Rome Wasn't Digitized in a Day - Council on Library and Information ...

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computer science can make it possible for scholars to reanalyze large amounts of exist<strong>in</strong>g legacy
archaeological data to make new arguments about those data.
Visualization and 3-D Reconstructions of Archaeological Sites
The nature of 3-D model<strong>in</strong>g and digital reconstruction has made this particular area of archaeological
research one of the most collaborative and groundbreak<strong>in</strong>g. As Harley et al. (2010) have noted, these
new approaches have both benefits and challenges:
3D model<strong>in</strong>g—based on the laser scann<strong>in</strong>g of archaeological sites, the photogrammetric
analysis of excavation photographs, or other virtual model<strong>in</strong>g techniques—provides unique
opportunities to virtually represent archaeological sites. These virtual models do not yet
provide a facile publish<strong>in</strong>g platform, but they may allow scholars to run experiments or test
claims made <strong>in</strong> the scholarly literature. Although 3D model<strong>in</strong>g is a new dimension for
archaeological research and dissem<strong>in</strong>ation, it may not be suitable for all applications (such as
poorly preserved archaeological sites). In addition, some scholars observed that the focus on
3D model<strong>in</strong>g as a new technology may come at the expense of close attention to physical and
cultural research (Harley et al. 2010, 115).
As with other new technologies, scholars were often worried that a focus on technology would replace
exploration of more traditional archaeological questions. Nonetheless, the number of archaeological
websites mak<strong>in</strong>g use of 3-D model<strong>in</strong>g and virtual reconstruction is grow<strong>in</strong>g cont<strong>in</strong>uously. 260 This
section looks at several of the larger projects and the grow<strong>in</strong>g body of research literature <strong>in</strong> this area.
Alyson Gill recently provided an overview (Gill 2009) of the use of digital model<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> both
archaeology and humanities applications. She reported that Paul Reilly co<strong>in</strong>ed the term virtual
archaeology <strong>in</strong> 1991, and s<strong>in</strong>ce that time his <strong>in</strong>itial concept of 3-D model<strong>in</strong>g of ancient sites has
expanded greatly. Instead of “virtual archaeology,” Koller et al. (2009) suggest a more expansive
def<strong>in</strong>ition of “virtual heritage” as a:
… relatively new branch of knowledge that utilizes <strong>in</strong>formation technology to capture or
represent the data studied by archaeologists and historians of art and architecture. These data
<strong>in</strong>clude three-dimensional objects such as pottery, furniture, works of art, build<strong>in</strong>gs, and even
entire villages, cities, and cultural landscapes (Koller et al. 2009).
The first major book published on this subject, accord<strong>in</strong>g to Gill (2009) and to Koller et al. (2009), was
Virtual Archaeology, by M. Forte and A. Siliotti (Forte and Siliotti 1997). Koller et al. <strong>in</strong>dicated that
this book illustrated how early models typically served illustration purposes only and that early
publications focused on methodologies used to create such models. In addition, commercial companies
created almost all the models <strong>in</strong> this book. S<strong>in</strong>ce that time, Koller et al. reported, th<strong>in</strong>gs have changed
greatly; the price of 3-D model<strong>in</strong>g software and data-capture technology has dropped drastically and
the skill sets required to work with these tools are grow<strong>in</strong>g among scholars. Gill (2009) has identified
four major trends <strong>in</strong> current projects: collaborative virtual environments; onl<strong>in</strong>e applications used for
teach<strong>in</strong>g and learn<strong>in</strong>g; reconstruction of large-scale historical spaces; and digital preservation of
cultural heritage sites.
260 Some <strong>in</strong>terest<strong>in</strong>g sites not covered here <strong>in</strong>clude the Skenographia Project (http://www.kvl.cch.kcl.ac.uk/wall_pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>gs/<strong>in</strong>troduction/default.htm), the
Digital Pompeii Project (http://pompeii.uark.edu/Digital_Pompeii/Welcome.html), the Portus Project (http://www.portusproject.org/aims/<strong>in</strong>dex.html), and
Parthenon 360 (1.) QTVR (http://www.dkv.columbia.edu/vmc/acropolis/ - 1_1)