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During the end of the Bronze Age, the territory of present-day eastern Romania was occupied by Noua communities, belonging to the Noua-Sabatinovka-Coslogeni (NSC) cultural complex. Although these communities have left us a large number of archaeological sites, this period is rather poorly known and understood, mostly because the investigation of Late Bronze Age (LBA) sites is very rare, usually consisting of small test trenches or fieldwalks. The main characteristic of these communities and the subject of our study is represented by the so-called ashmounds (grey, quasi-circular spots, visible on the soil surface, with small elevations and diameters of 25–30 m), present inside most settlements. Our paper aims at highlighting the spatial characteristics of these sites, using GIS (Geographic Information System) tools, as well as aerial photographs, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) measurements, magnetometry and geo-electrical methods, in order to identify the relationship existing between Noua communities and the inhabited environment, in the area known as the Jijia River catchment. Thus, our approach was able to outline the way in which the geographical peculiarities determined the establishment of new settlements, revealing that the human groups from the end of the Bronze Age preferred low terrains with smooth slopes, located in the immediate vicinity of the most important watercourse of the inhabited micro-area. Additionally, our geophysical studies allowed us to confirm the lack of ash located within the ashmound, as well as to signal the possibility that these features have become visible on the soil surface only due to the irreversible damage caused by intensive agricultural processes. Despite the small number of excavations, to this day an important number of studies have been dedicated to the communities and features in question; however, no analysis has yet been performed that unites the tools specific to GIS software with the usage of non-invasive methods (such as aerial photographs, LiDAR measurements and geophysical techniques). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To intervene efficiently in protecting the archaeological heritage it requires precise information, as well as the exact location, the limits of the site or the geomorphological features of the area. As such, an interdisciplinary research based on non-destructive, complementary methods of investigation, which can provide precious information on the underground archaeological remains, is required. The most convenient (affordable) prospection methods employed by archaeologists are, on the one hand, surface research (fieldwalking), which provides the data necessary for a chronological setting, and, on the other, air photography, which offers the possibility to identify the buried structures. The present paper focuses on the use of oblique air photography in the study of prehistoric sites and a case for generalising such practices in archaeological research, with reference to preliminary results obtained for a number of sites from north-eastern Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]