VideoMapping Pluteus of Trajan

FORO ROMANO-PALATINO, ROMA

VideoMapping Pluteus of Trajan

Heritage Digitalization / Immersive Experience

The Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill have been the heart and soul of the city’s public life since the end of the 7th century BC. Today the area represents an exceptional context for the study and knowledge of Ancient Rome society.

On the 2018 National Day of Landscape, to commemorate the Forum’s spaces and monuments, Visivalab created a video mapping for one of the so-called Plutei di Traiano, the sculpted walls that delimitate the Ficus Ruminalis. Through the relief, we can approach the political life of the past and learn about the Forum architectural configuration in the Trajan times.

CLIENT Soprintendenza Speciale Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio di Roma

YEAR 2018

FEATURES

Photogrammetric survey
Digital modeling
3D printed model
Video mapping
Exhibition design and set up

Project

This project represents a significant example of the application of new technologies in the conservation and enhancement of cultural heritage. During the first phase, we studied and analyzed the bas-relief archeologically and artistically in order to create a video mapping and a 3D reconstruction with the restoration results.

The Plutei foreground reliefs narrate two scenes from Trajan times. In the first one, a procession of sacred animals (a pig, a ram and a bull) is led to sacrifice for the Suovetaurilia, a purifying ritual. The other scene represents a historical moment in Roman politics: when Emperor Trajan announced to the Senate the Institutio Alimentaria. The emperor presides over the people, declaring the institution of a charitable organization with his funds to care for orphans and children in need, victims of poverty, hunger and wars.

What is relevant about the frieze is that it allows a faithful analysis of the Forum’s architecture of the time because behind the narrative, the temples of Vespasian and Saturn, the Basilica Giulia and the statue of Marsyas are depicted with richness and elegant shapes.

VIDEO MAPPING INSTALLATION

Thanks to the video mapping that Visivalab produced, it is possible to reimagine the original configuration of the Forum by reconstructing its monuments. In the projection, the images of a distant past revived by technology flow before the eyes of the public.

We completed the project with a spectacular installation in the Archaeological Park of the Roman Forum. All the exhibition elements are associated with tags and descriptions, which are also available in braille so the exhibition is accessible to everyone. In addition, we created a full-scale model of the Plutei with a 3D printer that allows us to closely observe and touch it since the original monument is housed in Curia Iulia.