From May 19th until July 15th, those who visit the Manacor History Museum in Mallorca, Spain, will be able to experience a temporary exhibit both by sight and by touch.
The twelve pieces in the exhibition are some of the most outstanding cultural heritage objects in the museum’s collection. But, the originals aren’t on display, instead 3D printed replicas take their place so visitors can poke and prod to their heart’s content without doing any irreparable damage.
Néstor F. Marqués, a Spanish archaeologist devoted to virtual Heritage and cultural dissemination, virtualized the originals using photogrammetric digitization, 3D printing the resulting pinpoint perfect 3D models to create inexpensive and replacable replicas. After printing, the pieces were hand painted to look as similar to the originals as possible.
While creating this exhibition, Marqués and the museum were focused on how to make the pieces accessible to those with visual impairments and disabilities. The opportunities for anyone to touch ancient cultural heritage is pretty rare which makes it an exciting opportunity for everyone.
Check out the guided tour video filmed by Marqués. Although it’s in Spanish, it should be simple to follow to get an idea of what the exhibition is all about:
Touching History Thanks to 3D Printing
To create the replicas, Marqués based his 3D printing process on photogrammetric models. The models were 3D printed to scale to clearly show the original’s unique detailing and geometry.
In order to reproduce the smallest details of the replicas, the pieces were printed with a layer height varying between 200 and 100 microns. A few replicas, including small oil lamps, were printed at finer detail with 50 micron layer height.
As a result, the final replicas look great. If they get damaged, it’s not the end of the world as it’s much simpler to recreate the prints than come across original oil lamps from the Roman, Islamic and late antique periods.
For those who really want to experience the ancient history exhibition but can’t visit the Manacor History Museum, there is now the option of exploring the collection online in 3D. This 3D collection is available on the museum’s new website or newly created Sketchfab profile.
However, if you’re fortunate enough to be in Mallorca before July 15th, make sure to visit the museum.
Source: Sketchfab Blog
License: The text of "Manacor Museum Exhibition Encourages Visitors to Touch 3D Printed Replicas" by All3DP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.