The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences. Vol. XXXVII. Part B5. Beijing 2008 
1076 
Figure 8. High-resolution model of a Caryatid statue (El- 
Hakim et al., 2008). 
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 
This work is part of the project “Development of Geographic 
Information Systems at the Acropolis of Athens“, financed by 
the European Union and the Government of Greece, and 
supervised by the Acropolis Restoration Service, Hellenic 
Ministry of Culture. The partners in this project are Elliniki 
Photogrammetriki Ltd (Elpho), Athens, Geotech O.E., Athens, 
ETH (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology), Zurich, National 
Research Council, Canada, Institute for Mediterranean Studies, 
Foundation for Research & Technology (FORTH), Rethymnon, 
Crete, with external cooperators, Leica Geosystems, 
Switzerland and Basis Software Inc., USA. 
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4. CONCLUSIONS 
We have presented a large, complex project on acquisition of 
3D data for the Acropolis of Athens. The data acquisition, 
processing, problems encountered, and some results of the 
digital reconstruction of the Acropolis of Athens have been 
presented. Multiple sensors and techniques, mainly use of 
digital imaging and photogrammetry, and terrestrial laser 
scanning, were employed and some tools had to be adapted for 
use with large complex monuments. Especially, in the case of 
cultural documentation, where the accuracy requirements are 
often high and the visual quality of the final products is 
indispensable, the fusion of different state-of-the-art 
methodologies is a must. The lesson of the work reveals once 
more that a single technique is not enough for the complete and 
detailed modeling of large heritage monuments and sites. The 
combination of different techniques is still the best choice for 
these kinds of projects, exploiting the inherent strengths of each 
approach, where it is best suited. 
The current project, due to its complexity and archaeological 
interest can be characterized, as an important case study for 
similar research, involving large and complex cultural heritage 
sites. The gained experience and lessons learned will be 
valuable for future projects of modelling comparable structures. 
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