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VIRTUALISATION OF AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE 
E.S. Malinverni, G. Gagliardini, G. Fangi, 
FIMET — Universita di Ancona, Via Brecce Bianche, Ancona Italy 
fangi(@unian. it 
Commission V, WG V/4 
KEY WORDS: 3D modelling, DEM, DSM, Virtual Reality, Multimedia Interaction, Cultural Heritage, Archaeology 
ABSTRACT: 
Virtual reality is a promising technique for archaeologists. Its suitability is shown by the virtual reconstruction, after a geodetic and 
photogrammetric survey, of an archaeological site in Oman. The traditional computer graphics methods and the new computer vision 
techniques are applied in combination to realize realistic 3D scenes from different viewpoints. Not only the wire-frame of the model 
of the site is visible, but , thanks to the texture technique, almost every details also is illustrated. However the mains problems arise 
for the generation of the whole site, by means of CAD or 3D modelling systems, that has to be done almost always manually. 
Moreover it is time consuming and critical to obtain a realistic surface texture with complex shape and it requires a lot of human 
interaction. The result has not only an high degree of realism but it is also important for any possible related study. This model can be 
used for a realistic walk through the archaeological site. Furthermore the 3D model can offer and test historical hypothesis for the 
monuments, buildings, routes, to enable future preservation and restoration projects. The difficult concept of “reconstruction” is also 
discussed, especially questions about how to “complete” fragmented archaeological data. General solutions to rendering, texturing 
and illumination the CAD model give some clues to the concept of “realism” and why we need “realistic” models. A final 
presentation of interactivity and the basis of “augmented” reality are showed. By means of a virtual format, it can be gained to visit 
here and now, “on site”, ancient sites open to the virtual tourism to a global public. 
1. KHOR RORI: AN ANCIENT SITE IN THE SOUTH 
OF ARABIA 
The South-Arabic harbour of Khor Rori is a small fortified city 
situated on a rocky hill that dominates the Eastern side of a 
large lagoon fed by Darbat wadi (Figure 1). 
The inscriptions on the city gate prove that the city, whose 
ancient South-Arabic name was Sumhuram, was founded by the 
king of Hadramawt, linked to the development of sea-trade 
(Figure 2). 
  
Figure 2. The natural port of Khor Rori 
Sumhuram was the connecting point between the caravan route 
that moved upwards in the direction of the semidesertic region 
of Nejd (where incense was and is still produced) and the sea 
trade route between the Mediterranean Sea and India. The 
Sumhuram of the monumental phase was a small, walled, 
strongly fortified city about 1 ha in area, with a tripartite city 
gate, a monumental building (a palace or a temple), two-storey 
private dwellings and large storehouses. The city was founded 
in the late first century BC and its flourishing can be placed 
between the late first century BC and the beginning of the 
fourth century AD. 
The architectonic complex of the city gate, which juts 
northward from the walls of Sumhuram, is probably the most 
interesting feature of the settlement (Figure 3). 
  
Figure 1. The geographical localization 
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