3D Models in Cultural Heritage

Abstract

Metric surveys are a key component in Cultural Heritage. Metric surveys are in fact a basic input for a wide range of activities, from documentation to study, from restoration to valorization, that rely on the current condition of the monument. In recent years, laser scanning and, more recently, digital photogrammetry offered new perspectives, widening the perspectives of 3D Cultural Heritage recording. Digital technologies provide new ways to collaborate, record excavations, and restore artifacts, and in such a way they are transforming the way Cultural Heritage practitioners (researchers, archaeologists, curators) work. This paper attempts to review the methods for 3D digitization that are today available and discuss the possible use of 3D models beyond the pure extraction of reliable and accurate measures.