A method for similarity assessment between death masks and portraits through linear projection: The case of Vincenzo Bellini. (June 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Sequenzia, Gaetano; Allegra, Dario; Fatuzzo, Gabriele; Milotta, Filippo Luigi Maria; Stanco, Filippo; Oliveri, Salvatore Massimo
• Is Part Of: Digital applications in archaeology and cultural heritage. Number 17(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-06
• Subjects: 3D death mask -- Landmarks projection -- 3D-2D comparison -- Face recognition; Archaeology -- Methodology -- Periodicals; Cultural property -- Protection -- Periodicals; 930.1
• DOI: 10.1016/j.daach.2020.e00144
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2212-0548

Abstract

Abstract: The aim of this study was to confirm the identities of numerous portraits attributed to the composer Vincenzo Bellini by using 3D-to-2D projection. This study also followed on from earlier research on three death masks of Bellini, the results of which had shown that the wax mask in Catania's Bellini museum best represented Bellini's face compared to the other two. This study used the aforementioned 3D wax death mask obtained through Reverse Engineering as a reference for a morphometric comparison with 14 other portraits. For each portrait, the linear 3D-to-2D transformation M was found which minimized the distance between the 2D landmarks in the picture and the projected landmarks on the 3D mask. This normalized the distances considering the scale of the portrait and the final dissimilarity score with the mask. In particular, the analytical results were able to identify two portraits which particularly resembled the 3D death mask providing future researchers with the chance to carry out historical-artistic evaluations. We were also able to develop a new tool – Image Mark Pro - to easily annotate 2D images by introducing landmark locations. Since it was so reliable for manually annotating landmarks, we decided to make it publicly available for future research. Highlights: A new study to find the most accurate portrait of V. Bellini using his death mask. A new strategy to assess the similarity between a 3D mask and a 2D portrait. A new tool to put multiple landmarks in a 2D image and export them in a text file. A statistical analysis to test the quality of the manual landmark's annotation.