ARCHiVe

ARCHiOx. Exploring the potential of photometric stereo 3D capture

Heatmap render of the Aršāma Sigil © ARCHiOx
Render highlighting the conservation state of an object © ARCHiOx
Copper printing plate recorded with Selene © ARCHiOx

key details

24 May, 7 June 2023
Online on Zoom
3pm — 5pm (CET)

about

Funded by the Helen Hamlyn Trust, ARCHiOx – Analysis and Recording of Cultural Heritage in Oxford – is a collaborative project, bringing together Oxford University’s Bodleian Libraries and the Factum Foundation.  Based in Madrid, the Factum Foundation specialise in high-resolution 3D imaging and have worked in cultural heritage institutions throughout the world, producing exceptional, three-dimensional facsimiles of artworks and artefacts. The very latest 3D recording technology conceived and developed by the Factum Foundation is being piloted at the Bodleian and has been used to reveal near-invisible text and artwork from originals in the Bodleian’s collections.  The ARCHiOx recordings serve two purposes:  data can be used to create renders which show the 3D surface of an original in order to reveal what is difficult or impossible to record through conventional photography, or for the purposes of creating incredibly accurate 3D facsimiles.  Working closely with researchers and experts, the project has been responsible for making and documenting multiple exciting discoveries.

curator

  • John Barrett | Senior Photographer for the Bodleian Libraries

Programme

Class 1 May 24, 2023

Recording and dissemination of 3D data, captured using the Selene Photometric Stereo Recording System

  • John Barrett | Senior Photographer for the Bodleian Libraries
  • Jorge Cano | Head of Technology at Factum Arte and Factum Foundation
  • Richard Allen | Software Engineer for BDLSS

In this session John Barrett presents a collection of incredible new recordings made using the Factum Foundation’s latest 3D recording system, the Selene.  The recordings have been made from originals from broad range of the Bodleian Libraries’ world-class collections. Jorge Cano, designer of the Selene, explains the philosophy behind the Selene and discuss the technology and specifications of the system. Richard Allen demonstrates online viewers for dissemination of 3D recordings, and newly developed tools which will allow users to interact with them.

Class 2 June 7, 2023

Analysis and interpretation: How 3D recordings and other technological innovations are supporting research

  • John Barrett | Senior Photographer for the Bodleian Libraries
  • Jo Story | Professor of Early Medieval History at the University of Leicester
  • Jessica Hodgkinson | PhD candidate at the University of Leicester
  • Alessandro Bianchi | Manager of the Bodleian Japanese Library
  • Elaine Anstee | Head of Imaging for the Bodleian Libraries

In this session John Barrett introduces a panel of experts who will explain how 3D recording and other technological innovations have assisted with their research. Jo Story and Jessica Hodgkinson discuss how photometric stereo recordings and other technologies have aided their research into Anglo-Saxon manuscripts and medieval book culture. Alessandro Bianchi explores how 3D recording may hold the key to understanding how Japanese prints were made, and how 3D renders can be used for assessing their condition. The session begins with a description of how ARCHiOx was established and structured, by Elaine Anstee.

contributors

John Barrett

John Barrett is a Senior Photographer for the Bodleian Libraries.  Since 2005, John has provided photographs of Bodleian originals for numerous publications. His work involves the development of new methods of recording special collections material. He is the author of Imaging Guidelines for the Digitization of Rare and Special Materials, a document commissioned by the Bodleian Library.

Jorge Cano

Jorge Cano is currently Head of Technological Research & Development at Factum Arte and Factum Foundation. He has developed a multidisciplinary career working in the intersections of art and technology. Cano is an expert in 3D recording, image filtering and Geographical Information Systems. For Factum he has developed several scanners and numerous tools for data processing. His latest design, the Selene Scanner, has been used by the Bodleian Library allowing imaging specialists and researchers to look at ancient objects with new eyes.

Richard Allen

Richard Allen is a Software Engineer for BDLSS (Bodleian Digital Library Systems and Services) where he works primarily supporting Digital Bodleian and the Imaging Studio DAMS.  He is also CEO of an Oxford University spinout company that specialises in photogrammetry.

Jessica Hodgkinson

Jessica Hodgkinson is a PhD candidate at the University of Leicester funded by the Midlands4Cities doctoral training partnership. Her research explores the participation of women in early medieval book culture in Western Europe through the analysis of surviving manuscripts commissioned, copied, owned and/or used by them.

Jo Story

Jo Story is professor of Early Medieval History at the University of Leicester. Interdisciplinary methodologies and approaches to evidence are central to her research and publications. Her current research centres on ‘Insular Manuscripts’ that were made in Ireland or the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms or in monasteries founded by Irish or Anglo-Saxon missionaries on the Continent in the period between c. 600–900 CE.

Alessandro Bianchi

Alessandro Bianchi is the manager of the Bodleian Japanese Library and curator of the Bodleian collection of Japanese rare books and manuscripts. After receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, he worked at the British Library, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art, and taught at Haverford College. Alessandro is also a Visiting Researcher (2022/23) at the Art Research Centre of Ritsumeikan University.

Elaine Anstee

Elaine Anstee has been Head of Imaging for the Bodleian Libraries since October 2021. With a background in Administration and Finance she focuses on the policies and procedures supporting the ARCHiOx project in addition to the business as usual work in the Imaging department

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