3D Digital Imaging for Knowledge Dissemination of Greek Archaic Statuary

Abstract

This paper aims, using a research exercise, to verify the association between two Greek sculptures collected at different times: the head of a boy collected in the Chalcidian colony of Leontinoi in southeastern Sicily, acquired in the 18th century and later kept in the collection of the Museum of Castello Ursino in Catania, and a torso, retrieved in 1904 and since then displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Sicily. The two pieces share similar stylistic features and represent the most significant example of Greek sculpture in Sicily at the end of the 6th century BC. Their association is an open problem still debated by scholars, who have based their studies on comparisons between pictures as a reassembly of two artefacts was never attempted. This critical issue has conditioned curators of the two museums, who could not develop a proper communication policy for the two objects, resulting in a limited cognitive accessibility for the public. By means of 3D scanning techniques, this contribution showcases how virtual restoration can not only improve interpretations of the scholars, but also boost the communication plans of museums, giving back to the public via a web platform a masterpiece of Greek sculpture known just by specialists.