Paper short abstract:

Multiview 3D reconstruction is the by which a full 3D model is derived from a series of overlapping images. This paper presents the recording, 3D reconstruction and presentation of Weymouth's Viking mass burial by Oxford Archaeology. Open tools and methods enables this technique to be used by all.

Paper long abstract:

In June and July 2009, during work to proceed the Weymouth Relief Road, Oxford Archaeology excavated a mass grave on the crest of the Dorset Ridgeway: 51 decapitated Viking skulls had been placed in a pile in a disused quarry pit approximately 8 m in diameter and their associated bodies had been discarded haphazardly in another area of the same pit.

The grave was the primary find of the excavation and contained nothing more than the human remains; as such it was important, complex and well photographed. This provided the opportunity to develop a method of "bonus" multiview-3D reconstruction from the existing archaeological archive and to produce models and animations that were presented via a variety of media. This paper describes the process of using readily available Computer Vision techniques and routinely produced photographic records to construct a detailed and accurate 3D model without significant cost or time overhead.

Oxford Archaeology intends to improve upon the technique and to release the necessary software in a convenient package. By doing so we hope to promote a widespread adoption of 3D reconstruction in a manner more sustainable than previous offerings. This paper details the balance between practical considerations of rapid 3D practice and the intended purpose of produced results with reference to Dorset's unfortunate Scandinavian visitors.