Pottery from Motion – A Refined Approach to the Large-Scale Documentation of Pottery Using Structure from Motion

Abstract

In recent years, interest in the usage of computer-based methods in archaeology, especially regarding field documentation, has grown significantly. In 2021, Göttlich et al. presented a new large-scale three-dimensional (3D) capture method for the documentation of pottery using structure from motion. This method, however, was only tested on a very small sample set and never truly conducted in a large-scale documentation surrounding. Consequently, we decided to test this workflow on a large-scale basis during three field campaigns (March 2022, November 2022, and March 2023) in Lebanon, documenting more than 4,000 sherds in total. In this article, I will present the results and observations of these campaigns, critically discuss the workflow involved (documentation and processing), and propose a refined workflow for this methodology. This article focuses solely on the relevant documentation and 3D processing.

Keywords

• structure from motion
• photogrammetry
• 3d models
• pottery
• documentation