Project Artemis

Project Artemis

Artemis is a project run by Ghent University and the University of Antwerp that aims to digitise historical map collections in Belgium and make them usable as research data. To this end, it is developing tools and methods to support research into current socio-ecological issues such as water management. In this way, it aims to contribute to informed decision-making and evidence-based policy. The project focuses on the Scheldt Valley between Ghent and Antwerp, where the rich history of landscape changes makes research into interactions between humans and the environment relevant.

The project team is developing a digital infrastructure that systematically digitises and enriches cartographic data through a combination of machine learning and citizen science. The resulting datasets are published according to the principles of Linked Open Data, thus forming a reusable basis for research in domains such as historical geography, ecology, heritage studies and spatial planning. The infrastructure is designed to be sustainable and reusable for other research questions and regions.

The project consists of two parts, funded by the FWO (Fund for Scientific Research) on the one hand and the UA-BOF (Special Research Fund of the University of Antwerp) on the other. It runs from 2024 to 2027 and is supported by the main administrators of Belgian map collections (Royal Library of Belgium, State Archives, National Geographical Institute).

Team