Asinan
L. Miguel Yuste Burgos (relator)
Resumo
Despite its main theoretical body was developed several decades ago, the use of Space Syntax techniques and software in archaeological research on built environments only started to gain strength lately. In short, this approach poses that, if inhabiting a space is a way of segmenting it in culturally meaningful terms, then systemic analyses could be practiced in order to reveal the underlying non-discursive, mathematical structures of such “semantics”. Node analysis in particular constitutes a readily applicable tool for understanding circulation flows within buildings, while providing robust means to compare different layouts and distinguish genotypes. In the case of Turégano castle, originally a Romanesque church in Segovia Province (Spain) that underwent various fortification processes ranging from the 13th to 16th centuries, node analysis was implemented together with visibility graphs and agent-based movement simulations. The primary goal of this study was to experimentally test the feedback between stratigraphic reading of preserved wall faces and Space Syntax, as a way to approach the shape of the building following the last massive remodeling works. However, in doing so, not only specific functional areas and subsystems were detected –guest chamber vis-à-vis the main one, possible garrison location, visitor paths framed by multidimensional expressions of power, etc.–, but an extremely consistent defensive plan arose. The latter is particularly significant since the military intention of such remodeling has been discussed to a certain extent, given its conspicuous representative function, and, foremost, its apparent obsolescence in a context of growing use of firearms. These results evidence therefore that simple computational tools placed in hands of Archaeology, and interpreted through its lens, can make a big difference in comprehending spatial perception from the point of view of historical agents. Sometimes even against our current experimentation of the very –only apparently– same spaces.
Palabras chave
Archaeology of Architecture. Military Architecture. Middle Ages. Agency. Social Identity. Spatial Analysis.