RESEARCH ARTICLE
Ground‐penetrating radar and electrical resistivity tomography
studies in the biblical Pisidian Antioch city, southwest Anatolia
†
Çağlayan Balkaya
1
|
Ümit Yalçın Kalyoncuoğlu
2
|
Mehmet Özhanlı
3
|
Gözde Merter
4
|
Olcay Çakmak
5
|
İ. Talih Güven
6
1
Department of Geophysical Engineering,
Süleyman Demirel University, Isparta, Turkey
2
Department of Civil Engineering, İstanbul
Medeniyet University, İstanbul, Turkey
3
Department of Archaeology, Süleyman
Demirel University, Isparta, Turkey
4
ODAK Ground Survey & Engineering,
İstanbul, Turkey
5
Earthquake and Geotechnical Research
Centre, Süleyman Demirel University, Isparta,
Turkey
6
Department of Architecture, Kocaeli
University, Kocaeli, Turkey
Correspondence
Ümit Yalçın Kalyoncuoğlu, Department of Civil
Engineering, İstanbul Medeniyet University,
İstanbul, Turkey
Email: yalcin.kalyoncuoglu@medeniyet.edu.tr
Abstract
Pisidian Antioch was founded as a military base in the Hellenistic period around 300
BC. A consecutive archaeological structure, extending 55 m long, mainly includes two
adjacent abscissas and a wall remain thought to be a watchtower. An integrated geo-
physical survey including ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) and electrical resistivity
tomography (ERT) techniques was conducted to determine the existence of counter-
parts of this structure in a small‐scale area. GPR scans acquired via zigzag mode using
500 MHz antenna along 45 parallel lines were evaluated by a series of basic data pro-
cessing steps. Considering the results obtained, two‐dimensional (2D) ERT data col-
lected in a restricted area using Wenner‐alpha array along 41 parallel lines were
inverted using 2D and three‐dimensional (3D) tomographic inversion schemes. On
the basis of the findings obtained from various GPR and ERT imaging techniques,
the existence of one of the abscissa, displaying dimensional parameters being in good
accordance with those of ones still standing on the west side of the survey area was
clearly revealed. Moreover, some regular anomalies, which can be attributed to the
remains of the watchtower in question and various wall ruins, were successfully
traced from the GPR depth slices. The existence of an antisymmetric geometry for
the consecutive archaeological structure under investigation was also determined in
the survey area. Combining all of that information, a possible 3D virtual image of
the military headquarters was then created, and this pointed out a small square
quadriburgia characteristic of the structure investigated. Thus, we can conclude that
the integration of GPR and ERT and imaging techniques used in the evaluation were
quite effective to provide useful prior information for the subterranean targets in the
non‐excavated parts of the ancient city. An archaeological evaluation by trial
trenching is therefore required to confirm the results of the archaeo‐geophysical sur-
vey in the investigation area.
KEYWORDS
3D image reconstruction, electrical resistivity tomography, geophysics, ground‐penetrating radar,
imaging, Pisidian Antioch
†
Preliminary results of this study were presented at the 20th International Geophysical Congress and Exhibitions of Turkey, Antalya (Üstol, Balkaya, & Kalyoncuoğlu,
2013).
Revised: 20 April 2018 Accepted: 6 May 2018
DOI: 10.1002/arp.1708
Archaeological Prospection. 2018;1–16. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/arp 1