All that is old is new again: Epigraphic applications of photogrammetry in ancient Mesoamerica

Helmke, Christophe; Bercu, Cristian; Drug, Iulian; Jakovlev, Aleksandr; Kjær, Lars; Saulins, Pavel; Vepretskii, Sergei

doi:10.1016/j.daach.2022.e00214

Cited by 2 publications

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“…In this article, we presented a new 3D model, line drawing, and nearly complete reading of Stela 3 from Sacul; and we used GIS analysis to infer something about the geography of the war discussed on that stela and its companion monument, Ixkun Stela 2. This work adds to the growing list of cases in which 3D documentation of ancient texts affected by erosion or obscured by microflora has been able to recover information not readily accessible with the unaided eye (e.g., Helmke et al 2022; Prager et al 2020; Vepretskii and Beliaev 2020). Despite the occasional exigencies of fieldwork, photogrammetry is an effective, efficient, and inexpensive method for documenting and clarifying such texts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Striking distance: Investigating the epigraphy and geography of a Late Classic Maya war

2023

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We present a photogrammetric model and new line drawing of Sacul Stela 3 at the ancient Maya site of Sacul 1, Guatemala. Although virtually illegible in person and from photographs, the inscription on the eroded stela can largely be read or reconstructed in the 3D model. Our reading confirms a previous argument that the kingdom based at Sacul 1 was attacked in A.D. 779 by forces from the site of Ucanal. Traveling by night, warriors from Sacul retaliated with a raid at dawn next day on an unidentified site and, months later, followed up with an attack on Ucanal itself. The same narrative appears substantially on a well-known monument, Ixkun Stela 2, but there are differences between the two texts which suggest that Sacul and Ixkun had their own sculptors and record-keepers and which offer insights into the implications of verbs (pul, “to burn” and ch'ak, “to chop”) commonly attested in Classic Maya accounts of war. We then present the results of GIS analysis which suggests that the site area of El Rosario (between Sacul 1 and Ucanal) is an appealing candidate for the unidentified site mentioned in the stela text.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Striking distance: Investigating the epigraphy and geography of a Late Classic Maya war

2023

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“…This method is also used in the analysis of inscriptions in order to reproduce them in a completed form [e.g. Mara 2016, most recently Helmke et al 2022]. Similarly, but on a much larger scale, it is used for the entire facade of the pars maritima, to produce a model that is not affected by any shadows which would be unavoidable in conventional aerial photographs.…”

Section: Data Productsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Accompanying excavation activities in the area of the Roman luxury villa of Capo di Sorrento, 3D models of the landscape and relevant features have been created using mostly Structure-from-Motion (SfM) since 2015. With this method, it was possible to create a digital surface model of the excavation site combining terrestrial, aerial, and underwater photography. From this 3D model and other, more detailed sub-models of specific objects or areas, various new data were created that greatly enhance excavation documentation and the assessment of features. While some of these data, such as orthophotos generated from SfM models, are now standard practice on excavations, other products require more effort. The research project on the villa of Capo di Sorrento went beyond the results that were obtained from 3D models, and are usually presented as 2D pictures, to expand on the 3D data collected in the field in later work. In particular, the reconstruction of a grotto triclinium based on SfM models is combined with manual and tacheometric documentation to yield far-reaching insights into the architecture, furnishings, and orientation of the rooms on the north side of the pars maritima. Renderings of 3D data are used to simulate the views from certain points. This reconstruction is thus based on both the archaeological features and the specifications of the surface models and as such combines different methods of 3D processing, and fuses digital data with analog research results. Over the course of several excavation campaigns, a corpus of 3D products has grown within the research project. The respective methods of data acquisition, processing and analysis are primarily due to the landscape conditions of the study area. The detailed representation of the rocky subsoil – i.e. the heavily manipulated limestone plateau at the northern end of the cape – above and below water played a central role.

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All that is old is new again: Epigraphic applications of photogrammetry in ancient Mesoamerica

Cited by 2 publications

References 5 publications

Striking distance: Investigating the epigraphy and geography of a Late Classic Maya war

Striking distance: Investigating the epigraphy and geography of a Late Classic Maya war

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