SIG des Merveilles: analysing rock art distribution with a web cartographic platform

L. Costa, F. Djindjian, F. Giligny (eds.), Actes des 3èmes Journées d'Informatique et Archéologie de Paris, JIAP 2012International audienceThe Vallée des Merveilles (Valley of Marvels), in the Mercantour National Park (France), is a major place for studying the late Neolithic Age until the beginning of the Bronze Age: since the early 20th century, more than 4000 engraved rocks have been listed, representing 40,000 carvings. The Laboratoire Départemental du Lazaret has been studying these engravings for more than forty years: a large database describes the whole rocks and figures and is still filled with new findings. But such a large amount of data from a vast archaeological site needs efficient tools for its study, such as mapping the location of the rocks. Many improvements regarding the study of the carvings and their spatial distribution were made possible by the development of a web GIS: consulting the data is made easier and clearer with a web-mapping platform and specific tools. Filtering for choosing the data to display and automatically generated maps allow an overall view of the spatial distribution of the Marvels' engravings. Using both the IGN's Geoportal data and cartographic web libraries produced an efficient and complete web service for consulting and analyzing the engraved rocks of the Valley of Marvels. This one can be used for any area in the Mercantour Park, as long as new data are added to the databases