Preserving our Past (PoP): Comparing Methods of Digitally Replicating Historical Artifacts

The creation of a digital model of a physical artifact can be a viable method for preserving physical artifacts from deterioration. The purpose of this thesis is to explore how to make digital artifact creation more accessible to non-scanning experts in order to expand the field of historical preservation to all people. The goal of the thesis is to determine which method of digital artifact capture produces the highest fidelity digital artifact while balancing user accessibility, cost, and usability. This study analyzed this through the creation of an online survey that asked participants to compare models created utilizing various digital capture methods. The results of the survey suggest that photogrammetry is currently the best method of high-fidelity digital artifact creation that balances accessibility, cost, and usability. The results also suggest that photogrammetry is effective at creating digital models of small artifacts with characteristics that typically cause errors in data capture and three-dimensional model creation. These results support the potential for democratizing digital artifact creation to include the contributions of non-experts from all communities and backgrounds, potentially deepening historical knowledge