Diachronic Reconstruction and Visualization of Lost Cultural Heritage Sites

Pablo Rodríguez-Gonzálvez,Ángel Guerra Campo,Luis Sánchez-Aparicio,Diego González-Aguilera,Ángel Muñoz-Nieto

doi:10.3390/ijgi8020061

Pablo Rodríguez-Gonzálvez, Ángel Guerra Campo + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi8020061

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Abstract

Cultural heritage (CH) documentation is essential for the study and promotion of CH assets/sites, and provides a way of transmitting knowledge about heritage to future generations. The integration of the fourth dimension into geospatial datasets enables generating a diachronic model of CH elements, namely, a set of three-dimensional (3D) models to represent their evolution in various historical phases. The enhanced four-dimensional (4D) modeling (3D plus time) pursues a better understanding of the CH scenario, enriching historical hypotheses as well as contributing to the conservation and decision-making process. Although new geomatic techniques have reduced the amount of fieldwork, when put together, the geometric and temporal dimensions imply the interpretation of heterogeneous historical information sources and their integration. However, this situation could reach a critical point when the study elements are no longer present. The main challenge is to harmonize the different historical and archaeological data sources that are available with the current remains in order to graphically rebuild and model the lost CH assets with a high degree of reliability. Moreover, 4D web visualization is a great way to disclose the CH information and cultural identity. Additionally, it will serve as a basis to perform simulations of possible future risks or changes that can happen during planned or hypothetical restoration processes. This paper aims to examine the study case of a diachronic reconstruction by means of a mobile laser system (MLS) and reverse modeling techniques for a lost urban CH element: the citadel or Alcázar gate of Ávila. Within this aim, the final model is evaluated in terms of the consistency of the historical sources to assess its suitability considering the constructive interpretations that are required to integrate heterogenous data sources. Moreover, geometric modeling is evaluated regarding the current remains and its surroundings. Finally, a web 4D viewer is presented for its dissemination and publicity. This paper is an extended and improved version of our paper that was published in the 2018 ISPRS Technical Commission II Symposium, Riva del Garda, Italy, 3–7 June 2018.

Highlights

Geomatics techniques, which are referred as geotechnologies, can be defined as a set of sensors and computer algorithms that allow the acquisition, modeling, and analysis of spatial features that are focused on knowledge generation for any level of detail and discipline that has to manage changes in space and/or time [1]
This paper aims to examine the study case of a diachronic reconstruction by means of a mobile laser system (MLS) and reverse modeling techniques for a lost urban Cultural heritage (CH) element: the citadel or Alcázar gate of Ávila
This paper presents an approach to four-dimensional (4D) modeling and visualization through the diachronic reconstruction of lost cultural heritage sites

Summary

Introduction

Geomatics techniques, which are referred as geotechnologies, can be defined as a set of sensors and computer algorithms that allow the acquisition, modeling, and analysis of spatial features (individually or together) that are focused on knowledge generation for any level of detail and discipline that has to manage changes in space and/or time [1]. Among all of the data sources that were used for the diachronic reconstruction, the best are those based on ancient drawings, which can provide a large amount of suitable information In the case of the graphical material, old photographs are the most reliable, they only cover a small temporal interval These historical photographs used to be oblique, and enable the single-view reconstruction approach developed by [24,25], being able to extract geometric proportions, and even a partial reconstruction depending on the geometry of the shot. In spite of being non-graphical, they were used as a constraint source when there was not graphical information available, or there were discrepancies between the graphical information, the constructive hypothesis, and/or the current remains

Geomatics Techniques

Reconstruction Assessment

Visualization through Time

Findings

Discussion and Conclusions