Developing and Testing Environmental Risk Mapping and Spatial Analysis for Site Monitoring: The Case of Çatalhöyük’s South Area

Çatalhöyük, Turkey, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an exceptional archaeological earthen settlement in terms of physical and temporal scale. Central to Çatalhöyük’s preservation strategy was the fabrication of two permanent shelter structures. A comprehensive monitoring system was developed between 2012 and 2017 to gain a nuanced understanding of the earthen buildings’ material behavior under the shelters. The methodology is innovative and significant as it employs environmental risk mapping and spatial analysis to inform conservation practice. Essential to the study was collecting year-round environmental data and performing a qualitative assessment of the mud brick walls. New ways to utilize these quantitative and qualitative data in a Geographic Information System (GIS) were implemented for documentation and diagnosis purposes. The proposed approach enables spatial and visual analysis of the state of preservation of the site and increases understanding of the threats that affect the earthen structures once excavated. This study utilized GIS to generate spatial-temporary climate maps of temperature and humidity distribution under the shelter covering the Çatalhöyük’s South Area. Specifically, the Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW) interpolation technique was used to investigate mud bricks’ vulnerability and identify higher-risk areas. Our results demonstrate that our spatial analytical model can provide conservators with effective data-driven tools for planning future conservation interventions and documentation. Conservators at Çatalhöyük successfully used this methodology to identify which areas are at greater environmental risk within the microclimate generated by the protective shelters, establish a baseline for future evaluation of conservation interventions, and inform site management policy.