The past reborn. Digital restitution of the archaeological site of Polizzello

In the last decade, the use of 3D reconstructions of antiquities has become a well established trend that is now widely applied to increase the value of cultural heritage. Only recently 3D computer graphics have been interpreted also as a cognitive tool for the archaeological research, especially with regards to the great monuments of classical civilization. The decision to produce virtual models of pre-protohistoric monuments, often characterized by bad preservation of the remains and lack of other classes of documentary sources, can be considered as a real challenge for archaeologists and experts. This work, fitting the interests of Catania University’s Archeomatica Project (www.archeomatica. unict.it), aims to create a multi-phase virtual model, integrating the natural landscape and human constructions, of the Polizzello Mountain site (Mussomeli, CL), that flourished between the 10th and the 4th century BC. In particular, in this paper, the 3D models of two large holy enclosures are presented. They were interpreted as the focus of the activities of the acropolis of the site between the 8th and the 6th century BC. The elaboration has taken into account all the classes of data collected during the excavations, which have been recently completed, in order to give the philologically correct replica of what the buildings were at the time of their use. The work tool chosen is Blender, an open source, multiplatform software that is extremely powerful and versatile in 3D modelling, rendering and animation.