Ancient Greek Artifacts Only a 3D Scan Away
Dr. Katherine Rask, assistant professor of classics, recently returned from a month-long study-abroad trip to Greece where she and a small team of undergraduate students digitally preserved artifacts from the Athenian Agora and Corinth—two prominent excavation sites—through the process of 3D scanning.
Rask’s students scanned more than 60 religious items that range in date from the 9th century BCE (Before the Common Era) to the 3rd century CE (Common Era).
“Our project theme was material religion,” said Rask. “So we chose artifacts such as ancient curse tablets, figurines from sanctuaries and various grave goods—items that could be connected to a particular shrine, a documented offering, a specific ritual or a divinity.”
The digital 3D models created from the scans will be shared with researchers, students and other interested parties through an open-source website being developed this fall by the classics department. “Now, individuals can experience these rare items without having to travel to Greece,” said Rask.
As part of the project’s community outreach component, several of the scanned artifacts will be “physically” available through the use of a 3D printer. According to Rask, the printed models will go into student-created artifact kits and shared with schools for the blind, enabling the students to be introduced to the artifacts in a real, tangible way.
This project was supported by a Wimmer Grant and funding from the classics department. Photos from the expedition can be viewed on social media via the department’s Facebook and Twitter accounts as well as Rask’s personal Instagram page.