Seeing the Unseen. The Selene Project for 3D Digitization of Cultural Heritage

Funded by the Helen Hamlyn Trust, ARCHiOx – Analysis and Recording of Cultural Heritage in Oxford, is a collaborative project which has united Oxford University’s Bodleian Libraries and the Factum Foundation. The Selene Photometric Stereo Scanner was conceived and developed by the latter and has, for the last three years, been piloted at the Bodleian Library. This technology has been used to reveal near-invisible text and artwork from originals from across Oxford University’s collections. Renders created with the Selene PSS, have revealed what is difficult or impossible to record through conventional photography, and have allowed for the creation of physical facsimiles. This paper serves to demonstrate how Selene recordings have assisted in the research of cultural heritage originals and natural history specimens.