CyI Researchers Create Replica of a Votive Relief from the Archaeological Site of Golgoi in Cyprus Using Advanced Digital Methods

A team of researchers from The Cyprus Institute (CyI), in collaboration with the Athienou Municipality, the Kallinikeio Municipal Museum of Athienou, the “Athienou Archaeological Project” and the Larnaka Tourism Board, created a replica of a Votive limestone relief that bears worship and banquet scenes from the archaeological site of Golgoi in Cyprus which is exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The project aimed to deliver a realistic replica of the relief aesthetically and qualitatively in colour, weight, and texture.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York provided high-resolution digital images and the artefact's 3D model for the 3D printing of the replica, which took place at The Cyprus Institute. First, a copy was printed in polylactic acid (PLA) and 0.09mm resolution. The printed copy was then used to create a uniform silicon mold to produce a plaster cast copy. The plaster was easily refined by hand and had approximately the same weight as the original Votive Relief. This helped efforts to emphasize the engraved text and decoration. For the decoration, the artist Iosif Hadjikyriakos, used tools and equipment that would have been used in antiquity to work on the replica's surface, with natural pigments from Cyprus.

The coordination of the project was undertaken by CyI’s Andreas Pittas Art Characterization Laboratories (APAC Labs) of the Science and Technology in Archaeology and Culture Research Center (STARC), with support from CyI’s Office of Research and Technical Support. The project’s coordinator was Marina Faka. The Larnaka Tourism Board funded the project with support from the Deputy Ministry of Tourism.