Archaeology and cultural heritage sites

The Cultural Heritage Project involves the 3D reconstruction of two sites: Godin Tepe in Iran (left image, partial architecture reconstruction), and Tiwanaku in Bolivia (right image, village reconstruction).

Excavation had begun at Godin Tepe in 1975; however, due to erosion the mud brick reconstruction of the architecture has degraded. This project is an effort to recreate the site as well as aid in the visualization of how this site was used. AutoCad drawings of Godin Tepe were brought into Maya and served as the blueprint for the architecture. Human figures were also modeled in Maya and placed in Room 18, speculated to be a distribution center for weaponry and slingballs. The pottery is modeled from drawings of those found in Period V of Godin Tepe. The final product is a movie walkthrough. This digital reconstruction is guided by archaeologist Virginia Badler.

The Tiwanaku site is managed by the Dr. Clark Erickson in Penn's Anthropology department. The monumental architecture remains were the basis for 3D architectural reconstructions done by students in CSE106 during Fall 2005 using Maya and SketchUp. Three Penn DMD undergraduates are or have been affiliated with the project excavation and data collection in Bolivia .