Handicrafts of Great Khorasan

Handicrafts of Great Khorasan

New Technology in the Reconstruction of Missing Parts of Blue-and-White Pottery Belonging to the Middle Islamic Centuries Found in the Tabriz Bazaar, Iran

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
mehdi razani 1
Tahereh Ghaffari 2
1 Associate Professor, Department of Conservation and Restoration, Faculty of Cultural Materials Conservation, Tabriz Islamic Art University, Tabriz, Iran
2 M.A. in Archaeometry, Department of Conservation and Restoration, Faculty of Cultural Materials Conservation, Tabriz Islamic Art University, Tabriz, Iran.
Abstract
Around the world, digital technology has proven highly effective and has received attention in documentation, monitoring, and reconstruction as a tool for the restoration and preservation of cultural heritage and as a low-risk method for dealing with the problems in this field. Accordingly, the present study aims to investigate the process of applying rapid prototyping technology, including three-dimensional (3D) scanning and 3D printing, for the reconstruction of missing parts of ceramic artifacts, while examining the advantages and disadvantages of this technology. For this purpose, a glazed ceramic artifact from the Islamic period, excavated during the archaeological investigations of the Tabriz Grand Bazaar, was selected as the case study for conducting historical, comparative, and condition assessment analyses, as well as 3D reconstruction. Historical studies, based on the motifs, colors of the decorations, and the excavation site, indicate that the pottery dates to the Middle Islamic Period. The results of technological studies, based on classical chemical tests conducted to determine the oxides of the color-forming elements of the glaze, indicate the presence of iron oxide in the pottery glaze. Also, serious damage to the pottery, such as loss of structural integrity, lack of strength of the pottery structure, and improper joints resulting from previous conservation during the excavation, were identified. Therefore, in accordance with conservation principles, the previous joins were dismantled, and the initial conservation procedures, including cleaning, consolidation, and reassembly, were carried out. Then, in order to reconstruct the missing parts of the artifact (46%, as calculated by software), three-dimensional images of the sample surface and its missing surfaces were initially prepared with the help of a 3D scanner. In the next step, these 3D images were converted into usable data in a 3D printer by software, and then the missing parts were fabricated by a 3D printer, and the printed parts were fitted to the missing parts of the pottery body, and color matching was performed. In other words, the results of this study showed that the application of this new method leads to a better perception of the form of historical artifacts while providing a safe and non-contact approach to their conservation.
Keywords
Pottery
Conservation and reconstruction
3D scanner
3D printer
Islamic archaeology
Tabriz Bazaar
Subjects
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  • Receive Date 12 July 2025
  • Revise Date 08 September 2025
  • Accept Date 11 October 2025