The two-volume set Digital Heritage and Archaeology in Practice is a welcome and substantial contribution to digital humanities and archaeology. The companion volumes are filled with ideas, experiences, and reflections on case studies and the broader state of this work in the field. Coeditors Ethan Watrall and Lynne Goldstein successfully bring together 51 heritage professionals to take part in sharing knowledge and experiences as they discuss diverse projects, social contexts, and approaches to digital heritage.
Many contributors to these volumes were first brought together in 2015 through their participation in the Institute on Digital Archaeology Method and Practice at Michigan State University, funded through a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. The goal of the institute was to gather a diverse group of heritage professionals for hands-on training to build technical capacity while forming a community of practice that developed and adopted a shared perspective about approaches to digital techniques in archaeology. These volumes derive from the institute and activities by participants in the years that followed. The underlying goal of these volumes is to outline best practices for digital heritage in archaeology, including openness, public scholarship, and generosity. This ethos binds the chapters in these volumes together. These books are not only for digitally inclined archaeologists but also for all heritage professionals at all career stages.
The volume subtitled Data, Ethics, and Professionalism groups contributions into sections such as digital methods and approaches for archaeological analysis and interpretation, working with digital data, and ethics and professional issues. The other volume, subtitled Presentation, Teaching, and Engagement, organizes its contributions around museums, collections, and archives; public and community engagement; and teaching, pedagogy, and capacity building.
The first section of Data, Ethics, and Professionalism contains two chapters about data. In the first chapter, Shawn A. Ross and Brian Ballsun-Stanton promote the practice of preregistration for archaeological work as a way to reduce the amount of “just-in-time” research that plagues many projects. Preregistration ensures thoughtful intention and planning for research designs and workflows, which enhance data quality and integrity, documentation, and long-term curation. In the second chapter, Rachel Opitz discusses how we capture, visualize, engage with, interact with, and interpret 3D data. Opitz focuses on topography and landscape and outlines the importance of developing skills for working within digital 3D landscapes.
Section 2 includes diverse case studies, and seven authors discuss working with large datasets and legacy data. Jolene Smith’s chapter insightfully discusses how to make data useful and how to prepare data for long-term curation; this chapter will resonate with practitioners responsible for legacy datasets. Adela Sobotkova and Petra Hermankova’s chapter chronicles their experiences planning and implementing digital workflows for their own long-term projects; it would be valuable for anybody designing an archaeological database. They describe the research design process and the issues that emerge organically during fieldwork that require pivoting and “tinkering” with digital data-collection workflows. The authors of each chapter in this section share valuable wisdom and insight through their compelling case studies.
Section 3 focuses on ethics and opens with a characteristically stellar chapter by Heather Richards-Rissetto about the ethics of working with 3D data. Who should have access? Have can we make 3D datasets accessible? How can we convey uncertainty in hyper-realistic datasets? Answers to these and other questions are not always clear, nor are there one-size-fits-all answers, but Richards-Rissetto guides readers through the process of thinking through ethical dilemmas. Other chapters in this section tease out and expand on the ideas of accessibility by evaluating topics such as open access, open data, open methods, and transparency. Carrie C. Heitman discusses her work in making legacy collections from the US Southwest accessible, and she introduces the concept of moderated openness. Her valuable reflections on working with Indigenous groups in the Southwest illustrate how the ethics of access are not fixed but are a continual process in an ever-changing social landscape. Neha Gupta, Ramona Nicholas, and Susan Blair discuss how digital technologies can have adverse effects on marginalized communities by exploring a case study in New Brunswick, Canada. They propose ways in which we can promote inclusivity and diversity through research and training opportunities and mentorship.
The final chapter of the volume is the only one to tackle head-on the topics of automation and AI. Jeremy Huggett ponders the future of archaeology within the context of digital advancements of the twenty-first century in automation, machine learning, and deep learning. He discusses the evolution of computer-aided automation; concepts such as transparency, explanation, and authority; and how these concepts are changing as technologies become increasingly complex. Huggett also touches on the role of ethics in AI approaches, proposing an “Archaeologist-in-the-loop” approach as we continue to work with AI into the future. Although this contribution was written several years ago, it is still very relevant today and worth reading.
The first section of the Presentation, Teaching, and Engagement volume begins with three chapters focused on museums and archives. Katie Kirakosian and Irene Gates write about their experiences digitizing and determining access to the Warren K. Moorehead collection and associated archival records that are subject to NAGPRA, as well as ethical concerns over control and access. Ethical considerations are of concern for many institutions that are digitizing collections, often with the beneficial goal of broadening those collections’ accessibility. The authors reflect on archaeological materials alongside related information in the archives.
The following chapter by Elizabeth Galvin and Jennifer Wexler discusses the creative digital approaches to engaging the public that they implemented with their first-ever digitally accessioned African rock art image collection. They describe the process of cataloging, developing a website, and engagement using a variety of approaches such as virtual reality (VR) and 3D printing. The coauthors also discuss what is often an afterthought for many practitioners when creating digital engagement outputs: their limitations and life cycles. They suggest outlining clear sunsetting strategies during the planning stages. The final chapter in this section is a must-read for all archaeologists; whether one is digitally inclined or not, it is critical to understand what metadata is and why it is important. Adam Rabinowitz argues that metadata should be considered during the planning stages of a project and not as an afterthought.
Section 2 focuses on digital approaches to public engagement. Authors of the six chapters in this section discuss digital approaches to working with heritage and people, offering accounts of creative approaches to public and community archaeology within diverse cultural contexts; they also share the challenges and successes of this work. Their reflections will help guide novice and veteran archaeologists alike in planning public engagement components for future projects. All archaeologists should read Katherine Cook’s chapter, which reflects on collaborative practice and its products; it also outlines processes for “crafting avenues to reconciliation, respect, and inclusivity” (p. 160).
Section 3 focuses on digital approaches to teaching and capacity building, and its four chapters provide solid and creative examples of teaching digital methods and approaches in the classroom. I was left wanting more, however, and this section would have benefited from additional case studies. For example, although the chapters address field schools and academic classrooms, they do not touch on continuing education for archaeologists working in the public and private sectors who want to learn more about digital tools and applications.
I especially want to highlight work by Stacey L. Camp, Benjamin P. Carter, Autumn M. Painter, Sarah M. Rowe, and Kathryn Sampeck exploring the use of KoBoToolbox for teaching students about mapping and data collection workflows. Only by participating fully do students truly understand how to think critically about the digital tools we use in the field. Additionally, Heather McKillop describes her experiences teaching students about 3D documentation methods and how to work with 3D data in field and lab settings. As 3D documentation becomes standard practice, our students must be comfortable working with these types of data.
Taken together, this pair of coedited volumes offer an insightful and practical examination of digital archaeology. Although published in 2022 based on work done in preceding years, the lessons learned, themes, and discussions are still relevant today. Through a rich collection of case studies, reflections, and methodological discussions, contributors demonstrate that digital tools are not merely technical solutions but are also deeply intertwined with questions of ethics, accessibility, collaboration, stewardship, and public engagement. Although some topics, particularly professional capacity building beyond academic settings, could have received greater attention, the volumes succeed in presenting a thoughtful and inclusive vision for the future of digital heritage practice. I highly recommend these books for archaeologists, heritage professionals, educators, students, and anyone interested in understanding how digital technologies are reshaping the ways we document, interpret, manage, and share the past.
