3D Recording Las Cuevas Project

The data collected during the '3D Recording Las Cuevas Project' come from the site of Las Cuevas, located in the Chiquibul Reserve in western Belize, Central America. The data collection was possible in the framework of the Las Cuevas Archaeological Reconnaissance (LCAR) Project directed by Professor Holley Moyes (University of California, Merced).

The only notable investigation conducted at Las Cuevas's site, originally referred as "Awe Caves", was conducted in 1957 by Adrian Digby for the British Museum (1958), who wrote a brief article for the London News with the description of the site and the report of his excavation. In 1962 A. H. Anderson, Commissioner of the Belize Department of Archaeology, in a paper presented for the Americanists' Congress mentioned a visit to Las Cuevas in 1938 when he produced a sketch map of the site.

Las Cuevas is an ancient Maya mid-size site that dates to the later part of the 9th century AD. The aspect of the superficial site of Las Cuevas appears similar to many Late Classic Belizean sites, such as Baking Pot, Floral Park, Blackman Eddy or Minanha. The originality of this site when compared to the others resides in a large cave system located directly beneath Structure 1, and runs beneath Plaza A. The cave presents a massive, cathedral-like, entrance and an architecture that was probably modified for large public performances. Moreover inside the cave's entrance is a cenote with a natural spring at its base.

The aim of LCAR is to combine evidences coming from the structures in the cave with those of the surface site to describe and clarify how the community used the different spaces of the site for ritual practices, and how those practices relate to the sociopolitical and natural environments.

During the summer 2011 and 2012, a 3D documentation campaign was conducted to compare laser scanning and image-based modelling techniques in extreme environmental and lighting conditions, characterized by very high humidity and variability in lighting. Different areas of the site were selected for the acquisition to compare the 3D documentation techniques in areas characterized by diverse environmental conditions and light exposures. The 2012 data collection was done in collaboration with the Humanities Lab at Lund University (Sweden) in the person of Stefan Lindgren.

More information on Las Cuevas can be found at" http://faculty2.ucmerced.edu/hmoyes/research

‘拉斯库瓦斯三维记录项目’（3D Recording Las Cuevas Project）所采集的数据，源自中美洲伯利兹西部奇基布尔保护区（Chiquibul Reserve）境内的拉斯库瓦斯遗址（Las Cuevas）。本次数据采集工作，依托由加州大学默塞德分校霍利·莫耶斯教授主持的拉斯库瓦斯考古勘探（Las Cuevas Archaeological Reconnaissance, LCAR）项目开展。

该遗址最初被称为“奥维洞穴”（Awe Caves），此前仅有两项值得关注的考古调查：1957年，阿德里安·迪格比受大英博物馆委托开展相关工作，并于1958年在《伦敦新闻》发表短文，详述遗址概况与发掘报告；1962年，伯利兹考古局局长A·H·安德森在美洲学家大会提交的论文中提及，他曾于1938年到访拉斯库瓦斯遗址并绘制了遗址草图。

拉斯库瓦斯是一处古代玛雅中型遗址，年代可追溯至公元9世纪晚期。该遗址地表遗存风貌与伯利兹境内诸多晚古典期遗址（如烘焙壶遗址、花卉公园遗址、布莱克曼埃迪遗址或米南哈遗址）高度相似。其独特之处在于，遗址1号建筑正下方发育有大型洞穴系统，该洞穴延伸至A广场下方。洞穴拥有规模宏大的教堂式入口，其内部建筑结构或曾经过改造，以适配大型公共仪式活动。此外，洞穴入口内部还设有一处天然井（cenote），底部带有自然泉水。

拉斯库瓦斯考古勘探项目的核心目标，是整合洞穴内建筑遗存与地表遗址的考古证据，系统阐释古代社群如何利用遗址内的不同空间开展仪式活动，并揭示此类仪式活动与社会政治环境及自然环境之间的关联。

2011年与2012年夏季，项目组开展了三维记录工作，旨在对比激光扫描（laser scanning）与基于图像的建模（image-based modelling）技术在极端环境与光照条件下的应用效果——此类环境以高湿度与光照多变为典型特征。本次数据采集选取遗址内多个区域，以对比不同三维记录技术在环境条件与光照暴露程度各异的区域中的表现。2012年的数据采集工作，由瑞典隆德大学人文实验室的斯特凡·林德伦团队协作完成。

更多关于拉斯库瓦斯遗址的详细信息，可访问：http://faculty2.ucmerced.edu/hmoyes/research