3D Scanning and X-Ray Computed Tomography (CT) of Cultural Heritage Objects
A growing trend in art collections all over the globe is the application of 3D digitization technologies for a wide variety of purposes. This encompasses documentation from a conservation point of view, as well as the creation of virtual exhibits and interactive tools. Such technologies are pushing the boundaries, allowing both professionals as well as the general public to interact with objects in unprecedented ways.
Projects
A fragmented 15th-century wooden polychrome sculpture from the Rijksmuseum poses a complex object biography. It consists of the main sculpture, a dragon pedestal, and 17 loose fragments. The authenticity and origins of these fragments remain uncertain. To reconstruct the original appearance, the 19 pieces were individually scanned and digitally reattached, facilitating a more thorough interpretation of stylistic features.
In the NICAS-funded IntACT project, we set out to create a free and open-source software package that allows users to interactively examine both CT data and 3D surface data of their objects. In this way, both internal features and external features can easily be examined and compared side by side, greatly improving the value of both these data modalities.
The plugin was written in Python for the 3D software Blender. Check the publications page for an article which explains the tool in more detail.
Digital Transition for Portuguese National Museums
An EU-funded project, that resulted in a collaboration between Directorate-General for Cultural Heritage (DGPC) and Universidade NOVA de Lisboa. The goal is to digitize the collections of National museums across the entirety of Portugal.
Besides photographical documentation, approximately 4000 objects will be digitized in 3D, using photogrammetry, structured light scanning and laser scanning
Pipeline
Cultural heritage objects come in many different shapes, sizes, and materials, posing challenges for a unified digitization approach. Various techniques, such as photogrammetry and structured light scanning (SLS) might have to be combined to get the best result.
For most purposes, however, I focus on a streamlined pipeline that starts with Artec handheld Structured Light Scanners. Then, the captured highly detailed data undergoes compression for diverse applications, ranging from low-resolution models for online sharing and mobile viewing to high-resolution models tailored for documentation and research purposes.
Artec offers a variety of different handheld scanners with its own native software, that allow for relatively quick and easy data collection.
InstaLOD XL offers easy compression of 3D data, by offering an array of options that vary from remeshing to a lower polygon count, as well as bake normal maps.
Blender is a free and open-source 3D software tool that can be used to animate your models or render visualisations for your publications/research/public.
Examples
Turtle Carapace
Equestrian Portrait of Frederick Henry
Anonymous
In or after 1631
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam (NG-NM-2970)
This peculiar object, a 17th-century portrait of Prince Frederick Henry painted on a Green Sea Turtle carapace, was scanned with Frans Pegt using both photogrammetry and an Artec Spider handheld scanner.
Sarcophagus Mask
Egyptian Sarcophagus Mask
Anonymous
1070-712 B.C.
Private Collection
Plaster Model