Documentation of the Bulgar-Tatar Tombstones by Modern Methods

Abstract

Bulgaro-Tatar epigraphic monuments of the 13th–17th centuries with graceful calligraphic Arabic writing and peculiar floral ornamentation are unique evidence of history of the Tatars. Epitaphs are not only the last tribute to a dead person, first of all they served and serve living people, referring to their memory, feelings and attitude of a person towards their ancestors, their past. Documenting these monuments is important process of preserving the heritage for posterity. Many monuments studied in the middle of the 20th century were not physically preserved or the inscriptions were completely destroyed. The question of preservation and protection of this type of cultural heritage is so acute. The study of epitaphs at the modern methodological level involves virtual museumification, 3D-modeling, cataloging, deciphering and reading, as well as assessing the risks of their destruction using modern, relevant approaches to study of historical and cultural heritage. In this study, surveys of epigraphic monuments were carried out for the first time at modern level. By high-precision photogrammetric surveys and 3D-modeling, it was possible to obtain digital copies of objects, which makes it possible to determine changes in shape, restore the shape of lost objects using archival data. To organizing convenient access to spatial information for many users, the results of research are presented on a thematic web resource and a geoportal. The main functionality of such web GIS, in addition to directly displaying interactive spatial information, is the ability to make user queries, measure objects and provide access to related multimedia materials.