@phdthesis{8673252,
  abstract     = {{Artefacts from the ancient Near East have an extensive shape variation, and are above all, worked out extremely detailed, among others, just think of cuneiform tablets or seal impressions. Mainstream imaging techniques such as technical drawings or digital photography are therefore often insufficient to record correctly all and especially the finest characteristics on a surface. In addition, the outcome resulting from the applied imaging technology often becomes the (single) representation through which a heritage object is known; the original is stored away in a collection, only accessible to a handful of individuals. Incomplete / unclear registrations or incorrect estimates of the physical characteristics all too often lead to incorrect interpretations of what the artefact is about.
Since the beginning of the 2000s with the introduction of 3D technologies and interactive 2D methods, such as photometric stereo and polynomial texture mapping, researchers and artefact collection holders were offered new solutions to address these challenges. In the meantime, results of such methods are omnipresent. They were used for both the basic registration / documentation, the study, and for the dissemination of archaeological and heritage objects to researchers and a wide audience. The virtual copies are stored in open or inaccessible databanks; sometimes of good quality, but equally often with many shortcomings.
The objectives, the methods used and the technical limitations of imaging methods are not always aligned. An all-inclusive system where one recording can serve all planned or future goals, seems ideal. Other approaches advocate for a bundling, to carry out a set of methods within one and the same registration effort. The effectiveness of imaging techniques in relation to the objectives is a complex of parameters for which both direct and indirect criteria should be assessed; and this for each (sub)type of artefact separately. Since the arsenal of objects from the ancient Near East seems almost limitless, because imaging techniques have a technological threshold, because digitization leads to a variety of computer files and since time is money; the indirect criteria will even play a dominant role in this assessment. 
Through this study focus is laid on: the accuracy and objectivity of the imaging result in relation to the original artefact; the visualization capabilities for the different types of surface characteristics; the speed and the necessary experience of/for the applied recording techniques; the accessibility of the techniques used and the results obtained; the storage requirements and durability of the data sets; the cost of the required equipment and operation staff; and how the results have the potential to facilitate new, not yet defined research questions. A total of fifteen criteria have been defined around three themes: ‘registration procedure & quality of the results’, ‘management & operability of the results, and  ‘added value of the results’. Ten different imaging methods, varying from low to high technological complex, were assessed in the light of these criteria. Their advantages and disadvantages were commented  with arguments and summarized in well-arranged tables. One imaging technique is discussed in great detail: multi-light reflectance imaging. The thesis establishes this method provides exceptionally good results for different types of ancient Near Eastern heritage and offers great potential for both existing and future research within this field, into material culture, art-historical, and philological and linguistic studies.
This study investigates and demonstrates the interaction between the object, the purpose of the imaging effort and the potential applicability of the specific applied imaging method for a selection of artefacts representative for the material culture of the ancient Near East (cuneiform tablets, seal impressions, physical seals and figurines). To a large extent this is based on proper experiments and elaborated strategies. These were applied for the imaging of extensive collections belonging to scientific institutions and excavation projects; for the study and publication of artefacts, as for the dissemination via online or museum applications. Where proper work did not touch this range of possibilities, examples and conclusions from published results of other research groups were taken into account.}},
  author       = {{Hameeuw, Hendrik}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{xxiv, 435}},
  publisher    = {{Universiteit Gent. Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte}},
  school       = {{Ghent University}},
  title        = {{Interactive imaging systems for ancient Near Eastern heritage artefacts}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}