3D Objects at UMAG

Today, museums, libraries, archives, and other cultural institutions are increasingly digitizing their collections and making them available to all as searchable databases. There are many challenges involved, including learning how to leverage new technologies and approaches to turn objects and associated information into machine-readable data. Through this process, museums are discovering how to incorporate digital technologies into public-facing exhibitions and programmes, and as a way of managing collections behind the scenes.

Created in conjunction with the University of Hong Kong’s Common Core course Dead People's Things: Excavating the Past with Archaeology (CCHU9080), 3D Objects at UMAG is an ongoing database of 3D models scanned from the collection of the University Museum and Art Gallery (UMAG). Each item is the result of student-led research using common methodologies employed in the digital humanities, including data collection, curation, digitization, and interpretation.

By working with objects in the UMAG collection, students evaluate emerging digital methods for interacting with museum objects, while gaining simple experience with relevant technologies. Each model on this site has been created using Agisoft Metashape, which performs photogrammetric processing of digital images to generate 3D spatial data.