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• When the Saint Louis Art Museum wanted to display the power and influence of the Roman Empire, it used 3D printing to bridge a 2,000 year gap. The museum’s current...
Additional Context
When the Saint Louis Art Museum wanted to display the power and influence of the Roman Empire, it used 3D printing to bridge a 2,000 year gap. The museum’s current exhibit, “Ancient Splendor: Roman Art in the Time of Trajan,” features unprecedented artifacts on loan from Italy. But one piece they could not pack in a shipping crate was Trajan’s Column, 38 meters of carved marble column still standing today in the Foro di Traiano, in Rome.
The art museum wanted to bring the sights, sounds, and even smells of ancient Rome to their Midwestern America exhibit. Visitors can see sculptures of Trajan and his family, smell recreated gardens and foods, and listen to field recordings made at the Roman Baths in Bath, England. But a vital piece of Trajan’s legacy is the massive Trajan’s Column, erecte