In 2014, Huma-Num’s Scientific Council approved a consortium dedicated to 3D. The uses of 3D technologies are diversifying and playing an increasingly important role in the study of human societies. A number of research teams are playing a role in the appropriation of these new tools and collaborating in the emergence of new practices. The 3D consortium aims to federate these practices by supporting them with a network of highly involved units. The need to structure the use of 3D in a national consortium meets several objectives: to encompass all the uses of 3D for the study of human societies; to coordinate and structure the production of 3D models at national level and help French teams to position themselves as leaders; to disseminate ‘recommendations’ for the use of 3D in partner networks. These concerns reflect the desire of all the players in the 3D consortium to work together, coordinate and/or pool their efforts in order to optimise the use of 3D methodologies in the service of research objectives, at regional, national and international level.
Calendar : 2009-2012. Projet ANR (Agence Nationale de la Recherche)
Scientific coordination :Françoise Wang, CRCAO / Livio De Luca, MAP
Photogrammetric treatments: Marc-Pierrot Deseilligny, IGN-ENSG
Graphical rendering and semantic annotation : Francesca De Domenico
Analysis of inscriptions : WEI Wen, AN Haiyan, Zeng Hancheng
3D Modelisation: Chawee Busayarat
IT developments: Julie Lombardo, Chiara Stefani
Contact : Livio De Luca
Reflecting its interdisciplinary nature, this project combines two complementary scientific concerns: on the one hand, the advancement of historical knowledge about Qianlong thanks to the ornamental programme of his tomb; on the other, the advancement of the knowledge needed to design and develop representation systems that are genuine tools for scientific investigation and visualisation. The ‘3D spatialisation’ of the inscriptions and iconography in Qianlong’s tomb clearly demonstrates the creation of a virtual stupa thanks to the particular layout of the texts. The construction of this system is based on linking the graphic and computer representation of two parallel levels of description. On the one hand, the description of the morphology of the tomb through the structuring of spatialised geometric entities within a 3D model (collection of architectural forms and spatial relationships), and on the other, the description of knowledge related to Tibetan funerary rituals (abstract concepts and semantic relationships). The graphical and textual data formalised and represented in this way then become accessible within an analysis medium (information system) enabling the relationships between the morphological and conceptual description of the tomb to be explored through three interconnected interactive devices: a 3D scene enabling the physical space to be explored in its entirety, a graph enabling navigation within a network of interconnected abstract concepts, and a dynamic image visualising the theoretical position of the inscriptions (and associated concepts) within a virtual stupa. A real work tool for specialist researchers in the field, this system enables physical and conceptual space to be explored in parallel: an observation point in the 3D scene (or the selection of an entity) corresponds to the relative view (or relative concept) within the concept graph, and vice versa. This system, developed as a web application, enables us to explore and analyse the modalities and extreme sophistication of the use of the written word in Qianlong’s tomb. In the future, it will make it possible to make the most of all the data it contains and compare it with that found in other buildings or on objects used in a funerary context.
Must read : Wang, F., De Luca L. Sinetomb : La représentation sémantique de l’espace. Lettre de l’INSHS No.18 (juillet 20212), p. 7-9. https://www.inshs.cnrs.fr/sites/institut_inshs/files/download-file/lettre_infoINSHS_18HD-min.pdf