Terrestrial Scanning / Archaeology & Cultural Heritage

Nasca-Palpa, Pinchango Alto, Peru 29.08.2007

Pinchango Alto - 3D archaeology documentation using the hybrid 3D laser scan system of Riegl

Pinchango Alto, a hilltop site of the Late Intermediate Period (1000-1400 AD) in Palpa, on the south coast of Peru, is supposed to be an ancient mining settlement where gold bearing minerals have been processed. We report on the extensive survey carried out in order to gain a detailed site plan making use of Riegl's hyprid 3D laser scan system consisting of the high-performance 3D imaging laser sensor Z420i and a mounted high-resolution camera. As the site is situated on an outlying plateau all the equipment had to be carried over rather long distances through a deep canyon southwest of the area of interest.

Combining photogrammetry and laserscanning for the recording and modelling of the Late Intermediate Period site of Pinchango Alto, Palpa, Peru

This paper describes the 3D modelling of Pinchango Alto, Peru, based on a combination of image and range data. Digital photogrammetry and laser scanning allow archaeological sites to be recorded efficiently and in detail even under unfavourable conditions. In 2004 we documented Pinchango Alto, a typical site of the hitherto poorly studied Late Intermediate Period on the south coast of Peru, with the aim of conducting spatial archaeological analyses at different scales. The combined use of a mini helicopter and a terrestrial laser scanner, both equipped with a camera, allowed a fast yet accurate recording of the site and its stone architecture. In this paper we describe the research background, the 3D modelling based on different image and range data sets, and the resulting products that will serve as a basis for archaeological analysis.

ETH Zürich
http://www.photogrammetry.ethz.ch/research/pinchango/index.html