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The EAMENA (Endangered Archaeology in the Middle East and North Africa) Project is a collaboration between the Universities of Oxford, Leicester, and Durham, that was founded in 2015 in response to the growing destruction and loss of cultural heritage sites across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The project, supported by Arcadia, was founded by Dr Bob Bewley and Dr David Kennedy, who together had decades of experience in aerial archaeology of the region, along with Prof Andrew Wilson (Oxford University). They recognised the need for developing digital heritage capacities within the region, especially through the creation and management of up-to-date national heritage databases, that show the location and extent of heritage sites along with information on their nature, condition, and impending threats. In the UK these are termed Historic Environment Records (HER). The need to capture such data led to the creation of the EAMENA database.  

Gathering information through satellite imagery 

One of the primary ways that the EAMENA Project gathers information on archaeological sites is by using satellite imagery. This allows us to rapidly map, assess and make available information on threats to cultural heritage sites via the EAMENA database. Importantly, the EAMENA project also works closely with partner agencies and organisations in the MENA region to support them in developing independent national heritage databases, and to empower heritage professionals, and civil society organisations to monitor, protect and raise awareness about their heritage. 

A key element of this is our capacity building and knowledge exchange programmes. With support from the Cultural Protection Fund (run by the British Council and the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport), we have trained hundreds of heritage professionals and volunteers from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Syria, Morocco, and Yemen in remote sensing and field-based methodologies for monitoring threats and damages to archaeological sites.  

Durham joined EAMENA in 2016, bringing expertise in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and the South Caucasus. The team is composed of academics, students, and volunteers. We have worked directly with the DGA (Directorate General of Antiquities) of Lebanon, the SBAH (State Board of Antiquities and Heritage) in Iraq, and the GDAH (General Directorate of Antiquities and Heritage) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) to deliver training in EAMENA methodologies using remote sensing and on-site condition assessments. This has led to the implementation of independent EAMENA-style databases in the KRI and Lebanon. These are owned and managed by the national heritage agencies of these countries and are aiding these organisations to make informed decisions about the protection and preservation of cultural heritage sites in their respective countries.  

Documenting the impact of conflict on heritage

We have also worked with affected communities to document the impact of conflict on their cultural heritage.  Through organisations like CARA and Heritage for Peace, we have worked with Syrian academics, NGOs (non-governmental organisations), and civil society groups, to provide training, and to support documentation of damage to cultural heritage in the Syrian conflict.  With Rashid and Yazda we co-authored a report detailing the destruction of Yazidi cultural heritage by Islamic State in Northern Iraq in 2014.  As experts in remote sensing, our role was to examine satellite imagery to provide independent evidence of site destruction, which could be used in international judicial proceedings. We have also worked on documenting the destruction of heritage in the recent conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.  

In the last year, members of the Durham EAMENA team have also begun a multi-year research project with the University of Al Qadisiya in Iraq. Survey in the hinterland of an early Islamic period town, Tell Al Ramihiah, is being accompanied by targeted excavation at the site. This will help us to better understand the archaeological landscape and answer important questions about the rural economy in this transformative period. It is also providing an opportunity to train a cohort of Iraqi students in state-of-the art fieldwork techniques. The project will employ EAMENA methodologies for remote sensing survey, on-the-ground site assessments, and provide a test case for using historical digital elevation models derived from now-declassified spy satellite imagery from the 1970s and 80s. This will help us to understand the factors that have impacted these sites over the last 50 years, and assess the types and severity of the damage, thus helping our colleagues in Iraq mitigate continuing and future threats.  

Commitment to open-access resources 

As a project, we are also committed to providing open-access resources for colleagues, heritage professionals, civil society organisations and the public in multiple languages through our YouTube channel and our massive open online courses (MOOCs). Our first MOOC, Endangered Archaeology: Using Remote Sensing to Protect Cultural Heritage, gives an in-depth overview of how we use satellite remote sensing to monitor heritage sites, while the second MOOC, Advanced Archaeological Remote Sensing: Site Prospection, Landscape Archaeology and Heritage Protection in the Middle East and North Africa takes a deeper look into how we process and interpret satellite imagery. The courses are free, and a fantastic way to learn more about our project and what we do.