Photogrammetric modeling of museum collections for researcher access

Museums seek ways to increase access to their collections while minimizing adverse impacts on those same collections. This study examines how the creation of three dimensional photogrammetric models can impact researcher access to museum collections and suggests through example how to incorporate photogrammetric modeling into museum collection practice. Sixty Casas Grandes ceramic vessels from the Fred Miles held-in-trust collection at the Museum of Texas Tech University were 3D modeled as a case study to determine the viability of using photogrammetric models for research. Two focus groups were used to determine the usefulness and reliability of the models. The first focus group was comprised of five graduate student assistants who measured both the physical and virtual vessels in order to determine the accuracy and precision of analog measuring versus digital measuring. Ultimately, measurements taken on the virtual vessels were more accurate and precise than measurements taken on the physical vessels. The second focus group was comprised of twenty-four ceramic researchers, Casas Grandes experts, and digital heritage specialists who evaluated and documented the virtual vessel’s potential for use in research as well as the viability of similar modeling projects. These researchers found the models to at least meet their expectations for overall-quality needed for research.