CAMEL

CAMEL

What does CAMEL stand for?

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a camel is “A large hornless ruminant quadruped, distinguished by its humped back, long neck, and cushioned feet.” In this case, however, CAMEL stands for the Center for Ancient Middle Eastern Landscapes, which is both a conceptual and institutional entity. CAMEL was born in a small laboratory in the basement of the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures in 1998 under the direction of Tony Wilkinson. By 2004 it had outgrown this space and was moved to a larger area within the William M. Sumner Computer Laboratory in Room 202 of the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures.

What does CAMEL do?

Please see our mission statement here.

How does CAMEL obtain its imagery?

The Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures itself houses thousands of unique aerial photography of the Middle East taken during the early- to mid-19th century, including a series taken by its founder, James Henry Breasted. The ISAC archives also holds a substantial collection of survey and thematic maps published over the last two centuries. Through coordination with other archaeological projects and its own purchases, CAMEL has amassed a series of “Corona” declassified spy-satellite imagery taken in the 1960s and 1970s. Drawing on other online remote sensing databases such as the GLCF and USGS’ Earth Explorer, we have amassed a considerable series of over 20,000 images amounting to about seven terabytes in storage space.

Can I download imagery from the CAMEL website?

At this time, requests are fulfilled by hand for approved projects and individuals. In future releases of this website, we plan to display our holdings of various types of remote sensing imagery and other spatial data. Down the road, we will have an interactive GIS ordering system for customers to specify an area of interest and download certain types of spatial data.

May I use CAMEL imagery for publication?

We require that all spatial data obtained from CAMEL be cited as such in print.
Several types of data, such as declassified “Corona” imagery and Landsat imagery, require citation to the data providers and intermediaries like the USGS and the GLCF. Other types of imagery are for academic use only, and publication rights must be obtained from the publisher. Essentially, citation and usage rights vary by the individual spatial dataset. If you do use CAMEL data in a publication, please share the citation for your publication with us. We like to stay informed about what applications our spatial archive is designed for.

How does CAMEL benefit the Oriental Institute?

CAMEL provides researchers ready access to expertise and new technology for acquiring spatial data and to a growing body of spatial data about both the modern and ancient Near East. Its collections in many areas are unparalleled elsewhere in the world. By functioning as a central repository for this data, CAMEL can reduce purchasing costs, speed up access to the data, and allow researchers to relatively easily expand their research horizons beyond their area of interest. The broad scope of detailed data across the entire Near East offers researchers the ability to grapple with larger regional issues in a manner that has never been previously possible. Please see our mission statement for a further description.

Who can use the computer laboratory?

Members of the Institute for the Study of Ancient Cultures and the University of Chicago community are welcome to use the laboratory for any type of scanning and for specifically GIS computing work 9am to 5pm, Monday-Friday. The research and work needs of CAMEL and its staff, however, take precedence over other uses. The laboratory computers are regularly cleared of files, and users are not permitted to save materials to the local hard drives.  Due to the cost of materials, printing is restricted to those who have obtained prior permission from CAMEL staff.