Virtual Replication of the Idalion Tablet

Abstract

The Idalion Tablet is an antique bronze (480-470 BC) found around 1850 in the antique city of Idalion in Cyprus. It has an important historical value for Cyprus, as it is the longest testimony of Cyprus sillabary writing. The tablet has been the property of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF) since 1862. Our final goal is to realise a per- fect physical copy of the Idalion Tablet (scale 1, with no patina) as a donation to the Idalion Museum in Cyprus. In a few months the historical building "Richelieu" of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France is going to be renovated, leading the museum to close for an unknown time. We present here the realisation of a high quality virtual copy of the Idalion tablet, with the same shape and a spectrally simulated visual appearance of the precious artefact as it could be in the ancient times. We used 3D digitization to create a virtual and accurate replica of the tablet shape as we were not allowed to handle it directly. The Centre de Recherche et de Restauration des Musées de France (C2RMF) took a sample of the alloy out of the Idalion Tablet, and analysed its elementary composition using the PIXE method. The complex index of refraction of the alloy was calculated using previous scientific results. The virtual copy was then computed with the Virtuelium free software. The physically based images obtained by spec- tral simulation will be used on the BNF website to give the public an access to its collections. A didactic movie is also in progress for that purpose. We shall then realise the physical copy of the tablet by rapid prototyping, and casting, in collaboration with the Centre Technique des Industries de la Fonderie (CTIF) and the Ecole Supérieure de Fonderie et de Forge (ESFF).