ArchaeoLocus is an independent research and publication project that examines measurable spatial relationships across ancient landscapes. Its purpose is to turn visually interesting geographical patterns into explicit questions that can be measured, tested, challenged and, where appropriate, rejected.
The project is founded and directed by Eric C.B. Cauchi, an independent researcher based in Greece. ArchaeoLocus provides the continuing research identity; individual papers and public outputs retain named authorship and responsibility.
Research identity
Independent
Founder and director
Eric C.B. Cauchi
Base
Greece
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Why ArchaeoLocus exists
Ancient landscapes invite visual connections. A sanctuary stands on an island, another on a headland, a theatre faces a particular direction, or several sites appear to form an unusually regular geometry. Such observations can be worth investigating, but a persuasive-looking map is not enough.
ArchaeoLocus was developed to move from visual impression to reproducible testing. A spatial observation becomes a research question only after the relevant points, measurements, tolerances, comparison set and evidential limits are made explicit.
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What the project examines
Depending on the archaeological question, ArchaeoLocus may examine geodesic distances, repeated distance families, isosceles or near-equilateral structures, bearings, monument orientations, near-parallel relationships, corridors, intersections and other explicitly defined spatial relationships.
The analysis may also test coordinate uncertainty, alternative representative points, holdouts, control fields, Monte Carlo simulations, permutations and other null models designed to ask whether an observed pattern remains unusual after reasonable opportunities for coincidence and selection have been considered.
03
Pattern first; interpretation second
A measured pattern, a statistically tested result and a historical explanation are three different things.
Even precise geometry cannot by itself establish who created a relationship, whether it was intentional, whether the relevant monuments were contemporary, or whether the pattern had cultic, political, navigational or practical meaning. Those questions require archaeological, chronological, historical, textual and topographic evidence.
For this reason, ArchaeoLocus reports adverse tests, weak results and limitations as part of the research record. Removing an attractive relationship when it fails a stronger test is treated as useful evidence, not as a failure of the project.
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From field observation to computation
The project grew from roughly three decades of engagement with Greek landscapes and ancient sites, including field visits, manually recorded coordinates, photography, mapping and spreadsheet-based comparisons. Digital geospatial tools and dedicated computational workflows later made it possible to test those questions more consistently and against much larger comparison fields.
The underlying principle has remained the same: the value of a spatial observation lies not in how striking it first appears, but in whether its coordinates, geometry and selection rules can withstand independent checking.
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Eric C.B. Cauchi
Eric C.B. Cauchi is the founder and director of ArchaeoLocus and is responsible for its research programme, computational analyses, mapping, publications and public presentation. An independent researcher based in Greece, he has a background in geosciences and chemistry.
His work combines long-standing engagement with Greek archaeological landscapes with geospatial measurement, mapping, photography and computer-assisted spatial analysis. Scientific and public papers are published under his name, with ArchaeoLocus identified as the research project.
ORCID: 0009-0005-8365-3772
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Independence and Eternal Greece Ltd
Eric Cauchi is also a director of Eternal Greece Ltd, a cultural-travel company. ArchaeoLocus is maintained as a separate research and publication identity, with its own research purpose, evidence files, analytical workflow and standards of interpretation.
ArchaeoLocus research conclusions are not presented as travel-company claims. Any future sponsorship, commissioning, licensing or other material commercial relationship relevant to a research output should be disclosed where appropriate.
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Research record and publication
The website is intended to provide a durable public record of the project: defined research questions, methods, selected maps and evidence, publication status, negative results and later links to citable papers or reproducibility material.
Unpublished scientific manuscripts are not automatically released in full. Journal originality rules, magazine rights, image permissions, third-party data licences and the sensitivity of archaeological coordinates are considered before publication or repository release.
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Corrections, scrutiny and contact
ArchaeoLocus is designed to be questioned. Corrections to site identity, coordinate provenance, archaeological context, statistical assumptions or interpretation are relevant to the research process and may lead to revised prospective tests or explicit corrections to the public record.
Frozen analytical results are not silently rewritten when later information changes a coordinate or interpretation. The earlier result remains documented under the method and data used at the time, while later audits and reruns are identified as separate stages.
About ArchaeoLocus · website version v001 · 17 August 2026