The rock, the whole rock, and everything about the rock

3D-scanning of Bronze Age rock art sites in central-eastern Sweden using Leica MS60 and RTC360

Abstract

The traditional documentation methods of rock art only rarely record the context and relations of the imagery in full. The new 3D techniques, however, offer interesting possibilities for documenting and analyzing petroglyphs, and are well-equipped to suit such tasks. Handheld scanners and photogrammetrical approaches have varying abilities to record smaller areas of rock art but only rarely a whole outcrop with rock art. In order to capture the full context and relations of the petroglyphs, we have evaluated the potential of other types of 3D-scanners, a Multistation scanner, Leica MS60 and a dedicated dome-scanner, Leica RTC360, to record the topography and rock art of seven rock outcrops in central-eastern Sweden. Our tests conclude that although the scanners perform parts of the recording process differently, they both are capable to capture even faint petroglyphs as well as the curvature and topography of an outcrop, including textures.