Georeferencing of Jordanian Cadastral Block Sheets in Palestine Using a Boundary-Conditioned Least-Squares Approach: A Case Study of Tammun

Abstract

This thesis addresses the positional and geometric inconsistencies between historical Jordanian cadastral settlement block sheets and modern surveying data in Palestine. These discrepancies result from limitations associated with historical paper maps, including surveying and drafting errors, paper distortion, limited positional control, and differences between historical and modern coordinate reference systems. The methodology was applied to six connected cadastral blocks in the Tammun study area (Blocks 51, 53, 54, 56, 57 and 58). Valid cadastral features such as stone boundary walls, iron markers and cadastral crosses were identified by reviewing historical block sheets in paper and digital form and conducting field surveys. First, each block was georeferenced independently using different transformation models, and then a boundary-conditioned least-squares adjustment was applied using common Tie Points and shared-boundary relationships. A total of 540 Ground Control Points and 85 Control Tie groups were used for parameter estimation in the final network solution. In addition, 166 Ground Check Points and 12 Check Tie Point (CTP) groups were reserved for independent validation. The combined network RMSE for the third-order polynomial (Poly3) solution was 0.7030 m, while the independent Ground Check Point RMSE2D was 0.7884 m. The Control Tie RMSE was reduced from 1.5426 m to 0.8682 m, representing a 43.7% improvement, while the RMSE2D of the 12 withheld CTP groups was reduced from 1.7771 m to 1.0788 m, representing a 39.3% improvement in independent inter-block agreement. Poly3 achieved the lowest combined network RMSE and the highest proportional CTP improvement, whereas Poly2 achieved the lowest final withheld CTP RMSE2D of 1.0352 m. The results indicate that the proposed adjustment improves pointwise continuity between adjacent cadastral blocks and that model selection should be based on both internal fit and independent validation. The proposed approach provides a consistent technical basis for integrating historical cadastral data into GIS and supporting activities such as boundary re-establishment, land settlement and cadastral modernization in Palestine.