Lucia MARSICANO | Saverio Giulio MALATESTA | Francesco LELLA | Eleonora MASSACCIO
(Archeo&Arte 3D Lab – DigiLab, Sapienza University of Rome, Montelibretti, Italy)
Keywords: 3D Reconstruction, archaeology, cultural Heritage
Abstract:
Maxentius 3D Project starts from a workshop conducted by Archeo&Arte 3D Lab DigiLab Sapienza University of Rome.
Aim of the project is to propose a full 3D model of the Circus of Maxentius in Rome encompassing all the aspects of the environment, as well as the architectural system.
The first step of the work was the study of archaeological data, afterward the archaeological team carried on a survey to integrate the published data with new information useful to create a metrically correct reconstruction. Every single element was modeled using a scientific reference.
To model both the landscape and the architectural structures it was used Blender, an open source software.
Starting from altimetry data it is possible to reconstruct the morphology; after having imported the contour lines in Blender it was necessary to convert the curves into mesh and then, using the add-on Delaunay triangulation and Voronoi Diagram it was possible to generate 3D model.
The following step was the elaboration of the architectural 3D model including the hydraulic system and the decorative program.
Finally the team went ahead with the texturing of the models through the use of the Node Editor in Cycles Render.
The result is a metrically and scientifically correct 3D model of the Circus of Maxentius useful to study the monument from a new point of view. Integrating archaeological data and 3D graphic is possible to verify the hypothesis on the reconstruction of the monument. Indeed to propose a full 3D model an in-depth study is needed to understand the relation among the architectonical elements and the environment.
