3D data obtained with a MicroScribe digitising arm and photogrammetry to address bioarchaeological research questions

Virtual methods for studying human remains are becoming increasingly popular in bioarchaeology, and the rate of technological innovation in the last few years has been such that we now have multiple options to choose from when collecting data. This raises the question of whether datasets generated with different methods are transposable. In the study reported here, we investigated whether it is valid to combine 3D data obtained with a MicroScribe digitising arm and 3D data collected via photogrammetry. We did so by simulating a population-based analysis similar to those commonly undertaken in bioarchaeology. Our sample comprised 19 crania from two ethnic groups, Ancient Egyptians and Guanches, and the landmarks we employed pertained to facial shape.
The analyses yielded several findings. First, we found that photogrammetry was significantly more precise than the MicroScribe digitising arm. Second, the photogrammetry-based method revealed the existence of facial shape differences between...