TSU downloads all process of excavation of a burial ground in 3D

TOMSK, Dec 21 – RIA Tomsk, Karina Sapunova. Scientists of the laboratory "Artefakt" of Tomsk State University (TSU) plan to publish in the Internet archive with three-dimensional images of excavation of the Timiryazevo burial ground – the largest of the West Siberian burials relating to the early Middle Ages by 2018, the Head of the Laboratory Olga Zaytseva reported to RIA Tomsk.

Earlier it was reported that the TSU laboratory "Artefact" is one of the first in Russia which began to use three-dimensional technologies for archeology. The main directions of its work are scanning of monuments of archeology by means of unmanned aerial vehicles and creation of three-dimensional models of archeological finds and museum pieces.

"The digital archive of excavation of the Timiryazevo burial ground is created (it is located near Tomsk – editor's note). It is the first monument in Russia to which 3D-fixing was applied at all stages since removal of the turf. I think, it will be completely downloaded (in the Internet) by the end of 2017", – Zaytseva told.

She specified that the Timiryazevo burial ground is the largest of the similar objects in Western Siberia dated by the early Middle Ages. "It is huge – more than 600 barrows. One 50th part is maybe investigated at the moment", – the interlocutor of the agency noted.

According to her, digital technologies allowed to imprint precisely one of burial ground fragments that will allow the scientists who wasn't participating in excavation to obtain objective information on the object. Besides, similar three-dimensional models can be used in museum expositions.

"There was an exhibition on this burial ground, and stereovisualization was used there – the person could "visit" excavation, the effect of immersion was provided. <…> It is important for the West Siberian archeology. Many people consider that archeology monuments are always stones as Stonehenge or pyramids. And we have everything in the earth, and it is opened only at the time of excavation, remaining unknown for people", – Zaytseva added.