Egypt Monuments Dataset version 1: A Scalable Benchmark for Image Classification and Monument Recognition

The success of machine learning (ML) as well as deep learning (DL) depends largely on data availability and quality. The system’s performance is frequently more affected by the amount and quality of its training data than by its architecture and training specifics. Consequently, demand exists for challenging datasets that both precisely measure performance and present unique challenges with real-world applications. The Egypt Monuments Dataset v1 (EGYPT-v1) is introduced as a new scalable benchmark for fine-image classification (IC) and object recognition (OR) in the domain of ancient Egyptian monuments. EGYPT-v1 dataset is by far the world’s first large specified such dataset to date, with over seven thousand images and 40 distinct instance labels. The dataset composes different categories of monuments such as pyramids, temples, mummies, statues, head statues, bust statues, heritage sites, palaces and shrines. Several advanced deep network architectures were tested to appraise the classification difficulty in the EGYPT-v1 dataset, namely ResNet50, Inception V3, and LeNet5 models. The models achieved accuracy rates as follows: 99.13%, 90.90%, and 92.64%, respectively. The dataset was predominantly created by manually collecting images from the popular global online video-sharing and social media platform, Youtube, as well as WATCHiT, Egypt’s top streaming entertainment service. Additionally, Wikimedia Commons, the largest crowdsourced media repository in the world, was used as a secondary source of images. The images that comprise the dataset can be accessed on the GitHub repository https://github.com/mennatallahhassan/egypt-monuments-dataset.

@article{Hassan2023,
  title     = {Egypt Monuments Dataset version 1: A Scalable Benchmark for Image Classification and Monument Recognition},
  journal   = {International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications},
  volume    = {14},
  number    = {4},
  year      = {2023},
  publisher = {The Science and Information Organization},
  author    = {Mennat Allah Hassan and Alaa Hamdy and Mona Nasr},
  doi       = {10.14569/IJACSA.2023.0140497},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.14569/IJACSA.2023.0140497}
}