Unveiling the tomb of an ancient Egyptian priest

The digital documentation of heritage sites is a fundamental step to record the actual condition of an archaeological monument and facilitate the decision-making of experts for a comprehensive conservation plan.

Since 2005 The Mexican Archaeological Mission of TT39 agreed to an unusual, yet astonishing proposal to investigate, excavate and restore the pharaonic tomb of Puimra dating back to 1500 B.C. in Luxor, Egypt. The goal of the Mexican team in Luxor was to refurbish and document one of Egypt’s most important unrestored burial chambers and open its doors to the public.

With the help of theLeica BLK360imaging laser scanner and狮子旋风3D point cloud processing software, the team was able to carry out a precise survey of all underground chambers, exterior surroundings and detailed carvings and paintings on the walls. The digitalisation and restoration of the extensive tomb not only helped preserve the site for future generations but shed light on the reign of one of Egypt's few female pharaohs, Queen Hatshepsut.

Unfolding an ambitious restoration project

The tomb of Puimra dates back to the reign era of Queen Hatshepsut and Thutmosis III (circa 1478 – 1500 B.C.). Puimra was among the highly-respected magistrates, because as the second priest of the god Amun ─ a major ancient Egyptian deity ─ he participated in the construction of Queen Hatshepsut’s temples.

普伊姆拉（Puimra）在王国中的重要作用不仅体现在他的埋葬坟墓的规模和复杂性中，而且他的生活也被描绘在位于Theban Necropolis的Khokha的墙壁上。该坟墓是作为一系列地下室和隧道建造的hypogeum用门廊连接到立面连接，并用石碑，假壁壁和低浮雕的踢脚线装饰。

The main objective of the Mexican Archaeological Mission was to restore this architecturally-complex tomb in danger of collapsing and being lost forever. The joint effort of several Mexican archaeology, architecture, paintings restoration, hieroglyphic epigraphy and photography specialists from different Mexican institutions like Sociedad Mexicana de Egiptología, Universidad del Valle de México,Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia(INAH), Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores and SYSTOP, is led by Gabriela Arrache Vértiz, director of the Mexican Archaeological Mission. The project is supported by Manuel Villarruel Vázquez and Ángel Mora Flores, restorers and Leica Geosystems equipment experts at INAH.

“Leica Geosystems’ 3D scanning technology facilitated the conservation of pharaonic heritage and helped to leave its legacy for future generations”highlighted Arrache Vértiz.

考古任务始于2005年，一直持续到今天。一年一年，团队更接近实现以下目标：

• 对坟墓进行完整的调查。
• 分析和诊断损失。
• 设计保护计划并制定恢复工作的不同阶段。
• Epigraphic analysis.
• Consolidation and restoration of decorated walls, ceilings and vaults.
• 恢复Bas浮雕雕刻。
• 使用3D激光扫描技术将现代方法整合到建筑和题词调查中，以阐明恶化过程，并作为未来研究的基础。
• Facilitate the creation of a cultural and educational program, including printed and digital documents based on the 3D survey.

Collecting the tiniest details with the BLK360

2018年,前team could begin the reconstruction and consolidation of the original walls, vaults and ceilings, INAH’s experts had to survey and document all chambers and the exterior of the tomb to the finest detail.

“As some members of the team had more than 12 years of experience using Leica Geosystems equipment, we had no doubt we needed the BLK360, a laser scanning solution to achieve the highest quality and precision,”来自伊纳（Inah）建筑修复团队的协调员VillarruelVázquez说。

在BLK360成像激光扫描仪和旋风3D点云处理软件的帮助下，该团队能够捕获墙壁和穹顶的所有细节。综合点云使分析绘画，雕刻的题词以及葬礼室建筑特征的微妙合成成为可能。描绘牧师生活的墙雕刻和绘画正在帮助研究人员重建古代生活，工艺和海关，数字化文化表现形式。

将点云和球形图像收集到数字数据库中，包括平面图，3D模型和建筑计划。此外，墙壁，拱顶和结构裂缝的损失还记录并进行了数字记录，以进行进一步的重建和研究。

Leaving a legacy for future generations with the help of laser scanning

The use of advanced 3D reality capture technology, just like the BLK360 and Cyclone software, in a heritage preservation project is a milestone for Mexican archaeologists. The data collected with the 3D reality capture solution will help INAH’s team of researchers, architects and archaeologists assess the level of damage and plan the restoration process of Puimra’s tomb in Egypt for the next work seasons.

得益于获得的结果的高可靠性以及BLK360的长期低成本，Leica Geosystems的激光扫描技术将被使用，直到完成修复项目完成为止。