Abstract

This study presents an attempt to create a digital reconstruction of the W-5 shipwreck (the Copper Ship) based on data acquired by 3D scanning of structural components held at the National Maritime Museum in Gdańsk and on a physical reconstruction model of the ship’s hull. A digital reconstruction would facilitate analysis of various possible options for the structural design of the hull, and would enable the preparation of a model for visualisation and simulation purposes and for a physical reconstruction in the form of a 3D printout. As part of this project an attempt was made to devise and test a reconstruction methodology for salvaged shipwrecks, which often pose particular diffi culties because of: a) their great complexity, arising from their significant number of components, complicated shape, deformation in relation to their original form, and from their being disjointed and incomplete; b) the large size of some components, which often, in combination with diffi cult access, leads to problems in obtaining a complete digital image of such components; c) incomplete documentation – the wreck has been excavated, but often only scant records survive of the locations in which individual components were found on the seabed, or of the manner in which they were connected before being dismantled for conservation. In consequence, we are faced with an unusual task that entails fi tting various parts of a wreck together, primarily based on their shape – which is usually distorted. A hybrid approach was chosen which involved using scanned data combined with manual modelling (carried out using engineering support tools) based on accepted principles and archaeological knowledge on the subject of historical sailing vessels.

Author (1)