Abstract:

The French occupation and governance of mandate Syria and Lebanon after World War I coincided with the rise of aviation as a tool of intelligence gathering. Surveillance from the sky served both military and scientific objectives for the French deployed to the region, and the development of “aerial archaeology” soon captured the fascination of experts and the public. This article examines how aerial archaeology provided a means not just of exerting colonial control through the exercise of scientific collection but also provided a way to remain relevant in the event of an end to formal, territorial empire. “High-tech heritage”—aerial archaeology in this case—became an attractive model for colonial powers in a decolonizing world, offering new techniques for extracting information and for setting the terms of cutting-edge praxis.

摘要：

第一次世界大战后，法国对叙利亚和黎巴嫩的占领和执政与航空作为情报收集工具的兴起相吻合。从空中进行监视既为部署在该地区的法国人提供了军事目标，也有其科学目的。“航空考古”的发展很快引起了专家和公众的关注。本文探讨了航空考古学如何不仅提供了通过科学采集来施加殖民地控制权的手段，而且还提供了一种在正式的领土帝国终结时保持相关性的方式。“高科技遗产”（在这种情况下为航空考古）在非殖民化的世界中成为了殖民势力的诱人模型，提供了提取信息和设定前沿实践条件的新技术。