The SPARTAAS software, interdisciplinary collaboration between archaeology and mathematics

SPARTAAS provides the archaeological community with high-performance archaeo-statistical tools for analyzing and dating archaeological contexts (levels of occupation, dumps, etc.) based on movable data (ceramics, glass, objects, etc.). Explanations with the steering team.

The Open call for projects (a program dedicated to promoting free software) is a CNRS funding and support program for the promotion of free software, operated by CNRS Innovation.

Who makes up the team behind the software?

This project is based on interdisciplinary collaboration between archaeologists and statisticians, bringing together researchers from the CNRS and universities in the fields of Human and Social Sciences1  and Mathematics2 . The main advantage of this team lies in the mobilization of various and complementary skills in the service of a common project. Composed of researchers and engineers for several years, it benefits from synergy and unique expertise.

The team steering the construction of the SPARTAAS software is made of:

• Lise Bellanger: university professor of applied statistics, Université Bretagne Sud (UMR Lab-STICC – CNRS/UBS).
• Arthur Coulon: computer science design engineer, Université de Tours (UMR Citeres - CNRS/Université de Tours, Laboratoire Archéologie et Territoires).
• Philippe Husi: CNRS research engineer and HDR in archaeology (UMR Citeres - CNRS/Université de Tours, Laboratoire Archéologie et Territoires).

Can you give us a brief introduction to the software? What are its scientific and technical characteristics?

The software aims to make archaeo-statistical tools available to the archaeological community. It has been developed over several years as part of a collaboration between archaeologists and statisticians. It comes in the form of a free SPARTAAS package developed in R that brings together a set of functions and documented data sets as well as web applications (R shiny), through a website, more accessible to the scientific community of archaeologists who are not always familiar with statistical software.

Benefits of Open funding (ARCTOOLS project)

The ARCTOOLS project, funded by the CNRS OPEN program to support the development of SPARTAAS software, aims to finalize the chronological component of the software, while recognizing that other developments are planned in the future around spatial and functional approaches. This chronological component, structured around three objectives, constitutes an essential stage in archaeology, a prerequisite for any historical discourse. The aim is to enhance existing R functions or develop new ones in order to complete the chronological section of SPARTAAS.

The first of these objectives is to develop a tool, the stratifier (initial development by B. Desachy under open office) in an open access version, enabling the automatic construction of stratigraphic diagrams, an essential step in structuring data before any chronological analysis.

The second consists of extending the SPARTAAS function (hclustcompro3 ) to assist in establishing the chronology and periodization of archaeological sites and contexts. The hierarchical ascending classification (HAC) by compromise method, already implemented in this function, makes it possible to determine a compromise partition between two sources of information (for example: ceramic and stratigraphic). However, this approach, currently limited to two sources of information, remains too restrictive in the face of the archaeological reality and the diversity of usable data. Hence the importance of generalizing it.

The third objective is to design a new function to enrich the general chronology without systematically calling into question the chronological models established with the hclustcompro tool. This function will make it possible to integrate additional data through the implementation of machine learning methods.

• 1 UMR 7324 CITERES, CNRS, Université de Tours
• 2 LMJL, UMR 6629 CNRS, Nantes Université ; Lab-STICC, UMR 6285 CNRS, Université Bretagne Sud
• 3Bellanger, Coulon, Husi 2021a et 2021b

Why choose open source, and what are the advantages?

Open source in science promotes more open, collaborative and efficient research, while guaranteeing greater transparency and better reproducibility of results.

Transparency and Replicability

• Allows other researchers or developers to verify, reproduce and validate scientific results or codes.
• Reduces errors and builds trust.

Collaboration and Innovation

• Promotes knowledge sharing among researchers worldwide.
• Encourages faster progress thanks to contributions from the community.

Security and Reliability

• Open code allows for faster detection and correction of flaws.
• Reduces dependence on private suppliers who could stop supporting a piece of software.

Sustainability and Interoperability

• Facilitates integration and compatibility between different tools and formats.
• Ensures that data and software remain available in the long term.

How is this software received in the scientific community? What is the scope of its community of contributors and users?

The SPARTAAS package is currently used nationally by the archaeological community, as well as in Cambodia as part of a collaboration with the EFEO (French School of the Far East) and the APSARA National Authority (Management of the Angkor site, Cambodian Ministry of Culture). This collaboration has given rise to the ANR Modathom project (2018-2023). SPARTAAS is used both in the academic world and by those involved in preventive public archaeology (INRAP; archaeological services of local authorities) or private archaeology (EVEHA, Archeodunum operators). However, its community of users extends beyond the field of archaeology. Indeed, the hclustcompro function has also been successfully implemented in the field of healthcare, notably in a project aimed at developing new diagnostic tools for multiple sclerosis (LMJL and Entreprise UmanIT) (Drouin et al. 2022).