Study of Large Ruminants Diversity in Java at Eighth Century Based on Borobudur Temple Reliefs

Large ruminants, consisting of cattle and buffalo, have played an important role in human life from the past to the present. Information about the utilization of large ruminants was often found in inscriptions in ancient Java. Unfortunately, the diversity of these large ruminants was not described in detail. The reliefs of the temples can be used as a consideration in understanding the diversity of large ruminants based on the morphological characteristics carved in the reliefs. Borobudur Temple, a historical building from the 8th century AD which was rich in reliefs, can be used as a data source to find information about the diversity of the large ruminants in Java. The aims of this study was to find the diversity of the large ruminants in Java in the 8th century based on the reliefs at Borobudur Temple. The research was conducted by observing various large ruminant images contained in the reliefs of Borobudur Temple. The results of the observations were interpreted and clustered based on their morphological characteristics. The results showed that there were ten relief panels containing images of cattle and nine relief panels containing images of buffalo. Based on the observed morphological characteristics, it could be concluded that there was only one breed of cattle and buffalo, respectively zebu (Bos indicus) and wild buffalo (Bubalus arnee)

Digital relief generation from 3D models

It is difficult to extend image-based relief generation to high-relief generation, as the images contain insufficient height information. To generate reliefs from three-dimensional (3D) models, it is necessary to extract the height fields from the model, but this can only generate bas-reliefs. To overcome this problem, an efficient method is proposed to generate bas-reliefs and high-reliefs directly from 3D meshes. To produce relief features that are visually appropriate, the 3D meshes are first scaled. 3D unsharp masking is used to enhance the visual features in the 3D mesh, and average smoothing and Laplacian smoothing are implemented to achieve better smoothing results. A nonlinear variable scaling scheme is then employed to generate the final bas-reliefs and high-reliefs. Using the proposed method, relief models can be generated from arbitrary viewing positions with different gestures and combinations of multiple 3D models. The generated relief models can be printed by 3D printers. The proposed method provides a means of generating both high-reliefs and bas-reliefs in an efficient and effective way under the appropriate scaling factors

A framework for digital sunken relief generation based on 3D geometric models

Sunken relief is a special art form of sculpture whereby the depicted shapes are sunk into a given surface. This is traditionally created by laboriously carving materials such as stone. Sunken reliefs often utilize the engraved lines or strokes to strengthen the impressions of a 3D presence and to highlight the features which otherwise are unrevealed. In other types of reliefs, smooth surfaces and their shadows convey such information in a coherent manner. Existing methods for relief generation are focused on forming a smooth surface with a shallow depth which provides the presence of 3D figures. Such methods unfortunately do not help the art form of sunken reliefs as they omit the presence of feature lines. We propose a framework to produce sunken reliefs from a known 3D geometry, which transforms the 3D objects into three layers of input to incorporate the contour lines seamlessly with the smooth surfaces. The three input layers take the advantages of the geometric information and the visual cues to assist the relief generation. This framework alters existing techniques in line drawings and relief generation, and then combines them organically for this particular purpose

Polyneices’ Body and His Monument: Class, Social Status, and Funerary Commemoration in Sophocles’ Antigone

There has been much debate about the role of Greek tragedy in questioning and/or affirming values. This paper addresses the broader relationship between theater and society in terms of the ways in which the dead were commemorated in fifth-century Athens. In section 1, I briefly consider different forms of funerary monuments and, in particular, the increase in the use of images of women. I argue that the types of monuments that people erected conveyed specific social and political meanings. In particular, I draw attention to the new role played by images of women to represent the class and civic status of the family, by focusing on the social and political implications of this form of commemoration in comparison with archaic-style burial mounds. Whereas images of women or men in a domestic setting allowed for more ambiguous messages concerning the status of the family, burial mounds (which continued to be erected by a few families in fifth-century Athens) promoted an elite identity that drew on Homeric models. In section 2, I bring together Sophocles’ Antigone with the insights from changes in iconography and funerary practice. I first discuss the representation of Polyneices in the debate between Antigone and Creon, highlighting the emphasis placed on social status. The play defines Polyneices’ class and status through a series of contrasting images (e.g., slave, lower-class male) and further emphasizes the outrage of Creon’s edict by depicting the denial of burial as an attack on Polyneices’ social standing. Then I analyze the representation of his burial and the references to the tools used to build his tomb. I argue that the play presents an aristocratic burial through the location and description of Creon’s construction of the tomb. While the play provides clear support for Antigone and her defense of the unwritten laws in terms of the general right to burial, it also indicates an ongoing concern with social class and its contested role in Athenian society

Pictures in Your Mind: Using Interactive Gesture-Controlled Reliefs to Explore Art

Tactile reliefs offer many benefits over the more classic raised line drawings or tactile diagrams, as depth, 3D shape, and surface textures are directly perceivable. Although often created for blind and visually impaired (BVI) people, a wider range of people may benefit from such multimodal material. However, some reliefs are still difficult to understand without proper guidance or accompanying verbal descriptions, hindering autonomous exploration. In this work, we present a gesture-controlled interactive audio guide (IAG) based on recent low-cost depth cameras that can be operated directly with the hands on relief surfaces during tactile exploration. The interactively explorable, location-dependent verbal and captioned descriptions promise rapid tactile accessibility to 2.5D spatial information in a home or education setting, to online resources, or as a kiosk installation at public places. We present a working prototype, discuss design decisions, and present the results of two evaluation studies: the first with 13 BVI test users and the second follow-up study with 14 test users across a wide range of people with differences and difficulties associated with perception, memory, cognition, and communication. The participant-led research method of this latter study prompted new, significant and innovative developments

An iconography of insularity : a cosmological interpretation of some images and spaces in the late neolithic temples of Malta

This paper proposes a fresh model for interpreting some of the iconography and megalithic architectural forms that emerged in Malta during the Late Neolithic. Recent studies of the relationship between the Maltese archipelago and the world beyond, and between the monumental megalithic sites and their landscape setting, will inform an interpretation of some of the iconography and architectural forms that characterize these sites. Patterns in their use of spatial order, architectural devices and carved reliefs are interpreted as elements in a programmatic recreation of an island cosmology. It is suggested that the prehistoric islanders used these images and spaces to express and mediate concerns with cosmological order.peer-reviewe

Haptic Hybrid Prototyping (HHP): An AR Application for Texture Evaluation with Semantic Content in Product Design

The manufacture of prototypes is costly in economic and temporal terms and in order to carry this out it is necessary to accept certain deviations with respect to the final finishes. This article proposes haptic hybrid prototyping, a haptic-visual product prototyping method created to help product design teams evaluate and select semantic information conveyed between product and user through texturing and ribs of a product in early stages of conceptualization. For the evaluation of this tool, an experiment was realized in which the haptic experience was compared during the interaction with final products and through the HHP. As a result, it was observed that the answers of the interviewees coincided in both situations in 81% of the cases. It was concluded that the HHP enables us to know the semantic information transmitted through haptic-visual means between product and user as well as being able to quantify the clarity with which this information is transmitted. Therefore, this new tool makes it possible to reduce the manufacturing lead time of prototypes as well as the conceptualization phase of the product, providing information on the future success of the product in the market and its economic return