Professional profile
Archaeoastronomer | Skyscape Archaeologist | Digital Heritage Specialist
PhD in Classical Archaeology, with a background in Astronomy, she is specialised in Skyscape Archaeology and Topography. Her research focuses on the spatiality of the built environment in relationship with celestial configurations visible in the past. At the Lab, she focuses on the digitalisation of heritage for the creation of virtual 3D models for research, monitoring, and valorisation.
She is currently Marie Sklodowska–Curie post–Doc fellow at the Laboratory of Archaeometry, University of Peloponnese, based in Kalamata. The project is carried out in collaboration with the Institute of Heritage Science, National Research Council of Italy, based in Potenza and Matera. In this project, she is investigating the timing of festivals at Hellenic temples using archaeology, topography, and astronomy in the context of Attica and Megale Hellas’ Archaic, Classical, and Hellenistic temples and sanctuaries. Her research interests range from topographical survey through remote sensing methodologies (UAV, LiDAR) to the architecture of sanctuaries, landscapes, ancient astronomies and cosmologies, calendars, festivals, ritual actions and cults, the history of religions, and questions on seasonality of frequentation. Her competences in virtual archaeology allow her to simulate the natural illumination within and without architectural structures in correlation to specific celestial alignments.
Her Phd was on Classical Archaeology on the topic of skyscape archaeology and archaeoastronomy at the Vanvitelli University of Campania (Lab. Capys, supervisor prof. Carlo Rescigno) and the thesis is now in the process of being publishing under the title ‘Skyscape Archaeology in Ancient Mediterranean Urbanisation’ for Cambridge University Press. A major finding of her Phd was the assessment of the astronomical alignment of the town of Pompei, and of its foundation ritual following the course of the sun at the solstices. She has a solid background in Cultural Astronomy with an MA from the University of Wales and a BSc in Astronomy from the University of Bologna. She was also visiting scholar at INCIPIT, the Institute of Heritage Science of the Spanish research council, where she acquired training in topographical survey and the use of digital 3D rendering and visualisation (GIS, CloudCompare, Metashape, Blender, Stellarium Scenery 3D, etc.), also put in practice for digital anastylosis and to simulate natural illumination effects related to celestial alignments.
CNR Disciplinary Fields and Research Management Sectors
- SH8_1 Science and Technologies for Cultural Heritage
- SH6_6 Digital, computational, virtual and geospatial archaeologies
- SH8_3 Cultural studies and theory, cultural identities and memories, cultural heritage, architectural heritage
MUR Italian Scientific-Disciplinary Sector
- ARCH-01/D Classical Archaeology
Groups & Labs CNR ISPC
Remote Sensing e Spatial Data Science Lab →
Publications
Highlight
I. Cristofaro (in press) Skyscape Archaeology in Ancient Mediterranean Urbanisation, Cambridge University Press.
I. Cristofaro, M. Silani, G. Zotti (in press) From Urban Orientations to 3D Visualisation: Solar Irradiation in Pompeii within Ancient Virtual Skies. Journal of Computer Applications in Archaeology.
I. Cristofaro, M. Silani (2020). Approaching Skyscape Archaeology: A Note on Method and Fieldwork for the Case Study of Pompeii. Groma. Documenting Archaeology 5 (2020), 1–22. DOI: https://doi.org/10.12977/groma33
