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JAHA
Institute of Archeology and Art History of
Romanian Academy Cluj-Napoca
Technical University Of Cluj-Napoca
No../20281 1
Journal
of Ancient History
and Archaeology
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.14795/j.v i81
No. 8.1 /2021
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
CONTENTS
ANCIENT HISTORY
Alin HEN, Daniel CIOATĂ
DEBUNKING A MYTH: THE DACIAN CURVED SWORD
BETWEEN HISTORIOGRAPHICAL DISCOURSE
AND THE ARHEOLOGICAL REALITIES ....................................... 5
NUMISMATICS
Emre ERDAN
IT’S A SWORD, IT’S A SCABBARD, IT’S TISNA COINS
WITH DEPICTION OF PERSIAN AKINAKES .............................. 19
Metodi MANOV
AN UNKNOWN COIN DIE OF AUGUSTUS 27 BC 14 AD,
FOUND NEAR OESCUS ON THE DANUBE ................................ 26
Cristian GĂZDAC, Marius-Mihai CIUTĂ
RECOVERING CULTURAL HERITAGE.
FORENSIC ARCHAEOLOGY AND NUMISMATICS
THE ROMAN HOARD FROM
THE PRISACA HILL ROMANIA ................................................. 34
François de CALL ATAŸ
A STILL LIFE OIL PAINTED BY HENDRIK VANDER
BORGHT IN 1650 WITH ANCIENT COINS FROM DACIA:
A HIGHLY EDUCATED WORK
AND A POLITICAL MANIFESTO ................................................. 47
Design & layout:
Petru Ureche
STUDIES
ARCHAEOLOGY
Aleksandr SYMONENKO
LATE SCYTHIAN NECROPOLIS CHERVONY MAYAK:
10 YEARS OF EXPLORATION ..................................................... 69
Vitalie BÂRCĂ
THE SARMATIAN MIRROR WITH TAMGAS
FROM THE SETTLEMENT OF SEBE “PODUL PRIPOCULUI”
ALBA COUNTY, ROMANIA: 50 YEARS LATER ........................ 87
Emil Sever GEORGESCU
TROPAEUM TRAIANI: REVISITING THE FIELD FINDINGS
OF CARL WILHELM WUTZER 1856 VS. EXCAVATION DATA
OF GRIGORE TOCILESCU 1885
ON THE TRIUMPHAL MONUMENT ........................................ 116
Hossein SARHADDIDADIAN, Zuliskandar RAMLI,
Hossein MORADI, Zohre JOZI
COMPOSITIONAL ANALYSIS ANALYSIS OF THE
POTTERY SHARDS FROM KUHI KHAWJA HISTORICAL
SITE, SISTAN, EAST OF IRAN .................................................... 127
DIGITAL ARCHAEOLOGY
Radu COMES, Cătălin GREC, Călin NEAMU,
Cristian GĂZDAC, Liliana MateescuSUCIU
INTANGIBLE HERITAGE?...NOT ANYMORE FROM PHOTO
TO 3D PRINTED CULTURAL HERITAGE ASSETS REPLICAS
THE TWO MISSING IRON DISCS FROM THE DACIAN
HILLFORT OF PIATRA ROIE ROMANIA .............................. 134
REVIEWS
Csaba SZABÓ
SCHEIDEL, WALTER ED., THE SCIENCE
OF ROMAN HISTORY. BIOLOGY, CLIMATE
AND THE FUTURE OF THE PAST, PRINCETON/OXFORD,
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2018. ................................ 144
Annamária–Izabella PÁZSINT
RADA VARGA, CARVING A PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY.
THE OCCUPATIONAL EPIGRAPHY OF THE LATIN WEST,
ARCHAEOPRESS ROMAN ARCHAEOLOGY 73, OXFORD,
ARCHAEOPRESS, 2021 ............................................................... 147
Matthew G. MARSH
TOURAJ DARYAEE & KHODADAD REZAKHANI.
FROM OXUS TO EUPHRATES: THE WORLD OF
LATE ANTIQUE IRAN. ANCIENT IRAN SERIES VOL. 1
IRVINE/LOS ANGELES, CA: JORDAN CENTRE
FOR PERSIAN STUDIES/
FARHANG FOUNDATION, 2017 ............................................... 150
134
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021 134–143
INTANGIBLE HERITAGE?...NOT
ANYMORE
FROM PHOTO TO 3D PRINTED
CULTURAL HERITAGE ASSETS
REPLICAS
THE TWO MISSING IRON DISCS
FROM THE DACIAN HILLFORT
OF PIATRA ROȘIE (ROMANIA)
Abstract: Cultural heritage domain has started to adopt various modern
technologies to improve their visitor’s user experience within various
museum exhibitions. ere are a wide variety of academic papers that present
various workow that enable the digitization of various cultural heritage
assets, starting from small objects up to entire buildings and fortications.
is paper is focused on the development of 3D models that are suited for
3D printing using budget 3D printers as well as open-source 3D modelling
software to enable the physical reconstruction of tangible cultural heritage
assets. e case study presented within the paper has been done on the Dacian
ornamental discs that has been looted from the Dacian hill fort from Piatra
Roie (Luncani, Hunedoara County, Romania) and the only references are
a set of images that have appeared online at an action house from United
States of America. Researchers are currently making new materials 3D
printable expanding their category from plastics and metals up to composite
materials that combine multiple materials to get the best properties of each.
Along with these new materials, a wide variety of 3D printing technologies
have been developed, these technologies have the potential to become a vital
component in cultural heritage empowering the research, documentation, and
preservation for a wide variety of cultural heritage assets.
Keywords: cultural heritage, 3D reconstruction, 3D printing, tangible assets,
museum exhibitions.
1. INTRODUCTION
The recent technological evolution of both 3D modelling software
as well as the popularity of 3D printing equipment has enabled
the development of tangible artefacts for museum exhibitions. As
presented by Ballarin, Balleti and Vernier1 museum and cultural heritage
related institutions have started to adopt modern technologies such as
virtual reality and augmented reality application or 3D printed tangible
replicas within their exhibitions. e use of modern technologies has changed
1 BALLARIN/BALLET TI/VERNIER 2018.
DIGITAL ARCHAEOLOGY
Radu COMES
Cătălin GREC
Călin NEAMȚU
Cristian GĂZDAC
Liliana MATEESCU-SUCIU
Technical University of Cluj-Napoca
radu.comes@muri.utcluj.ro
Technical University of Cluj-Napoca
catalin.grec@muri.utcluj.ro
Technical University of Cluj-Napoca
calin.neamtu@muri.utcluj.ro
Institute of Archaeology Cluj-Napoca
cgazdac2000@yahoo.co.uk
Babeș-Bolyai University Cluj-Napoca
danasu2001@yahoo.com
Studies
DOI: 10.14795/j.v8i1.622
ISSN 2360 – 266X
ISSN–L 2360 – 266X
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
Studies
135
museum visits allowing visitors to interact better with the
exhibition. Dening digital applications and tangible 3D
reconstructed have transformed the experience towards a
multi-layer and multi-sensorial experience. A wide variety
of digital screens, natural gesture acquisition sensors, head-
mounted display, and physical replicas have been integrated
within the exhibition changing the way users’ approach
and interact with the cultural heritage assets. e original
cultural heritage assets are displayed in traditional glass
display cases allowing users to observe the intricate details
and texture.
e research team from the 3D scanning and 3D
measurement laboratory of Technical University of Cluj-
Napoca has worked with various museum and institutions
from Romania with the goal of creating innovative
exhibitions that make use of modern digital technologies.
As presented by Rahaman, Champion and Bekele2
the cultural heritage domain is on the verge of adopting
these technologies, not only to enhance user experience
but to satisfy the more enthusiastic and tech-savvy visitors.
ere are various ways that can be used to add additional
information to a physical cultural heritage displayed within
a museum glass display. e most popular option adopted
by various museums around the world is to use an audio
guide system or position a QR code near the object allowing
museum visitors to use their own smartphones to access the
additional information and even the 3D digitized artefacts
allowing the user to rotate and scale the object to visualize the
intricate details and inscriptions. 3D digital reconstruction
of damaged and fragmented objects that can be visualized
both on their smartphone or various monitors and projection
screen are widely available in modern museum exhibitions.
For some cultural heritage assets, these 3D models have been
2 RAHAMAN/CHAMPION/BEKELE 2019
integrated in virtual reality environments allowing users
to immerse them self within a digital environment where
they can interact with the objects either by using virtual
reality controllers or natural gestures that are interpreted by
specic sensors such as Kinect or LeapMotion.
Another important aspect of digitally reconstructed
assets and physical 3D printed tangible is represented
by their scientic purpose, allowing a better analysis of
fragmented archaeological ndings that can be study and
measured digitally to better understand their original shape.
ere is another important aspect regarding the
possibility of creating tangible cultural assets. Anastasiadou
and Vettese3 highlight that 3D printing technologies creates
new opportunities regarding the personalisation and
creativity of cultural heritage souvenirs by transforming
visitors’ intangible encounters they experience within
a museum exhibition/archaeological site into tangible
memory linked to the visited places.
2. AIM OF THE RESEARCH
e purpose of this article is to present the advantages
of using 3D printing technologies to recreate missing cultural
heritage assets based on the shape and dimensional features
and properties of similar known assets. e case study has
been done for two Dacian ornamental discs that have been
looted from the Dacian Fortress from Piatra Roie.
e most important aspects that have been
considered for this research initiative was to create realistic
tangible assets that have the details and touch feeling
(embossed details) of the original ornamental discs starting
with the dimensional constraints of other similar Dacian
ornamental discs that have been discovered at Piatra Roie
3 ANASTASIADOU/VETTESE 2019
Fig. 1. e fragmented Dacian ornamental disc found at Piatra Roie hill fort, the fragments are exhibited at the National Museum of
Transylvanian History from Cluj-Napoca
Studies
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
136
hill fort and which are currently located at the National
Museum of Transylvanian History from Cluj-Napoca5 and
National Museum of Romanian History from Bucharest6.
e reference of the fragmented disc from National Museum
of Transylvanian History from Cluj-Napoca is presented in
Fig.1.
As an integral part of the of Dacian fortresses complex
from the Orătie Mountains, the hill fort from Luncani
Piatra Roie (Fig. 2) came to the attention of the scientic
world in the rst half of the 19th century. Rumours about
the discovery of impressive coin hoards attracted to the area
not only representatives of the Austrian tax authorities but
also several scholars, intrigued by the nature of the ruins
discovered in the mountains south of Orătie city. Located
near the source of the Luncani Valley, the fortress of Piatra
Roie, is part of a large defensive system meant to defend the
capital of the Dacian Kingdom, controlling the access to the
politico-military centre of the Dacians from West and South-
West.
Although systematic archaeological excavations at
this site were limited to a large-scale campaign in 1949,
which resulted in the publication of the archaeological
monograph a few years later7, and a few small verication
campaigns between 2003-2005, the richness and diversity
of the discovered archaeological material place it among the
most interesting Dacian fortresses around the capital of the
Dacian Kingdom. Among the exceptional pieces discovered
during the archaeological excavations but also because of the
actions of recovery of the stolen archaeological patrimony
from the Orătie Mountains area, the iron discs with
zoomorphic and phytomorphic representations stand out.
e rst piece of this kind was discovered in the
1949 campaign, in a building with an apse located inside
the large enclosure (the second fortress) from Piatra Roie.
e edice, built in wood and clay, was based on rows of
shaped limestone blocks, access to it being facilitated by a
road, in turn paved with shaped limestone slabs8. Near the
wall of the apse room, the remains of an “ovoid iron plate
with embossed ornaments” were discovered9, plaque that
would enter the literature with the name of “parade shield
4 CETĂI DACICE 2012.
5 EUROPEANA 2018.
6 CAPODOPERE 2019.
7 DAICOVICIU 1954.
8 DAICOVICIU 1954, 64-65.
9 DAICOVICIU 1954, 65.
from Piatra Roie”10. In the early 2000s, at the same site,
archaeological poachers discovered a whole series of wrought
iron discs with embossed decorations. On-the-spot checks
showed that the parts probably came from the immediate
vicinity of the building where the 1949 piece had been
discovered, in a pit dug by poachers several remains of one
or more such iron discs were identied11. e exact number
of pieces discovered and tracked by poachers is not known
exactly, so far three ornamental discs have been recovered
(two in the patrimony of MNIR and one specimen in the
patrimony of MNIT)12. On the basis of the archaeological
context and historical background, the discs have been dated
in the chronological segment preceding the last Dacian war
of AD 105-10613.
ey prove, if necessary, the advanced knowledge of
metalsmithing of the Dacian craftsmen, their production
involving the mastery of rather complicated procedures of
beating the iron sheet, in the technique au repoussé, as well
as engraving the details on the obverse of the pieces. To
these are added the special artistic talent of those who made
them, being impressive regarding their care for proportions,
for details as well as the accuracy of the representations14.
e pieces stand out through the complex decoration
rendered on the obverse. In all cases the ornaments are
arranged in concentric registers, starting from a central
medallion in which is usually rendered a real or fantastic
animal, surrounded by a register with plant decoration and
nally an outer band, often smooth, provided with holes
for attachment on a wooden support or on a wall. Usually,
the registers are delimited by a twisted ornament (string or
“twisted rope”).
e central element of all discs is represented by the
image of an animal, arranged in a medallion, and sometimes
10 DAICOVICIU 1954, 119. Starting from C. Daicoviciu’s interpretation,
according to which the piece would represent an ovoid parade shield, I.
Korodi combined at the time of the restoration, fragments that most likely
came from at least two dierent pieces, including in the ornamentation of
the piece a so-called register semilunar; KORODI 1967. Subsequent analyses
and analogies oered by the discovery of other ornamented discs showed
that the fragments of the decorated iron plate came from two dierent
discoidal pieces, one with a bour in the central medallion and the other
most likely a feline, the crescent register being in fact part of the central
medallion of a second disc. FLOREA/FERENCZ 2004-2005, 50.
11 If the building itself had a sacred function, then it is possible that the
pit in which the discs were stored was a favissa. FLOREA/FERENCZ 2004-
2005, 47-48.
12 BORANGIC/BĂDESCU 2017, 114.
13 FLOREA/SUCIU 1995, 60.
14 FLOREA/CRISTESCU 2016, 146.
Fig. 2. Luncani Piatra Roie hill fort, part of the Dacian Fortresses complex from Orătie Mountains4
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
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137
associated with plant elements. us,
in the central medallion of the piece
discovered in the excavations from 1949,
a bour/bison was rendered walking to the
left, above it being represented another
zoomorphic element, most probably a
snake (?). Two vegetal elements appear in
the same medallion: a small tree towards
which the ox is heading, and three sharp
palms represented at the bottom of the
medallion15. A similar animal appears
on one of the discs kept in the MNIR
collections, stating that this time the bour/
bison is shown moving to the right and
the vegetal elements that complete the
decoration are much more complex: an ivy
twig that runs behind, above and probably
in front of the animal and a owering
plant shown under and between the feet
of the bour16. On other discs the central
place is occupied by a grin, a lion or a
deer, and in these cases the zoomorphic
representations being accompanied by
vegetal elements.
As for the second register, the one
that surrounds the central medallion, it is made exclusively
from plants, which show acanthus leaves and / or nested
lotus petals. In addition to these elements, the decoration of
the discs is sometimes completed with a series of small eggs
separated by incised lines, glued to the corded ornament that
separates the vegetal register from the at edge of the discs.
e border of the pieces, about 5 cm wide and undecorated,
was provided with holes in which decorative targets were
probably inserted with the help of which the discs were
xed on a support, so that this external register could also
be ornamented. With such targets, also decorated with plant
motifs, was provided for example the disc that had a grin
in the central medallion17.
Most likely, the representations on the central
medallions of the discs discovered at Piatra Roie had some
symbolic signicance for the Dacian world, at least for the
communities in the region of the capital of the Dacian
Kingdom. e preference for certain animals (bour/bison,
lion, grin), which appear not only on iron pieces, but also
on painted pottery or more recently on the bronze mould
discovered at Sarmizegetusa Regia, shows the importance of
these animals in the ancient imaginary universe. It is therefore
probable to interpret these pieces rather as objects involved
in various ritual practices (oerings, images of worship or
associated with worship, etc.), than as pieces of armament as
they entered the literature. Not only the complex decoration
on them but also the place of discovery, in a probable cult
building and in a favissa located in the immediate vicinity of
this building, plead for this interpretation18.
15 FLOREA/SUCIU 1995, 54-57.
16 BORANGIC/BĂDESCU 2017, 116, g. 108; FLOREA/CRISTESCU 2016,
g. 13.
17 BORANGIC/BĂDESCU 2017, 114-115, g. 107; FLOREA/CRISTESCU
2016, g. 13.
18 FLOREA/SUCIU 1995, 57; FLOREA/FERENCZ 2004-2005, 47-48;
e other references used within digital reconstruction
are presented in Fig. 3, these are the two ornamental
discs recovered by the authorities, they are located at the
National Museum of Romanian History. One of the discs
has a gryphon zoomorphic element in the middle while the
other has a bour. ese discs are similar to the previously
presented fragmented disc, but their conservation status is
good having no missing fragments indicating the roundness
shape of the Dacian ornamental discs.
3. DIGITAL RECONSTRUCTION
e fragmented disc presented in Fig. 1 has been
digitized using two scanners, a laser scanning (ViuScan)
and a structured light scanner (GoScan 50). We have closely
analysed the two resulting meshes and the laser scanning
oers the best accuracy which is important since the metal
fragments have a thin surface with various intricate details.
e scanner has been calibrated to the smallest possible
scanning volume (a cube with the side of 100 mm) enabling
us to achieve the highest resolution (0.1 mm) that can be
acquired by the ViuScan scanner (Fig. 4).
e resulting mesh have been imported in Blender
19 along with the reference image of the two looted Dacian
Ornamental discs presented in Fig. 5. e shape of the bour
prole is very similar and follows the same shape on both
shields, the bour is rendered walking to the left and the
legs position are very similar dened. e major dierences
are the vegetal elements from the main register, on the
fragmented shield the bour has a tree rendered to the left
and three leaves palm ornament at the bottom.
e 3D reconstruction of the ornamental discs has
FLOREA/CRISTESCU 2016, 146.
19 BLENDER 2021.
Fig. 3. e gryphon zoomorphic ornamental disc is presented to the left of the gure.
e bour zoomorphic ornamental disc is presented to the right of the gure.
Studies
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
138
been done using a polygon-by-polygon modelling technique.
e rst step was to dene the outer circle diameter using the
reference of the existing Dacian ornamental discs available.
e two reference Dacian ornamental discs presented in
g. 5, are made from iron, and have the same texture as the
ones recovered by the authorities and presented in g. 3.
e fragmented disc presented in g.1 has a black texture
since the iron material was very thin and was corroding
thus required to be preserved using specic conservator-
restorer techniques to prevent and slow the corrosion and
deterioration of the ne intricate details of the surface.
e rst step of the polygon-by-polygon modelling
technique involved the creation of the outer circle that will
dene the disc, the case study presented within this paper
with screen captures has been done on the disc with the bour
zoomorphic representation (Fig.6).
e Dacian ornamental discs are composed using
three adorned registers. e outer circle diameter has
been set to 420 mm for the reconstructed bour disc, as the
existing reference disc from MNIR. ese are the following
references and dimension of the existing bour disc20 from
MNIR museum presented in Fig. 3. e outer register has
12 circular holes circularly aligned to the middle of the
disc. e outer register is merged with the middle register
using an ornament that is dened a twisted rope, in relief
with a width of 5 mm. e middle register is adorned with
two rows dened with 19 triangular relief leaves. e inner
register also known as the central medallion has a diameter
of 18.5 mm and the entire space is occupied by the animal
and vegetation decoration. Under the bour chin there`s
a triangle bear pointing down. e body of the bour is
20 CAPODOPERE 2019.
Fig. 4. Laser scanning of the fragmented disc using ViuSCAN.
Fig. 5. e two Dacian ornamental discs that have been stolen from the archaeological site of Piatra Roie and presented at an auction in USA.
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
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139
decorated with multiple rows of short lines representing
the fur. For the reference bour disc, the animal`s forehead is
poorly preserved, being rusted. All three known bour Dacian
discs have similar elements, starting with the prole of the
zoomorphic representation up to the vegetation decoration
circularly aligned around the middle register with twisted
rope elements separating the disc registers. is ornamental
reference disc has a maximum diameter of 420 mm and
was realized using the hot
hammering technique. It has a
thickness that varies from 1 mm
up to 1.8 mm and a maximum
height of 5 mm. e overall
weight of this disc is 1.5 kg. e
other reference ornamental disc
presented in Fig.3 with a gryphon
zoomorphic representation has a
maximum diameter of 418 mm,
a thickness between 1.8 up to
1.9 mm and a maximum height
of 5 mm. e weight of this disc
is around 1.6 kg.
e following step was the
3D modelling of the vegetation
leaves that are circularly aligned
around the middle register of
the disc. is step was done
using the same polygon-by-
polygon modelling technique
closely following the shape of
the reference within the image
while considering the height of
the details according with the
values from the disc with bour
shape presented in Fig. 3. e
result is illustrated in g. 7. e number of vegetation leaves
circularly aligned has be done according to the reference
image, the image presents a total of 20 vegetation leaves
circularly patterned, while the reference disc from MNIR21
has only 19.
e twisted rope elements that separate the three
registers of the ornamental disc have been modelled using
the same polygon-by-polygon technique having each section
twisted and digitally multiplied, the end vertices have been
21 CAPODOPERE 2019.
Fig. 6. Dening the reference circle size and subdivision of the model to follow the shape of the disc with the three registers separated using
twisted rope embossed elements.
Fig. 7. e 3D modelling of the vegetation leaves around the middle register of the disc.
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Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
140
merged to dene the lled surface where the two sections
are being merged, this step is illustrated in g.8.
e same modelling technique has been applied to
all the elements of the disc using the reference image and
dimensional values of the reference shield from MNIR22. e
nal resulting mesh of the 3D digitally reconstructed bour
disc using polygon-by-polygon modelling technique has
been then transferred to the Sculpt Mode within Blender to
reduce the crease of the nal model. e resulting mesh of
the disc is presented in g. 9.
4. 3D PRINTING
e two digitally reconstructed Dacian ornamental
shields have been 3D printed using additive manufacturing
technology within the Makerspace laboratory from Technical
University of Cluj-Napoca. PLA lament has been chosen
mainly because this is the most aordable material for
additive manufacturing, and it is an easy material to work
with in comparison with ABS. e semi-crystalline polymer
has a melting temperature of 180 ºC and the nal product
can be sanded and treated with acetone to dene a smooth
surface.
Other researchers such as Ballarin, Balleti and
Vernier23 highlighted the possibility of using online printing
services that give the users the possibility to upload their
3D model, choose between a wide variety of 3D printing
technologies and materials and have the resulting 3D
printed model delivered to any part of the world. Our
main goal was to digitally reconstruct the missing discs
and create the reconstructed looted discs using aordable
materials and commonly available commercial 3D printers.
Using online 3D printing services enables the use of more
complex materials and 3D printing technologies such as
SLM(Selective Laser Melting) LPBF (Laser Powder Bed
22 CAPODOPERE 2019.
23 BALLARIN/BALLET TI/VERNIER 2018.
Fusion) and DMLM (Direct Metal Laser Melting) to melt and
fuse metallic powder using a high power-density laser, but
these technologies are very expensive for larges pieces such
as the Dacian ornamental discs. For future research projects
we consider using these technologies that will enable the
reproduction of the Dacian ornamental discs using metallic
powder since researchers are constantly developing these
technologies, which in 2021 are still very expensive for large
parts such as the ornamental disc with a diameter of 420
mm since most 3D metal printing equipment have a much
smaller build size volume.
For the case study done within this article, the
Ultimaker Cura24 software was used to dene the slicing of
the two reconstructed shields using an 0.1 mm ne printing
prole and an inll of 20% (Fig. 10). With these parameters
each reconstructed shield required almost 5 days to allow the
printer extruder to recreate the shape and about 700 g of
PLA. e printing settings made use of support materials to
allow the 3D reconstructed model to maintain its thickness.
e support material has been removed from the bottom
side of the ornamental shield using a pair of pliers.
e nal 3D printed discs were treated with acetone
to highlight their reconstructed details and were coloured
black using an aerosol spray can. e resulting discs are
presented in g. 11.
5. CONCLUSIONS
is pluridisciplinary approach, involving elds of
history, archaeology together with engineering, VR and
3D printing may take the Heritage Studies to a new level.
If earlier scholarly and professional activities were focused
‘narrowly on the architectural or archaeological preservation
of the monuments and sites’25 with the new available
technologies, we may oer to the public a past that has been
24 ULTIMAKER CURA 2021.
25 LOGAN/SMITH 2009, xii.
Fig. 8. 3D modelling of the twisted rope elements.
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
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141
Fig. 9. Crease tool feature available within the Sculpt Mode from Blender software.
Fig. 10. e slicing and the printing parameters used for both reconstructed discs.
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Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
142
frequently considered as being lost.
e present case study reveals a very exciting and
attractive way with multiple benets for the public, academic
environment, institutions in charge with the safeguarding of
Cultural Heritage and marketing, as well.
Above all, 3D printing will allow visitors to touch and
feel objects previously behind glass. It ‘will help people to
connect with the objects on an extra level and perhaps gain a
deeper understanding. e implications for visually impaired
visitors are exciting too.’26
ere are already few projects involving the 3D
printing technology running at prestigious museums.
e Science Museum London is displaying 3D printed
organs, prosthetic limbs and reconstructive surgery.27
Already, in 2018, the Manacor Museum of History,
Spain opened an exhibition with artefacts printed in 3D. e
visitors were encouraged to interact with these models, ‘to
hold them and feel them’.28
As Charlotte Coates clearly pointed out there is a
large variety of benets that this technology can oer to
museums and the public. ‘It gives museums the ability to
make collections available to more people. Blind and visually
impaired visitors can experience exhibitions in a new way.
Curators can have the opportunity to take 3D models out
to schools, hospitals, retirement homes and more. is
will help to reach people who might not otherwise visit the
museum. 3D printing can also be used as an extra method of
preserving and safeguarding collections.
is technology can help with education, conser vation
and research. When used alongside existing tools and
expertise, 3D printing can add great value to a museum
collection.’29
Certainly, this technology may also have some
downside aspects that we must be aware of. e material
26 COATES 2020.
27 COATES 2020.
28 COATES 2020.
29 COATES 2020.
used for printing it is not the same as the original artefact is
made of. At the same time, the quality of the material used
for printing may as well the device involved also may aect
the quality of the products.
For the academic environment and the safeguarding
of the cultural heritage the 3D printing technology can be a
great benet.
In 2012, scholars from e Semitic Museum, Harvard
University used the 3D modelling and printing techniques
to recreate a 3,000 years ceramic lion found at the
Mesopotamian city of Nuzi (nowadays, in Iraq) and smashed
in pieces.30
As for the case study done within this paper, the
two artefacts are still on the Interpol wanted list, the only
illustrative available information were the two photos.
Together with the comparative analysis with the similar
recovered artefacts allowed the reconstruction of a 1:1 scale
3D model of each of the two artefacts. Once all the discs,
known at the moment, will be printed in 3D will allow
both scholars and authorities to nd out the more details
on the production technique, decoration, functionality,
and, implicit, to decipher the mentality of a 2,000 years
community that was capable of creating such masterpieces
of work in iron.
It may also oer the possibility to complete the
decorations of the two previously discovered discs, back in
1949. eir poor state of preservation has been misleading
restorers and scholars for decades to consider those
fragments as one disc/shield, until recently when it has been
demonstrated that we are dealing with fragments coming
from two or more dierent artefacts.31
At the same line, a comparative analysis of all these
discs in front of you, at a 1:1 scale, with the possibility to
observe all the details, also knowing the archaeological
context/site where the discs were found, it may oer a clue
whether there could have been even more discs found and
tracked that we were aware of. At the time when these
30 FLAHERTY 2012; COATES 2020.
31 FLOREA/FERENCZ 2004-2005, 50.
Fig. 11. e two 3D printed Dacian ornamental discs.
Journal of Ancient History and Archaeology No. 8.1/2021
Studies
143
artefacts were both tracking and recovery targets for
smugglers and authorities, there was already an impressive
list of stolen and recovered ancient artefacts from Romania,
such as: 700 gold Koson coins; 253 silver Koson types; three
iron discs of the similar category with the ones discuss in this
paper; 31 pseudo-Lysimachus gold coins; a golden necklace
and earrings; 13 Dacian gold spirals, etc.32
At the end, maybe, the most important aspect that
the present study may help us to understand is one of moral,
cultural and sentimental nature. Imagine how many valuable
artefacts which we know them only from photos has been
lost (e.g. the Amber Room, the Kamakura sword, some of the
Fabergé eggs) may be recreated and touched again.
On this way, we hope that at least part of the intangible
heritage may be tangible again!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
e research presented in this paper was partially
supported by 96PD/2020 “Scientic investigation and
promotion of the ornamental Dacian parade shields using
virtual / augmented reality techniques - VART” funded
by the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research,
Development and Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI), Romania
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