3D modelling from archive and legacy data: preliminary data processing on the Roman shipwreck Grado I

Elisa Costa, Carlo Beltrame

«Archeologia e Calcolatori» 2021, 32.2, 156-166; doi: 10.19282/ac.32.2.2021.14

Abstract

Ca’ Foscari University is addressing different archaeological issues to enhance knowledge about shipwrecks through digital technologies. In the last few years, the team has applied virtual modelling and digital techniques on archive and legacy data, starting with an innovative museum installation regarding the wreck of the Napoleonic brig Mercurio and cargos of amphoras of the Byzantine shipwreck of Cape Stoba. The potential of digital technologies has allowed us to analyse and elaborate different kinds of documentation, including archives, to obtain 3D models that could be studied and visualized with innovative technological solutions. The paper presents an original proposal to create a 3D virtual model of an ancient shipwreck based on archival and heterogeneous data. Regarding the Grado I Roman shipwreck, we processed perspective drawings of the hull and the amphoras, measurements during the excavations, digitalization of analogical images and of a survey of the cardboard scale model to obtain a complete virtual 3D model of the shipwreck. Legacy data represent a precious source for bringing to life obsolete representations of cultural heritage.

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