Radiography in the Round: Efficient 360° Radiography for 3D Objects

Sharing methodologies and data for 360° X-rays of three-dimensional objects

Composite image. On the left, an X-ray image revealing the inner workings of the terracotta bust of a man. On the right, a conservator placing an X-ray panel behind the terracotta bust of a man.

Conservator Arlen Heginbotham sets up a 360° X-ray scan of Bust of Alexis-Jean-Eustache Taitbout

About

Goal

The Radiography in the Round project has two primary goals. One is to share the methodology for creating 360° X-ray visualizations with other cultural heritage professionals. We hope to assist as many art conservation departments as possible to develop the capability to generate and share 360° X-ray data. The second goal is to make the 360° X-ray data that we generate at the Getty Museum widely accessible. We expect this data will be valuable for scholarly research. We also aim to make the results available to the public as part of our broader commitment to public art education.

Background

X-radiography has been used since its invention to study works of art. X-rays of complex three-dimensional objects, such as sculpture, are notoriously difficult to interpret because the X-ray ‘flattens’ the object into two dimensions and there is no easy way to tell if an observed feature is near the front, middle, or back. By placing our sculptures on a turntable and making X-rays as they turn, we allow researchers viewers to virtually ‘spin’ the objects. This helps tremendously in understanding complex internal structures.

Project Team

Getty Museum, Decorative Arts and Sculpture Conservation Department
Jane Bassett
Madeline Corona
BJ Farrar
Arlen Heginbotham
Richard Hards
Robert Price
Julie Wolfe

Getty Trust
Johana Herrera, Lead Imaging Technician, Center Imaging Studio

University of Amsterdam
Robert Erdmann

Artwork

Resources