommune (N) 2014-2024
• Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik (A) 2010-2023 -> Geosphere (A) 2023-2024

LBI ArchPro cooperation partners:

• Amt der Burgenländischen Landesregierung (A)
• Amt für Kultur, Fürstentum Liechtenstein (FL)
• Arkeologerna, Statens Historiska Museer (S)
• Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften (D)
• Bornholms Museum Rønne (DK)
• Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (BG)
• Croatian Conservation Institute (HR)
• Czech Academy of Sciences (CZ)
• Fyrkat Viking Museum (DK)
• Heimatmuseum St. Gilgen (A)
• Heldenberg Vermarktungs- und Betriebsgesellschaft (A)
• Historical Museum of Northern Jutland (DK)
• Interspot Film (A)
• Kantonsarchäologie St. Gallen (CH)
• Kulturministerium Peru (PER)
• LBI für Klinisch-Forensische Bildgebung (A)
• LBI für Traumatologie (A)
• Lipizzaner Gestüt Piber (A)
• Lund University (S)
• LWL Museum für Archäologie, Herne (D)
• Malå Geoscience (S)
• Marktgemeinde Schwarzenbach (A)
• Marktgemeinde Tieschen (A)
• Odense City Museums (DK)
• ORBit, Ghent University (B)
• Riegl LMS (A)
• Römerbergwerk Meurin (D)
• Schleswig Holsteinische Landesmuseen (D)
• Stiftung Pro Kloster St. Johann (CH)
• Svendborg Museum (DK)
• The Holstebro Museum (DK)
• Universität für Bodenkultur (A)
• University of Rome, Sapienza (I)
• University of Sidney (AUS)
• Vestfoldmuseene VKS (N)
• Vesthimmerlands Museum (DK)
• Weinviertel Museums Betriebsgesellschaft GmbH (A)