Abstract

One of the major masterpieces of international Gothic art (1350-1450) is located in the Aquila tower in Buonconsiglio castle, Trento, Italy. The main room in the tower is completely frescoed with the Cycle of the Months, a rare example of medieval painting on a nonreligious subject. The frescos depict medieval time month by month with stunning details of the landscape, costumes, and every element of daily life. As part of the PEACH (Personal Experience with Active Cultural Heritage) project, the objective of this work is to acquire the most suitable data and generate a textured 3D model for interactive manipulation and creation of a photo-realistic walkthrough movie. This will give a vista to scientists, conservationists, historians, and visitors for looking at and studying this room and its frescos in virtual reality. Since photo-realism of the frescos is of utmost importance, it became apparent that many issues related to geometric and radiometric distortions must be addressed. For example, texture data is typically collected as images containing specific lighting conditions. When these images are stitched together, discontinuities are usually visible. Another predicament is the real-time requirement of visualisation and manipulation of 3D models. Since it is important to maintain the best texture quality to visualize the details of the frescos and at the same time have smooth interactive visualization, memory problems had to be addressed. We build upon existing techniques developed for texture acquisition and reconstruction to generate efficient maps of high visual quality. Results of the first phase of the project are presented. 1.1 Objectives of the Project 1.

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