Visualization and 3D data processing in the David restoration

The program of scienti?c investigations planned in the framework of the restoration of Michelangelo's David produced several useful guidelines for de?ning and developing innovative ways to process and visualize 3D data in cultural heritage applications. Our ultimate goal was to include 3D graphics among the tools which can help restorers select the proper restoration procedures for the task at hand and objectively assess restoration results. For this, the David restoration was an ideal test bed to demonstrate the usefulness of digital 3D models and visualization tools in a restoration project. The scientific analysis program began in Florence, Italy, in 2002, under the direction of Mauro Matteini and Franca Falletti. Because a complex set of scientific investigations was planned before and after the restoration intervention, we could try various methodologies to support restorers and scientists with visualization tools based on 3D digital models. In particular, a 3D digital model can support restoration either as a tool for undertaking speci?c investigations or as a supporting media for archiving and integrating the restoration-related information, gathered with the different studies and analyses performed on the artwork.