Archaeological Illustration
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Introduction[edit | edit source]
From the moment an artifact is uncovered and undergoes recovery and treatment it is documented, measured, analyzed, photographed and drawn. While advances in photography have allowed for high definition images of artifacts, archaeological illustration remains the dominant form of representation in the majority of publications. Once conservation of an artifact has been achieved, a drawing will be able to provide more relevant, detailed, easily edited, and potentially comparable information than is possible in a photograph. The essential definition of a quality artifact illustration is “…one which incorporates an understanding of the component parts of an artifact with an ability to make an accurate and aesthetic rendering of its character.” [1]
What gives an illustration its strength is the amount of information that can be conveyed in a single image. By omitting the detail that renders a drawing realistic and applying a variety of conventions for various materials, archaeological illustrations become interpretive diagrams rather than artistic or realistic portrayals of the artifact.[2] The illustrator can cater the drawing to his or her intended audience whether it is for publication, where a more technical drawing is common, or for museum display, where a more artistic depiction is suitable. This is also influenced by the available technology, and while 3D imaging is becoming increasingly possible, most illustrators continue to use the more cost-effective pen and ink method. When illustrating for publication, drawings make it easier for researchers to examine and interpret the artifact to better understand its use in both a historical and archaeological context.
History[edit | edit source]
The earliest illustrations of archaeologically significant sites or objects appear during medieval Europe. These include simple drawings of predominantly megalithic structures that were widely held to be the work of magic and mythical characters. Interest in such monuments continued into the Renaissance where attention to specific details about the objects began to be incorporated into the picture. This continued through the seventeenth century where topographical recording of objects taken from a viewpoint at or above ground level was the standard. With the advent of scientific thinking following the Renaissance, there was a realization of the need for accurate scientific drawings to aid in establishing various classification systems. This in turn, led to the creation of illustrated catalogues of antiquities as part of the classification process.[3]
By the late eighteenth century focus remained on architectural or topographical drawings, but the ideals of romanticism influenced many of these drawings, which emphasized the emotion of the scene over clearly depicting the object or site. In the early nineteenth century, technological advances improved the capabilities of illustrators who now utilized metal-plate engraving and wood engraving, as well as lithography for printing illustrations to accompany archaeological excavation. In the twentieth century techniques of printing from photographic originals were improved and supplemented drawing and painting as a suitable means for illustration. Illustrations not only included artifacts and sites, but also stratigraphy and certain features of a site. Once it became possible for photographs to be widely used as a means of “realistic” representation, archaeological illustration became a separate means of analysis based on the illustrator’s interpretation of the subject, proposed audience and the technology available.[2] The advent of modern illustration is associated with the work of General Augustus Pitt-Rivers. His drawings combined a high level of accuracy with artistic shading that is used to this day.[1] In the 1960s illustrators in archaeology began to more widely establish conventions and by 1970 the skill became mainstreamed into the profession. In recent years, there have been increased advances in the use of digital and 3D technology to aid in the drawing of archaeological material.[4][5]
Common Principles[edit | edit source]
There are many different conventions and techniques that are used for artifact illustration around the world today. Also, different projects, laboratories, and illustrators employ different “in-house” techniques that are specific to that specific person or place.[1] Despite this, there are several universal goals within artifact illustration, and a limited way of accomplishing them. These common principles are outlined below.
• Orientation – The minimum to be included is a plan view of both sides and profile view, as necessary. If an object is bent it should be drawn as such, but the original shape can be included as well. Conventions for orientation are based on artifact types. For example, pointed objects such as swords or pins are drawn with the tip facing down, however projectile points are aligned with the point upwards. The illustrator should provide as many views as necessary to convey the most amount of information.
• Scale – It is important to know the scale prior to drawing and how much the reduction or enlargement will affect the details of the artifact.[6] A linear scale should also be included indicating which scale is being used on the actual illustration for future reference. Most small finds can be drawn at a 1:1 scale, meaning 1cm in reality = 1cm on paper. Very small artifacts, such as beads could also be enlarged to show more detail. For larger objects it may be necessary to scale down as necessary, which can include a scale of 1:2 or 1:4, etc. Most illustrations will be further reduced for publication. It is common practice to draw objects at a larger size, taking into account this reduction that will occur during the publication process.[2]
• Outline – There are various ways of outlining the object according to available material. It can be traced directly, measured with an object such as a set-square, drawn using a grid system, scanned, projected, or traced from a scaled photograph so long as the image in the photo was not distorted or taken from an undesirable angle, etc.
• Views – When including multiple views of an object, it is important for the illustrator to show the relationships between those views. Link lines are used to indicate this relationship, and are typically short dashes to clarify to the reader what he or she is looking at. When appropriate, it is also prudent to include a cross-section of the object. This is performed in a variety of methods, but in the final drawing the cross-section is either blacked in or for some materials diagonal lines or stippling is used.
• Shading – Shading is always performed with the light source at an angle of 45˚ from the top left corner of the drawing. For different materials either stippling or lines are used to fill in the shaded areas. Shading is primarily used to show the relief of the object and should be kept to a minimum if possible.
References Cited[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Griffiths, N., A. Jenner, C. Wilson. 1990. Drawing Archaeological Finds: A Handbook. London: Archetype Publications, Ltd.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Adkins, L., and R. Adkins. 1989. Archaeological Illustration. Cambridge, Great Britain: Cambridge University Press.
- ↑ Piggot, S. 1965. Archaeological Draughtsmanship: Principles and Practice, Part 1. Antiquity 39:165-176.
- ↑ Luo, T., L. Renju, H. Zha. 2011. 3D Line Drawing for Archaeological Illustration. International Journal of Computer Vision 94(1):23-35
- ↑ Gilboa, A., A. Tal, I. Shimshoni, M. Kolomenkin. 2013. Computer-based, Automatic Recording and Illustration of Complex Archaeological Artifacts. Journal of Archaeological Science 40(2):1329-1339.
- ↑ Baker, J. 1970. Drawing Archaeological Finds for Publication. London, Great Britain: Clarke, Doble & Brendon Ltd.
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