A new exhibition at City Media Plaza in Qingdao, China, is using 3D printing technology to create replicas of ancient cultural relics, drawing in thousands of visitors each day.
The exhibition features a 10-meter-tall, 1:1 replica of a statue of Amitabha from the No.3 cave at the Yungang Grottoes, a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site in Shanxi Province, as well as two pagoda-shaped sculptures and a wall covered in murals.
The 3D printing team at the Yungang Grottoes supported the project, with around 10,000 photos of the original cave taken to create a digital model. The grand Buddha statue was then assembled from 842 individually printed models, which took the team three months to put together. The use of 3D printing allows for the accurate reproduction of large-scale cultural relics, providing a new approach to relic restoration.
The Qingdao exhibition is not the first use of AM technology by the team at the Yungang Grottoes. In 2020, the team displayed more than 100 pieces of 1:1 Yungang replicas made of biodegradable materials at another exhibition held in Shanghai. Ning Bo, the head of the team, noted that such technological restoration not only benefits the field of relic restoration but also helps promote the inheritance of Chinese civilization.
The exhibition reflects a shift in focus from simply protecting and archiving relics, to entering a new era of virtual collections, spurred by creative industries.
By recording important information on the surface of cultural relics in a complete and scientific way through digital technology, these relics can be shared with people for generations to come.
The Yungang Grottoes has 1,500 years of history and is the largest grottoes group belonging to the ancient Xianbei nomadic people in China. The use of 3D printing provides an innovative way to share this cultural heritage with the public and promote its preservation for future generations.
Come and let us know your thoughts on our Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn pages, and don’t forget to sign up for our weekly additive manufacturing newsletter to get all the latest stories delivered right to your inbox.
