Museum and Cultural Heritage Applications

Scansite 3D has worked extensively with museums and other cultural heritage institutions. A few of the prestigious institutions we have worked with include The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Smithsonian Institution, The American Museum of Natural History, Saint Louis Art Museum, and the North Carolina Museum of Art.

Our ATOS and Breuckmann structured light 3D scanning systems allow us to capture crisp detail on the smallest features. Our 3D data can be used for replication, archiving, scholarly study and interactive media applications.

Some of the 3D services we provide:

  • 3D scanning – In our studio or at your location: Scansite 3D travels coast to coast in the U.S. as well as to foreign countries
  • 3D data editing: Unlike many of our competitors, we at Scansite 3D meticulously edit our 3D data before passing it on to the downstream application.
  • CNC milling and 3D printing
Tullio Lombardo's "Adam", 3D scanned and digitally re-assembled for the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Restoration of Tullio Lombardo’s AdamMetrolpolitan Museum of Art

When the pedestal supporting Tullio Lombardo’s Adam collapsed on October 6, 2002, the priceless statue broke into approximately fifty pieces.  Over the next decade The Metrolpolitan Museum of Art’s conservation staff planned and eventually restored Adam.  The restored statue was unveiled in November 2014.

Scansite 3D assisted the Met’s staff with Adam’s reconstruction, first by 3D scanning and digitally assembling the broken pieces, and subsequently with other processes including Finite Element Analysis and CNC milling.

READ ENTIRE PROJECT REPORT FROM THE METROLPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART
3D scanning of The Ruth Anne Dodge Memorial, also known as the Black Angel, in Council Bluffs, Iowa

3D scanning The Ruth Anne Dodge Memorial, also known as “The Black Angel“, in Council Bluffs, Iowa

The Ruth Anne Dodge Memorial, also known as “The Black Angel” is located on a hilltop overlooking the Missouri River, in Council Bluffs, Iowa.  The statue is the work of  the American sculptor Daniel Chester French.

The City Council of Council Bluffs wanted to have a digital record of the unique statue  (some thought it should be re-located to a museum), and so in 2016, Scansite 3D travelled to Council Bluffs to 3D scan the statue and create a digital archive.

3D scanning the Spirit of the Oceans fountain at the Santa Barbara County court house, Santa Barbara, CA

3D Scanning the Spirit of the Oceans Fountain at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse in Santa Barbara, CA

Scansite 3D managed the restoration of the “Spirit of the Oceans” Fountain at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse.  The restoration project won the Marble Institute of America’s “Grand Pinnacle Award for Excellence”.

(The “Grand Pinnacle Award for Excellence” is awarded annually for the best overall project using stone).

READ – CASE STUDY
READ – BLOG
3D scanning of Michelangelo's "Cupid" ("Eros")

3D Scanning Michelangelo’s “Cupid”

In 2009, art historian Kathleen Weil-Garris Brandt identified a statue located in the the cultural services of the French Embassy, as an original work by Michelangelo Buonarroti.  The French cultural services building is located on 5th Avenue in New York, very close to the Frick Collection and the Metropolitan Museum.

The French government and the Metropolitan Museum agreed to move the original Cupid to the Met and to make a precise copy for the cultural services building.  Scansite 3D assisted in the creation of the copy by 3D scanning the original Michelangelo statue.

3D scanning the medieval cloister of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa at The Cloisters Museum in New York City

3D Scanning the Medieval Cloister of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa at The Met Cloisters Museum in New York

The Medieval Cloister of Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa is installed at The Metropolitan Museum’s Cloisters Museum in New York City.  The stone cloister was originally acquired in France in the early 20th century by the American sculptor George Grey Barnard.

In 2009, the Scansite 3D team performed the 3D scanning of all thirty-six of the columns and capitals.  The resulting data sets will be used for several purposes, including (1) creating a virtual 3D model of the original cloister, and (2) production, in France, of a full size replica of the original structure.

READ AN EXCELLENT HISTORY OF THE MET CLOISTERS