Daniel PLETINCKX / Dries NOLLET
(Visual Dimension bvba; Belgium)
Abstract:
The archaeological park Raversijde (Oostende) at the Belgian coast contains the remains of the German coastal defence system (Atlantikwall) of the first and the second World War. As the remains of the defence system of the first World War were re-used in the second World War, it is difficult to have a good idea of these coastal defence structures through virtual reconstruction as physical reconstruction is not an option. The video shows these virtual reconstructions related to the preserved archaeological remains and other sources (photos, maps, texts). The video wants not only to recreate the atmosphere of these coastal defence structures, which were small villages on their own, but also give the visitor of the archaeological park a lot of visual clues about the original state of the site, while exploring the current site. The virtual reconstructions will be used in a new museum that will be opened in 2015 at the archaeological park.
The virtual reconstructions bundle a lot of historical and archaeological interpretations into one consistent 3D model, which is therefore acting as a kind of knowledge base. The 3D model also contains procedural landscape reconstruction, which not only gives the images a high degree of realism (and entertaining images – the landscape reconstruction software was also used in Avatar) but provides also a scientific documentation of the reconstructed landscape.
Keywords: World War I, virtual reconstruction, historical landscapes, visualisation of monuments, archaeological park