EXPLORE: How Terrain Detection technology reveals Medieval Farming Arrangements at Backhouse Park
Light Detection and Ranging technology, known as LIDAR, is a mapping system conducted by satellites that is able to measure terrain and topography with incredibly sharp detail. LIDAR produced maps are able to bypass the existence of buildings and forests and display every single shape, elevation and bump in the earth. Because of this, the tool has become an indispensable asset of archaeologists because it allows them to very quickly survey an area beyond the naked eye and therefore reveal things about its history.
As it happens, the work of this tool is available in the public domain. Here, users can access an entire google earth rendering of Sunderland and East Durham created by LIDAR technology which allows you to view the area in a way you’ve never seen it before, exploring every intrinsic detail to a close up level of zoom. So finding this of course, the time was right to explore the city and see what could be found, and a good example of how this works is the terrain of Backhouse Park.
It is already known in the public domain that Backhouse Park was once the site of a medieval farm, which given such leaves behind the trace of “Ridge and Furrow” plough formations. Of course, this is difficult to observe with the naked eye given the presence of the woods. Now however, using LIDAR technology, we can reveal clear cut traces of this heritage.
The above screenshot is what a LIDAR rendering of Backhouse Park looks like. We can see no buildings or trees, but we can see the shape and elevation of the terrain. The narrow cut through the middle is the Hendon burn, while the uneven lumps to the top left are the foundations of buildings. However, if you look in the middle of the photo the scan has revealed a series of rows down the hill, as well as some fainter ones to the top right hand side. These etches into the terrain are the remnants of the Medieval site which pre-dated the park.
Sometimes, the results of LIDAR can also be unsettling. For example, if you hover over Grangetown cemetery with it, you are shown lots of small dots and dints in the ground that represent graves. On the other hand, you can hover over the Stadium of Light and see a clear cut rendering of the ditch the lower bowl of the Stadium is built into.
In a nutshell, LIDAR is a fascinating tool for exploring familiar areas in a new light, reminding us that the traces of history are always present.
