Click on the sherds to download 3D object files







Meshlab - easy to use and good for viewing models. Free to download.

Blender - requires some experience, but is a great 3D modeling and animation suite. Also free.

NextEngine - desktop 3D laser scanner

Oren-Nayer - diffuse lighting model

BackTech.html

3D Modeling of Archaeological Ceramics

Presentation Slides (pdf)

Potsherds, fragments of ceramic pots found in archaeological excavations, are three-dimensional objects, though they are commonly classified by their cross section: a two-dimensional vertical profile estimated by the archaeologist through visual inspection and drawn by hand. Modern 3D scanning and modeling techniques have obvious advantages here: automated data acquisition, removal of user bias, and greatly improved precision and accuracy. Despite these benefits, the technology is uncommon in a field that still relies heavily on traditional pen and ink methods. The goal of this project is to explore the potential of 3D scanning to produce better potsherd profiles for use in existing analysis methods, as well as suggest an automated classification system and pot reconstruction aid based on the three-dimensional data.


A NextEngine desktop laser scanner was used to scan several potsherds for the sample data set. The demo video below shows a program written in Objective C using Cocoa, OpenGL, and GLSL to load and view 3D models that are rendered using a realistic lighting model for rough surfaces.


For the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that the pots are rotationally symmetrical making the vertical axis essential in the analysis. This axis will be estimated as the best fit line through the centers of a set of circles whose outer points lie on the surface of the potsherd. The next step toward this goal is to automatically differentiate between data points that correspond to the original surface of the pot and the areas that were exposed in the break.


Thanks to Anabel Ford and Jon Pagliaro at UCSB’s MesoAmerican Research Center, Paul Sternberg at UC Riverside’s Geology department, Angus Forbes, Wesley Smith at UCSB’s MAT program, and my dad, Ray Shear.

3D Sherd

Paper (pdf)

Source Code

(zip)