Designing a Portable Museum Display of Native American Stone Projectile Points (Arrowheads) to Ensure Accessibility and Tactile Quality

Abstract

Two archaeologists and one engineering professor designed a prototype of a traveling museum exhibit that is inclusive to both blind and sighted visitors. While three dimensional (3D) replicas provide tactile information to people who are blind or have low vision, they can also be appreciated by sighted people. This paper describes the process of creating 3D replicas of stone projectile points (spear tips and arrowheads) that are found in the collections of the Maryland Archaeological and Conservation Laboratory. We define the design considerations related to (1) scanning artifacts to acquire accurate data with which to produce high-quality replicas, and (2) ensuring that visitors can retrieve information about these artifacts, including electronic braille and audio-text descriptions accessed through quick response (QR) codes on a common web-enabled smartphone.