Page 140 - AC/E Digital Culture Annual Report

140From data acquisition using photogrammetry or laser scanning techniques to the reproduction of virtual copies of heritage elements, 3D printing can be considered the last link in the digitisation processes, as it involves physically recreating heritage.Although it is in the area of heritage dissem- ination where 3D printing has rapidly gaineda foothold, the fact is that its conservation possibilities are quickly catching up, as 3D digital models are increasingly high quality and allow extremely accurate replicas to be made.The most important applications of 3D printing in conservation are linked to the possibilityof documenting heritage elements likely to disappear or deteriorate owing to their current circumstances. 3D-printed replicas allow access to heritage for the purpose of conducting studies and analyses, while the original remains safe. One of the possibilities of this technology is to provide replacements in their original contextfor heritage elements that are now preserved in museums, having been removed from their original settings for conservation reasons. The importance of 3D printing for conservation purposes has also been underlined in relation to the destruction of heritage in wars; in these cases digital 3D models and recreation area palliative means of conserving the world’s cultural memory.Arch of Triumph of Palmyra (Syria)For example, during 2016 landmark sites in the cities of London, New York and Dubai were the chosen settings for displaying a 3D-printed scale replica of the recently destroyed Arch of Tri- umph of the city of Palmyra (Syria). This project was led by The Institute of Digital Archaeology (IDA),78 a joint collaboration between the univer- sities of Harvard and Oxford and Dubai Future Foundation, which promotes the development and use of digital imaging and 3D printing techniques in archaeology, epigraphy, art history and conservation.The initiative is also part of the Million Image Database programme run by the institute in conjunction with UNESCO to compile digital images of cultural or architectural sites at risk in war zones, such as the city of Palmyra, captured by volunteers with 3D cameras.The Arch of Triumph, destroyed by Islamic State in 2015, has been the focus of several projects which have created di erent digital 3D models to document and disseminate what was oneof the key testaments to the region’s Roman past. The two-thirds scale replica was basedon 3D models generated from a series of 2D photographs of the real arch. The end product was a replica of the arch standing more than seven metres tall and made of Egyptian marble in order to resemble the original. Two robots from Carrara (Italy) were used for the production process.79 Taking high-de nition 3D models as a basis, they sculpted the arch from marble blocks.This project underlined the possibility of employ- ing digital technologies to recreate images ofthe past and the cultures they represent. Using 3D printing to create reproductions is a way of bringing back destroyed heritage for our society to appreciate.Mashrabiya: survival of traditional Islamic architecture3D printing in the heritage eld can be used for other equally interesting purposes such as to foster the continued use of traditional types of architecture in current construction practices. An experiment carried out at Montfort University (Leicester, United Kingdom) and Kansas State University (United States) aimed to recover the wooden lattice screens (mashrabiya) traditionally used in Islamic architecture as a characteristic and identifying element of current architectural designs in the state of Bahrein, on the Arabian Peninsula (Almerbati and Headley, 2016).80The mashrabiya is deeply rooted in the heritage and culture of several Gulf States and other1. DOCUMENTATION, DIAGNOSIS AND CONSERVATIONThe use of digital technologies in the conservation, analysis and dissemination of cultural heritage