Archeologist Christina Trikidou
© Badisches Landesmuseum, Hannes Deters
von Sandra Gygax
3
min Lesezeit

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Digitising 550 Ancient Vases – A Conversation with Christina Trikidou


Since June 2024, the Badisches Landesmuseum has been working on the research and digitisation project 3D4Vases, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). In this short video, we speak with archaeologist Christina Trikidou, who is directly involved in the project's day-to-day digitisation work. She offers insights into how ancient Greek and Italic vases are captured as high-resolution 3D models, what becomes visible through photogrammetric scanning, and how digital methods are changing archaeological research and museum practice.

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The project '3D4Vases – Three-Dimensional Digitisation of the Karlsruhe Vase Collection and the Development of Descriptive Standard Procedures' combines archaeology, computer science, and cultural mediation. It aims to document around 550 vases from the museum's collection and ensure sustainable open access to the resulting research data. The project not only creates precise and colour calibrated 3D models through the use of photogrammetry*, but also opens new perspectives on restoration history, material traces, imagery and object use. At the same time, the project further develops existing approaches to the differentiated description of ancient vases. A central component is the creation of standardised vocabularies for the museum’s digital catalogue, enabling more precise object descriptions and improving the interoperability of archaeological data across collections and research contexts.

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  • * Photogrammetry

    Photogrammetry is a method used to create accurate 3D models of objects or environments from a series of numerous overlapping photographs taken from different angles. By analyzing visual features and spatial relationships between the images, specialized software reconstructs the shape, surface, and texture of the object.

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Finished 3D model, Kantharos, second half of the 4th century BC, Inv. B 288

© Badisches Landesmuseum

Kleine, antike Tonvase mit dekorativen Mustern und beschädigtem Rand vor dunklem Hintergrund.
Another part of the project involves the photographic documentation of the vases, Detail Kantharos, Inv. B 288
© Badisches Landesmuseum, Hannes Deters
Schwarze, antike Tonkrugunterseite mit sichtbaren Zahlen und Etiketten.
Low-angle view, Kantharos, Inv. B 288
© Badisches Landesmuseum, Hannes Deters
Griechische Vase mit roten Figuren, die mythologische Szenen und Pflanzenmuster auf schwarzem Hintergrund zeigt.
Detail Hydria, third quarter of the 4th century BC, Inv. B 92
© Badisches Landesmuseum, Hannes Deters
Alter Keramikvasen mit verzierten Mustern und geschwungenem Griff vor dunklem Hintergrund.
Detail Hydria, third quarter of the 4th century BC, Inv. B 92
© Badisches Landesmuseum, Hannes Deters

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3D model Hydria, third quarter of the 4th century BC, Inv. B 92

© Badisches Landesmuseum

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By 2027, the project will conclude with the publication of an expanded digital catalogue, which will offer open access to the complete set of 3D models, new photographic documentation, the associated research data, and the newly developed descriptive vocabularies.

Technical partner: Verus Digital

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Keep reading: the next article offers another perspective on the project and its methods.

View article